Seattle Museum Set to Repatriate Sacred Native Artifact
Published Date: 3/19/2025
Notice
Summary
The Burke Museum in Seattle plans to return a special cultural item linked to Native American or Native Hawaiian groups, following important laws that protect their heritage. This means the museum is giving back something that belongs to these communities, showing respect and care. The process is happening soon and helps strengthen ties between the museum and Native peoples without any cost impact.
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Repatriation of Funerary Object
The Thomas Burke Memorial Washington State Museum (Burke Museum) in Seattle intends to return a cultural item that the museum says is an "unassociated funerary object". The item has a cultural affiliation with Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations and will be repatriated under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). The notice says the process is happening soon and that this return has no cost impact.
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Key Dates
Department and Agencies
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Previous / Next Documents
Previous: 2025-04625, Notice of Inventory Completion: Booth Family Center for Special Collections, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Georgetown University's Booth Family Center has finished checking its collection and found that some human remains belong to Native American tribes or Native Hawaiian groups. This means these groups can now ask for the remains to be returned. If you’re part of these communities, now’s the time to speak up and claim what’s rightfully yours!
Next: 2025-04627, Notice of Inventory Completion: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Oklahoma-Texas Area Office, Oklahoma City, OK
The Bureau of Reclamation in Oklahoma City has finished checking and listing Native American human remains and related items. They’ve confirmed these remains belong to specific Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian groups. This means the items will be returned to the right communities, following important laws that protect Native heritage.