Bibliography on Repatriation
Labriola Center
This bibliography lists reference material dealing with repatriation of Native American remains and grave goods. The resources listed here include material found in the Labriola National American Indian Data Center and the University Libraries at Arizona State University, websites, and other research facilities. This document is also located on the Labriola Center website at www.asu.edu/lib/archives/labriola.htm.
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT REPATRIATION
In 1993, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was passed by Congress to address the rights of Native American tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations to the human remains, and sacred funerary objects of their ancestors. NAGPRA required museums and institutions to assemble information about their holdings, to make that information available, and to work with Native groups to repatriate remains and sacred objects to them for reburial.
Books
Ancient Burial Practices in the American Southwest: Archaeology, Physical Anthropology, and Native American Perspectives. Douglas R. Mitchell & Judy L. Brunson-Hadley, Editors. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2001. A collection of essays focused on particular cultures, such as the Hopi, Pueblo, Zuni, and Hohokam.
The Future of the Past: Archaeologists, Native Americans, and Repatriation, Tamara L. Bray, Editor. NY: Garland Publishing, 2001. A collection of essays expressing different views on the topic.
Indigenous Archaeology: American Indian Values and Scientific Practice, Joe Watkins. Lanham, MD: Alta Mira Press, 2000. Essays on repatriation and related issues, including Kennewick Man, management of particular sites, and global repatriation. The author is an archaeologist of Choctaw descent.
Mending the Circle: A Native American Repatriation Guide, Barbara Meister, Editor. NY: American Indian Ritual Object Repatriation Foundation, 1996. Designed as a guide to help readers achieve repatriation of items, the book is full of information about dealing with public and private institutions. Appendices include the text of NAGPRA, lists of collections of Native American art, sample documents, and newspaper articles.
Native Americans and Archaeologists: Stepping Stones to Common Ground, Nina Swider and others, Editors. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press, 1997. A collection of essays and case studies about Native American reaction to archaeology and repatriation, representing the opinions of Native Americans and non-Natives, archaeologists, museum specialists, and federal representatives.
Repatriation Reader: Who Owns American Indian Remains? Devon Mihesuah, Editor. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000. A recent collection of essays about repatriation, by both Native and non-Native scholars and professionals, this book includes essays on the history that led up to the current debates over repatriation. Includes text of NAGPRA.
Sacred Objects and Sacred Places; Preserving Tribal Traditions, Andrew Gulliford. Boulder: University of Colorado Press, 2000. The first 65 pages of this book deal specifically with the repatriation of remains and sacred objects. The rest of the book is about peripheral subjects: use of sacred sites, religious freedom, tribal identity, etc.
Skulls and Skeletons: Human Bone Collections and Accumulations, by Christine Quigley. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2001. Contains a 25-page section on repatriation. The rest of the book is about museum collections, ossuaries, and graveyards in Europe and North America.
Journal Articles
There are several ways to find articles on-line. Here are a few suggestions.
- From the Hayden Library's home page, click on Indexes. Under Subject, drag to or type in American Indians, and click on Go. This will generate a list of several data bases. America: History and Life, for example, or Bibliography of Native North America, will list articles in scholarly journals. Ethnic Newswatch will link to news articles in Native newspapers.
- From the Hayden Library's home page, click on Resources, then on E-Journals, then on E-Journals by collection. This will generate a list of many collections; some will be helpful. Annual Reviews-Social Sciences, CatchWord, EBSCO, and JStor, for example, all have articles on repatriation.
Periodicals
The Labriola Center has a collection of magazines and newsletters, some of which will have articles relating to repatriation. Issues of Federal Archaeology Magazine, and Common Ground: Archaeology and Ethnography in the Public Interest, are also listed in the Ephemera collection.
Internet Sites
- The National Park Service maintains and updates two websites about NAGPRA:
- www.cast.uark.edu/products/NAGPRA/nagpra.html This is the National Archaeological Database, containing lists and links to legal documents, guidelines, and lists of inventory from different organizations. Search engines can help locate specific artifacts.
- www.cr.nps.gov/nagpra/ This site has a lot of the same information, but is arranged slightly differently. It does not have the search engines or the latest lists of inventory.
- The Repatriation Foundation (which produced Mending the Circle: A Native American Repatriation Guide, listed under books) maintains a website containing scholarly essays, history, and links to other NAGPRA sites, including links to government and museum sites: www.repatriationfoundation.org
- The Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, also maintains a site with text of NAGPRA, related regulations, and lists of inventories from Reclamation Districts, at www.usbr.gov/nagpra/
Caution: Before using the information from any web pages in your paper, be certain that your source is legitimate and accurate.
Videos
Bones of Contention: Native American Archaeology (BBC): Presents several points of view of the repatriation controversy, and covers the history of skeleton collections, as well as paleopathology, and the unique collaboration between the Omahas and scientists.
In the Light of Reverence (Earth Island Institute): Focuses on controversy over sacred lands, rather than repatriation. The first half of the video is about the use of Devil's Tower, Wyoming, and is followed by segments on Hopi lands and mining and Mount Shasta in Califormia.
Science or Sacrilege: Native Americans, Archaeology, and the Law (UC Berkeley): A 1996 video that presents different, sometimes extreme, points of view, and also critiques the political and administrative use and misuse of NAGPRA.
Ephemera
A search of the Hayden Library's "American Indian Index" will bring up some interesting miscellaneous items. There are, for example, selected issues of Federal Archaeology Magazine, with essays on NAGPRA. The Labriola Center also holds copies of the Interior Department's draft rules on repatriation. Selected issues of Common Ground: Archaeology and Ethnography in the Public Interest, are also in the Ephemera collection. Additionally, there are newspaper articles, and articles from conference proceedings referenced in the Index.
Vickey Kalambakal, Graduate Teaching Assistant
Labriola National American Indian Data Center
University Libraries, Arizona State University
Tempe, Arizona 85287 Spring 2002
Page last modified: August 22, 2007
