Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Preliminary Compliance Report for the Columbus Museum of Arts and Sciences Collection From Lake Walter F. George, Alabama and Georgia

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA [Appendix A]) was signed into law (P.L. 101-601) in 1990. This law mandated major changes in the treatment and disposition of Native American human remains and certain kinds of artifacts. NAGPRA acknowledges the right of Native Americans to own certain types of artifacts if Native Americans (individuals or groups) can demonstrate direct lineal descendancy or cultural affiliation with the material in question. The NAGPRA legislation is directed primarily at archaeological materials-human remains, associated and unassociated funerary objects, objects of cultural patrimony, and sacred objects. The law builds on previous legislation such as the National Historic Preservation Act (as amended) and the Archaeological Resources Protection Act (as amended) and seeks to create a more comprehensive dialogue between Native Americans and those institutions that (1) hold the materials outlined above and (2) receive federal funding. Following review and public comment, the proposed rule establishing definitions and procedures for carrying out the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act was revised and became effective on 3 January 1996 (43 CFR Part 10, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Regulations; Final Rule). In this report, subparts and sections of the rule will be cited along with the section designations used in the original1990 act. Sections from the original act will be noted in parentheses. Institutions holding such materials were required to complete a Subpart C, Section 10.8 (Section 6) Summary, which was due 1993, and a Subpart C, Section 10.9 (Section 5) Inventory, due November 1995, of all collections that can be classified as NAGPRA-related materials. Summaries and inventories, once compiled, are forwarded to the Department of the Interior's Departmental Consulting Archeologist and to all relevant Native American groups and/or lineal descendants. Additionally, NAGPRA requires federal agencies and museums to expeditiously return Native American human remains, associated and unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony to known lineal descendants or affiliated tribes upon request and after control or cultural affiliation has been established. Notices of intent to repatriate are to be Findings submitted to the Departmental Consulting Archaeologist for publication in the Federal Register.