83 FR 4247 - Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Washington, DC

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 20 (January 30, 2018)

The U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, has determined that the cultural items listed in this notice meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to claim these cultural items should submit a written request to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. If no additional claimants come forward, transfer of control of the cultural items to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Page 4247]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-01727]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0024672; PCU00RP14.R50000-PPWOCRADN0]


Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: U.S. Department of 
the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Washington, DC

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 
in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian 
organizations, has determined that the cultural items listed in this 
notice meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects. Lineal 
descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian 
organization not identified in this notice that wish to claim these 
cultural items should submit a written request to the Bureau of Indian 
Affairs. If no additional claimants come forward, transfer of control 
of the cultural items to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or 
Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

DATES: Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or 
Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to 
claim these cultural items should submit a written request with 
information in support of the claim to the Bureau of Indian Affairs at 
the address in this notice by March 1, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Anna Pardo, Museum Program Manager/NAGPRA Coordinator, 
Bureau of Indian Affairs, 12220 Sunrise Valley Drive, Room 6084, 
Reston, VA 20191, telephone (703) 390-6343, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is here given in accordance with the 
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 
U.S.C. 3005, of the intent to repatriate cultural items under the 
control of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian 
Affairs, Washington, DC, that meet the definition of unassociated 
funerary objects under 25 U.S.C. 3001.
    This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's 
administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003(d)(3). The 
determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the 
museum, institution, or Federal agency that has control of the Native 
American cultural items. The National Park Service is not responsible 
for the determinations in this notice.

History and Description of the Cultural Items

    In 1950, 12 cultural items were removed from burial contexts in an 
unnamed ruin in Mancos Canyon, Montezuma County, CO, located on Indian 
trust lands. Original field notes taken by Cliff Chappell state: 
``Large Ruin in Mancos Canyon, 12 \1/2\ miles from Gallup rd. just 
below picture rock. Ward Emerson & Myself. 4/28/50. Dug by Cliff 
Chappell. [Artifacts 525A through 525G] found loose in the 1st ruin 4 
\1/2\ miles from Gallup rd. at Leimbach picnic site S. of rd.'' In 
1983, the Anasazi Historical Society (AHS) purchased the ``Chappell 
Collection'' from the Chappell family and the collection was placed on 
loan by the AHS at the Bureau of Land Management--Anasazi Heritage 
Center. In 2016, these 12 items were identified as being removed from 
burial contexts on Indian lands. The Bureau of Indian Affairs asserted 
control of the items and notified potentially affiliated Tribes. The 12 
unassociated funerary objects are 1 ceramic bowl, 2 ceramic pitchers, 1 
stone spindle whorl, 2 chert side-notched projectile points, 3 stone 
pendant blanks, 1 hammerstone, 1 tether stone, and 1 piece of unworked 
petrified wood.
    Archeological findings indicate that the Hopi are the direct 
descendants of the Prehistoric Ancestral Puebloan inhabitants of the 
Four Corners region. Published accounts of Hopi oral traditions say 
that ancestors of some Hopi clans migrated from north and east of the 
Hopi Mesas, including the general vicinity of Mancos Canyon and the 
Mesa Verde region, either directly or indirectly by way of the Eastern 
Pueblos. Migrations of people from the Eastern Pueblos to Hopi are 
substantiated in the archeological record and in ethnohistorical 
accounts. The puebloan ruins of Montezuma County show the greatest 
affinity to the Mesa Verde branch. (Cultural Affiliation Study for 
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, Southwest Colorado, Gilpin, 
et al. 2002:121). The Hopi Cultural Preservation Office of the Hopi 
Tribe asserts cultural affiliation to these objects.

Determinations Made by the Bureau of Indian Affairs

    Officials of the Bureau of Indian Affairs have determined that:
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(3)(B), the 12 cultural items 
described above are reasonably believed to have been placed with or 
near individual human remains at the time of death or later as part of 
the death rite or ceremony and are believed, by a preponderance of the 
evidence, to have been removed from a specific burial site of a Native 
American individual.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), there is a relationship of 
shared group identity that can be reasonably traced between the 
unassociated funerary objects and the Hopi Tribe of Arizona.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native 
Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to claim 
these cultural items should submit a written request with information 
in support of the claim to Anna Pardo, Museum Program Manager/NAGPRA 
Coordinator, U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 
12220 Sunrise Valley Drive, Room 6084, Reston, VA 20191, telephone 
(703) 390-6343, email [email protected], by March 1, 2018. After that 
date, if no additional claimants have come forward, transfer of control 
of the unassociated funerary objects to the Hopi Tribe of Arizona may 
proceed.
    The Bureau of Indian Affairs is responsible for notifying the Hopi 
Tribe of Arizona that this notice has been published.

    Dated: November 15, 2017.
Sarah Glass,
Acting Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2018-01727 Filed 1-29-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4312-52-P