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Pictured: Mesa Verde
National Park.(Photo: National Park Service / Public Domain)
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Hopi Tribe, Acoma Pueblo, Zia Pueblo, and Zuni Pueblo ancestors
and associated funerary items repatriated and reinterred at Mesa
Verde National Park
News Release
The Hopi Tribe, Pueblo of Acoma, Pueblo of Zia, Pueblo of Zuni
On Sunday, a coalition of tribes including the Hopi Tribe, the
Pueblo of Acoma, the Pueblo of Zia, and the Pueblo of Zuni repatriated
and reinterred ancestors and associated funerary items at Mesa Verde
National Park. The National Museum of Finland repatriated the human
remains of 20 ancestors pursuant to a joint-agreement with the four
sovereign tribes who claim cultural affiliation to the Mesa Verde
area. The United States Department of State and the United States
Embassy in Finland assisted the four tribes in transporting the
ancestors and funerary items from Helsinki, Finland to Mesa Verde,
Colorado. In 1891, scholar Gustaf Nordenskiöld took these ancestors
and their funerary items from the Mesa Verde area to northern Europe.
Nordenskiöld then sold the collection to a Finnish doctor who
later bequeathed the collection to the state of Finland following
his death, and the collection was ultimately placed in the National
Museum of Finland in Helsinki.
The history of this incident played an important role in swaying public
perception about the importance of protecting cultural heritage resources
that ultimately led to the 1906 Antiquities Act and the establishment
of Mesa Verde National Park, as Nordenskiöld, who was of Finnish
and Swedish descent, also took hundreds of dwelling site finds from
the Mesa Verde region. Nordenskiöld was initially arrested for
attempting to export these remains and artifacts out of the country,
but was later released and the collection shipped to Stockholm, Sweden
as no U.S. laws at the time prohibited such action. Following contacts
with the Hopi Cultural Preservation Office in 2016, the National Museum
of Finland conducted a re-inventory of the collection, containing
altogether 614 items, with efforts to identify the ancestral remains
and funerary items in the collection. This inventory, completed in
March of 2018, determined that the collection contained remains of
20 individuals and 28 funerary items.
In July of that same year, the U.S. Department of State sponsored
an International Visitors Leadership Program to build relationships
between Native American tribes and European Museums. As part of
this program Heli Lahdentausta, Curator of the National Museum of
Finland, met with representatives from the Hopi Tribe and visited
other cultural institutions in New Mexico. Following this visit,
the Republic of Finland notified the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki that
it would consider an official request for repatriation of human
remains and funerary items.
Thereafter, in 2018, at the annual meeting of the Mesa Verde Native
American Tribal Consultation Committee, the committee determined
by consensus that the Hopi, Acoma, Zia, and Zuni tribes take the
lead in the effort to see the ancestors returned home. The U.S.
request was made in fall 2018, followed by the unanimous passage
of a resolution by the Hopi Tribal Council in July 2019 in support
of the repatriation efforts. The All Pueblo Council of Governors,
representing the 19 Pueblos in New Mexico and 1 in Texas, also passed
a resolution in July of 2019 supporting the repatriation and the
efforts of the four repatriating tribes.
On October 2, 2019, during a meeting between United States President
Donald Trump and President Sauli Niinistö of Finland, it was
announced that Finland had agreed to return the ancestors and their
funerary items. Finally, on August 28, 2020, the National Museum
of Finland and the four tribes entered into an agreement for the
repatriation of the 20 ancestors and the 28 funerary items.
On Saturday, September 12, 2020, representatives from the Hopi,
Acoma, Zia, and Zuni tribes received the ancestors in Durango, Colorado,
after having been transported there with the assistance of the U.S.
Department of State. The following morning, after nearly 129 years
abroad, the ancestors were finally reinterred to their home in Mesa
Verde National Park.
The Hopi, Acoma, Zia, and Zuni tribes share ancestral ties to the
original Ancestral Pueblo inhabitants of the Mesa Verde region and
continue to express their gratitude to the Republic of Finland,
the National Museum of Finland, the United States, the U.S. Department
of State, other tribes and partners for their assistance in this
important endeavor to right a historic wrong.
Tribal leaders of each of the four repatriating tribes stated:
"The Hopi People are thankful to everyone involved in ensuring
our ancestors were returned to their rightful home, and are afforded
the respect all human people deserve being allowed to rest
in peace." Said Hopi Vice Chairman Clark W. Tenakhongva.
"The act of returning home has special significance in Hopi culture,
for the return of our family both past and present is something
to be celebrated. It is my hope that this event will serve as an
example for other institutions in the world to follow, in how to
build genuine cross-cultural understandings between people. Kwakwhá."
"The Pueblo of Acoma is grateful for the return of ancestors to
their place of rest, the sacred homeland of Mesa Verde. For decades,
the repatriating tribes have worked to return ancestors, associated
funerary materials, and items of cultural patrimony excavated from
various locations within Mesa Verde. Many of these collections remain
in museums awaiting review and discussion between culturally affiliated
tribes and museums either through the federal Native American Graves
Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) process or other methods
where private institutions or foreign entities are concerned. This
engagement, which evolved between the Finnish government, the National
Museum of Finland, the four repatriating tribes, and United States
officials, ensured a safe 3 and culturally-appropriate process for
the return of ancestors and funerary items. It is our hope that
comparable institutions throughout the world who have similar collections,
will become motivated to engage in this level of nation-to-nation
collaboration that results in repatriation and long-term partnerships,
fostering dialogue and joint strategies for access to collections,
stewardship, and programming."
Governor Brian D. Vallo Pueblo of Acoma
"Our hearts are happy that our ancestors have made their journey
home and are at rest where they belong. We are thankful to the Finnish
government and the National Museum of Finland and are pleased to
have forged this new relationship. The Pueblo looks forward to continue
to work with the National Museum of Finland to repatriate all items
of cultural value and historical importance to their rightful owners."
Governor Fredrick Medina Pueblo of Zia
"The Pueblo of Zuni joins the Hopi Tribe, Pueblo of Acoma, and
Pueblo of Zia, in expressing our heartfelt appreciation to the leaders
of Finland in the return of our ancestors to Mesa Verde. As their
descendants, the A:shiwi continue to practice the shared Puebloan
values and ways of life to this day. Even as modern-day boundaries
and jurisdictions disrupt our dedication, through our age-old prayers,
we have realized this event. In doing so, we honor their vision
and intent to share resources, blood, and resiliency. Elahkwa."
Governor Val R. Panteah, Sr. Pueblo of Zuni
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