The NAGPRA Nexus, Institutional Integrity, and the Evolving Role of Archaeological Laboratories

Abstract

In November 1995, the Laboratory of Archaeology at the University of Georgia submitted inventories and summaries of Indigenous ancestors and funerary objects in its holdings to comply with the passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). However, after this submission, the Laboratory attempts at consultation with federally recognized descendant Tribal communities who have cultural ties in the state of Georgia were not successful, and NAGPRA-related activities essentially stalled at the Laboratory. Beginning in 2019, the Laboratory's staff recognized a lack of formal NAGPRA policies or standards, which led to a complete reevaluation of the Laboratory's approach to NAGPRA. In essence, it was the Laboratory's renewed engagement with NAGPRA and descendan tribal communities that became the catalyst for change in the Laboratory's philosophy as a curation repository. This shift in thinking set the Laboratory on a path toward building a descendant community–informed institutional integrity (DCIII) level of engagement with consultation and collaborative efforts in all aspects of collections management and archaeological research. In this article, we outline steps that the Laboratory has taken toward implementing meaningful policies and practices created with descendant Tribal communities that both fulfill and extend bounds of NAGPRA compliance.

Making Archaeological Collections More Findable and Accessible through Increased Coordination

“…Descendant communities have rights to their archaeological heritage. These rights are expressed in their desires to know where materials are housed and to have a voice in the stewardship of this heritage, including archaeological collections (Hazell and Hawkins 2023;Neller 2004Neller , 2019Thompson et al 2023). Such rights extend to the data generated from inventorying, cataloging, and researching artifact assemblages.…”