Notice of Inventory Completion: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA

AGENCY:

National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice.

Notice is here given in accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 U.S.C. 3003, of the completion of an inventory of human remains in the possession of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. The human remains were removed from the vicinity of Kayenta, Navajo County, AZ.

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 human remains. The National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.

A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology professional staff in consultation with representatives of the Hopi Tribe of Arizona; Navajo Nation, Arizona, New Mexico & Utah; Pueblo of Acoma, New Mexico; and Pueblo of Laguna, New Mexico.

In 1916, human remains representing one individual were removed from a surface location near Kayenta, Navajo County, AZ, by Samuel Guernsey and John Wetherill. The human remains were donated to the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University the same year. No known individual was identified. No associated funerary objects are present.

Museum documentation describes the human remains as “probably Navajo.” The attribution of such a specific cultural affiliation to the human remains indicates that the interment postdates sustained contact between indigenous groups and Europeans beginning in the 17th century. Cranial morphology also supports that the human remains are of Navajo ancestry. Oral tradition and historic documentation support the conclusion that the geographic area of Kayenta falls within the historic homelands of the Navajo Nation. Based on this evidence, the age of the human remains and the occupation of the area by the Navajo Nation coincide.

Officials of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology have determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001 (9-10), the human remains described above represent the physical remains of one individual of Native American ancestry. Officials of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology also have determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001 (2), there is a relationship of shared group identity that can be reasonably traced between the Native American human remains and the Navajo Nation, Arizona, New Mexico & Utah.

Representatives of any other Indian tribe that believes itself to be culturally affiliated with the human remains should contact Patricia Capone, Repatriation Coordinator, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, 11 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, telephone (617) 496-3702, before December 23, 2004. Repatriation of the human remains to the Navajo Nation, Arizona, New Mexico & Utah may proceed after that date if no additional claimants come forward.

The Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology is responsible for notifying the Hopi Tribe of Arizona; Navajo Nation, Arizona, New Mexico & Utah; Pueblo of Acoma, New Mexico; and Pueblo of Laguna, New Mexico that this notice has been published.