In this section you can discover outside material such as videos of Kaxinawa rituals, articles about the Almshouse, and a link to a downloadable Kaxinawa learning video game!
NAGPRA at Temple
The Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum is committed to the repatriation of Native American cultural items and human remains in compliance with the federal Native American Graves Protection Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Passed in 1990, NAGPRA establishes a legal process for federally recognized Native American tribes, native Alaskan corporations, and native Hawaiian organizations, to reclaim human remains and cultural objects housed in American museums that receive federal funding. Repatriation efforts at the Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum are carried out in recognition of the rights of tribal groups to control of human remains and cultural objects and in acknowledgment of the cultural and material dispossession indigenous groups have experienced in the context of the United States.
REPATRIATION
The Temple Anthropology Museum, in collaboration with tribal groups, is currently engaged in repatriation work regarding the following sites.
CONTACT INFORMATION
For inquiries regarding repatriation work at Temple University Anthropology Laboratory and Museum, including Tribal Representatives seeking to submit claims and consultation requests, please contact anthlab@temple.edu
POLICIES AND FURTHER RESOURCES
More information including policies and legal definitions can be found here or by visiting www.nps.gov/subjects/nagpra.
Mohr Site
Native American human remains and associated funerary objects were excavated and removed from the Mohr site along the lower Susquehanna River in Conoy Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania between 1963 and 1965 by archaeologist Dr. Jacob Gruber and were later transferred to the Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum. A comprehensive inventory of the human remains and associated funerary objects has been completed by museum staff in consultation with representatives from the Delaware Tribe of Indians. The museum is currently in the process of securing cultural affiliation and soliciting claims.
Abbott Farm
Native American human remains and associated funerary objects were excavated and removed from the Abbott Farm National Historical Landmark in Mercer County, NJ by an avocational archaeologist between 1960 and 1964, and were later transferred to the Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum at an unknown date. The Temple Anthropology Museum is in the process of repatriating human remains representing, at minimum, eight individuals of native American ancestry and nine associated funerary objects. Museum staff has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects in consultation with representatives of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, Oklahoma, on behalf of the Delaware Tribe of Indians; Delaware Nation, Oklahoma; and the Stockbridge-Munsee Community, Wisconsin and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. The Notice of Inventory Completion for Abbott Farm has been published in the Federal Register.
Rapp Farm
In 1991, human remains representing, at minimum, one individual and one associated funerary object were removed from the Rapp Farm site in Warren county, NJ by amateur archaeologist Russ Davis, and were transferred to the Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum’s possession in 2001. The Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects, in consultation with the appropriate tribal organizations, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. The site’s geographic area and proximity to the Overpeck site in conjunction with earlier Rapp farm excavations indicate cultural affiliation with Lenape descendants, the Delaware Tribes.
Schacht Site
Human remains were excavated and removed from two burial sites at the Schacht Site located near Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania by archaeologist Dr. Jacob Gruber and were transferred to the Anthropology Laboratory and Museum. Museum staff are currently conducting an inventory of the remains and pursuing consultation with tribal representatives.
Nescopeck
Native American human remains representing, at minimum, three individuals were excavated and removed from Nescopeck Mountain rock shelter in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania by an amateur archaeologist at an unknown date and are housed in the Temple Anthropology Laboratory and Museum. Museum staff have completed a detailed inventory of the human remains and are currently pursuing consultations with tribal groups.