Repatriation and NAGPRA Compliance

Arizona State Museum's (ASM) Repatriation Office manages one of the most active repatriation programs in the country, complying with federal law (NAGPRA) and administering the statutes pertaining to human remains and associated objects encountered on state and private land in Arizona (A.R.S. § 41-844 and § 41-865, respectively). ASM’s engagement in repatriation pre-dates the enactment of either federal or state statutes, with examples in 1986, 1987, and early 1990 where a total of 53 ancestral remains, 100 funerary belongings, and 5 objects of cultural patrimony were returned to their descendant communities. 

Since the passing of NAGPRA and Arizona legislation in late 1990, ASM has been active in repatriation, working to return applicable collections under the legal control of the institution and of federal agencies with holdings at ASM.

Repatriation progress 1990 to current:

NAGPRA Collections under the legal control of ASM:

• 34 repatriations (transfers of physical custody) completed
• 14 Native American Tribes received ancestral remains and belongings
• 54 notices published in the Federal Register
• 1,807 ancestral remains returned to the control of affiliated Tribes (1,383 of those individuals physically returned)
• 20,978 associated funerary objects returned to the control of affiliated Tribes (10,379 of those items physically returned)
• 2,648 unassociated funerary objects returned to the control of affiliated Tribes (2,240 of those items physically returned)
• 8 sacred objects returned to the control of affiliated Tribes
• 161 objects of cultural patrimony returned to the control of affiliated Tribes
• 109 sacred objects or objects of cultural patrimony returned to the control of affiliated Tribes

In addition, consultation related to two projects was completed and draft notices submitted for publication in the Federal Register in 2025. Together these projects will make available 331 ancestral remains, 252 associated funerary objects, 210 unassociated funerary objects, and 24 sacred objects for return to affiliated Tribes. 

NAGPRA Collections under the legal control of federal agencies:

• 46 repatriations (transfers of legal control and physical custody) completed
• 76 notices published in the Federal Register
• 11 Native American Tribes received ancestral remains and belongings
• 2,389 ancestral remains returned to affiliated Tribes
• 20,158 associated funerary objects returned to affiliated Tribes
• 33,654 unassociated funerary objects returned to affiliated Tribes
• 4 sacred objects returned to affiliated Tribes
• 58 objects of cultural patrimony returned to affiliated Tribes
• 1 sacred object or object of cultural patrimony to affiliated Tribes
• In addition, consultation related to 334 ancestral remains, 3,257 associated funerary objects, and 29 unassociated funerary objects was completed and draft notices submitted for publication in the Federal Register in 2025.

Arizona Revised Statute Collections:

Outside of NAGPRA, ASM also carried out the repatriation of human remains and funerary objects under Arizona Revised Statutes 41-844 and 41-865:

• 3 repatriation projects completed
• 301 human remains returned
       -273 individuals to Native American descendant communities
       -28 individuals to organizations with historical ties to Tucson
• 1,081 funerary objects returned
• 4 descendant communities received remains and associated objects

All ancestral remains and cultural belongings that remain in ASM’s care have been reported to National NAGPRA and to potentially culturally affiliated tribes. ASM, in consultation with Tribal communities, is working actively to prepare these remaining individuals and cultural items for repatriation at a pace that is manageable for the receiving communities. Consultation for the remaining NAGPRA-eligible collections will be carried out by region through 2026 (see map), and we anticipate that transfer of control for these collections will be completed by the end of 2027.

Byron Cummings, Arizona State Museum's first director, conducted the state's first repatriation in the 1930s. Since then, ASM has worked with tribal colleagues on issues of disturbance, recovery, documentation, respectful treatment, and return of human remains and associated funerary items. The United States Congress enacted the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) in November 1990, following a summer of testimony taken from stakeholders, including that of then-ASM Director Raymond H. Thompson (1964-97), who had been asked by the American Association (now Alliance) of Museums to represent the country's major institutions. Current ASM Director Patrick D. Lyons (2013- ) served on the national NAGPRA Review Committee from 2016 to 2020, a group charged with monitoring and reviewing repatriation activities across the country.