Notice2026-07941
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
April 23, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Brooklyn Museum intends to repatriate a certain cultural item that meets the definition of an unassociated funerary object and that has a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 78 (Thursday, April 23, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 78 (Thursday, April 23, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21837-21838]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-07941]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7092; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042621; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Brooklyn Museum intends to repatriate a
certain cultural item that meets the definition of an unassociated
funerary object and that has a cultural affiliation with the Indian
Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural item in this notice may occur on or
after May 26, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the
cultural item in this notice to Dare Turner, Brooklyn Museum, 200
Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY 11238-6052, email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4e2a2f3c2b603a3b3c202b3c0e2c3c212125223720233b3d2b3b2360213c29"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="56323724337822232438332416342439393d3a2f383b232533233b78392431">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published as part of the
National Park Service's administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA.
The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the
Brooklyn Museum and additional information on the determinations in
this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in the
summary or related records. The National Park Service is not
responsible for the determinations in this notice.
Abstract of Information Available
A total of one cultural item has been requested for repatriation.
The one unassociated funerary object is a steatite manta ray effigy
with Olivella shell inlays. The item was acquired by Alistair Martin of
New York in 1951 from an unknown source. Martin donated the item to the
Brooklyn Museum in 1977. Museum records and archaeological and
anthropological scholarship identify the item as Chumash in origin.
This cultural affiliation was confirmed through Tribal consultation and
traditional knowledge.
There is no specific record of hazardous substances used in the
treatment of the unassociated funerary object. However, the Brooklyn
Museum has historically used pesticides containing arsenic and heavy
metals on other collections and in collection spaces.
[[Page 21838]]
Determinations
The Brooklyn Museum has determined that:
<bullet> The one unassociated funerary object described in this
notice is reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or
near human remains, and are connected, either at the time of death or
later as part of the death rite or ceremony of a Native American
culture according to the Native American traditional knowledge of a
lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization. The
unassociated funerary object has been identified by a preponderance of
the evidence as related to human remains, specific individuals, or
families, or removed from a specific burial site or burial area of an
individual or individuals with cultural affiliation to an Indian Tribe
or Native Hawaiian organization.
<bullet> There is a connection between the cultural item described
in this notice and the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians of
the Santa Ynez Reservation, California.
Requests for Repatriation
Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural item
in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified
in this notice under ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be
submitted by any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization not identified in this notice who shows, by a
preponderance of the evidence, that the requestor is a lineal
descendant or a culturally affiliated Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian
organization.
Repatriation of the cultural item in this notice to a requestor may
occur on or after May 26, 2026. If competing requests for repatriation
are received, the Brooklyn Museum must determine the most appropriate
requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the
cultural items are considered a single request and not competing
requests. The Brooklyn Museum is responsible for sending a copy of this
notice to the Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations
identified in this notice and to any other consulting parties.
Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,
25 U.S.C. 3004 and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.9.
Dated: April 15, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-07941 Filed 4-22-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on April 23, 2026.
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