Notice2026-08762
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
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Published
May 5, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University (PMAE) intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and/or objects of cultural patrimony and that have 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 86 (Tuesday, May 5, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 86 (Tuesday, May 5, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24276-24278]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-08762]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7116; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042685; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Peabody Museum of Archaeology
and Ethnology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
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 Peabody Museum of Archaeology and
Ethnology, Harvard University (PMAE) intends to repatriate certain
cultural items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary
objects, sacred objects, and/or objects of cultural patrimony and that
have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian
organizations in this notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on
or after June 4, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the
cultural items in this notice to Jane Pickering, Peabody Museum of
Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, 11 Divinity Avenue,
Cambridge, MA 02138, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f89288919b939d8a91969fb89e998bd690998a8e998a9cd69d9c8d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4e243e272d252b3c2720290e282f3d60262f3c382f3c2a602b2a3b">[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
PMAE, 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
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a water bottle.
It was removed from a cave in San Luis Obispo County by an unknown
individual on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Mr. Lewis
Hobart Farlow in 1903.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object is one lot of
glass beads and shell ornaments. They were acquired from San Luis
Obispo, San Luis Obispo County by William Hays on an unknown date and
received by PMAE as an exchange from the American Antiquarian Society
in 1910.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object/object of
cultural patrimony is one lot of bone items, incised ground stone
objects and a pestle, and the one object of cultural patrimony is one
lot of projectile points and a quartz perforator. These cultural items
were acquired in Santa Barbara in Santa Barbara County by A.W. Robinson
in 1896 and donated to the PMAE by the Subscribers to the Fund for the
Schneider Collection in 1921.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a projectile
point. It was acquired from Santa Barbara County by Seth R. Boyden on
an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by the Foxborough Historical
Commission in 2016.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a projectile
point. It was acquired from Sante Marie, Santa Barbara County by Seth
R. Boyden on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by the Foxborough
Historical Commission in 2016.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object is one lot of a
bead and shell necklace. It was acquired near Santa Barbara Mission,
Santa Barbara County by Charlotte Bowditch on an unknown date and given
to the PMAE by an anonymous donor in 1933.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object/object of
cultural patrimony is one lot of stone pestles. They were acquired from
the Olive Lands Estate, Ventura County by Elisabeth Sears Harrold
likely in 1905 and donated to the PMAE in 1955.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of chipped stone
and stone items, and the one unassociated funerary object/sacred
object/object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a chipped stone
graver, fossilized organic material, stone items, scrapers, pestle
fragments, and mortar fragments. The cultural items were removed from
the Adobe Creek Site in Ventura County by John S. Belmont in 1959 and
donated by him, via Stephen Williams, to the PMAE in 1959.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of projectile
points. They were acquired from Laguna Rancho, Ventura County by an
unknown individual on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Dr.
George J. Engelmann in 1896.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object/object of
cultural patrimony is one lot of shell ornaments, worked shell, worked
faunal remains, worked stone, and a stone pestle; and the one
unassociated funerary object/sacred object is one lot of worked shell;
and the one unassociated funerary object is one lot of shell items. The
cultural items, which were found in collections, were from California,
acquired by an unknown collector on an unknown date, and donated or
sold to the PMAE by an unknown individual on an unknown date.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of baskets. The
baskets were acquired by Paul Shumacher from the White Water Station,
10 miles south of Palm Springs in Riverside County, CA, as part of a
PMAE Expedition in 1898. The baskets were identified in consultation as
Chumash.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired in San Diego, San Diego County by Martha
[[Page 24277]]
Eustis Stephenson on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by
Elizabeth Mussey Eustis in 1934. The basket was identified in
consultation as Chumash.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object/object of
cultural patrimony is one lot of a bulb of the ``Carum gardneri.'' It
was acquired from Pine Mountain, San Simeon Bay, San Luis Obispo County
by Edward Palmer on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE in 1876.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object is one lot of
stirrups. They were acquired from Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara County
by an unknown individual on an unknown date, donated to the Boston
Museum in 1899 by David Kimball, Augusta Hortin and L. Cushing Kimball,
and donated to the PMAE by the Boston Museum in 1915.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of basket bowls and
a bottle-shaped basket. They were acquired from Ventura County by an
unknown individual on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Lewis
Hobart Farlow in 1903.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket ladle.
It was acquired from Ventura County Mission, Ventura County by Grace A.
Nicholson and Carroll S. Hartman in 1910 and donated to the PMAE by
Lewis Hobart Farlow in 1910.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from Channel Mission, Ventura, Ventura County by Grace A.
Nicholson and Carroll S. Hartman on an unknown date and donated to the
PMAE by Lewis Hobart Farlow in 1908.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from Ventura, Ventura County by Grace A. Nicholson in 1908 and
donated to the PMAE by Lewis Hobart Farlow in 1909.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from California by an unknown individual on an unknown date
and donated to the PMAE by Lewis Hobart Farlow in 1903.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from Monterey Mission, Monterey County by an unknown collector
on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Lewis Hobart Farlow in
1904. The basket was identified in consultation as Chumash.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from Santa Barbara Mission, Santa Barbara County by Grace A.
Nicholson on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Lewis Hobart
Farlow in 1905.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from southern California by an unknown individual on an
unknown date and donated to the PMAE by George W. Hammond in 1906. The
basket was identified in consultation as Chumash.
The one unassociated funerary object/sacred object/object of
cultural patrimony is one lot of a stone mortar. It was acquired from
Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara County by Mr. Carroll S. Hartman on an
unknown date and donated to the PMAE, through Grace A. Nicholson, by
Lewis Hobart Farlow in 1914.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from ``Santa Ynez'' California by Mr. Carroll S. Hartman on an
unknown date and donated to the PMAE, through Grace A. Nicholson, by
Lewis Hobart Farlow in 1915.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from Los Angeles, California by an unknown individual in 1855
and donated to the PMAE by Eleanor Gardiner in 1928. The basket was
identified in consultation as Chumash.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of bowl-shaped
baskets, a rectangular basket, and a bottleneck basket. They were
acquired from California by William Alden Gale in 1835 and donated to
the PMAE, through Joseph B. Eaton and Mrs. Charles Morse, by Lucy H.
Eaton in 1932. The baskets were identified in consultation as Chumash.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a circular
coiled basket. It was acquired from California by an unknown individual
on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Mary Cabot Wheelwright in
1933. The basket was identified in consultation as Chumash.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basketry tray.
It was acquired from California by an unknown individual on an unknown
date and donated to the PMAE by Mrs. Bigelow Crocker in 1964. The tray
was identified in consultation as Chumash.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of baskets. They
were acquired from Santa Ynez Mission, California by an unknown
individual on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by the American
Antiquarian Society in 1890.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from ``Santa Inez Mission,'' California by William C. Farabee
between 1906-1909 and donated to the PMAE by the deMilhau South
American Expedition between 1906-1909.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of steatite
effigies which may be fakes. They were acquired from Soledad Canyon,
Los Angeles County by an unknown collector on an unknown date and
donated/exchanged by the National Museum of the American Indian on
November 16, 1950.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of a stone pipe. It
was acquired from Malibu Lake or Malibu Lagoon, Los Angeles County by
an unknown individual on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by
Frederick H. Rindge in 1894.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of a soapstone
item. It was acquired from Los Angeles County by F. M. Palmer on an
unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Frederick H. Rindge in 1894.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a cogwheel. It
was acquired from Santa Monica, Los Angeles County by an unknown
individual on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by Frederick H.
Rindge in 1894.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of a stone effigy
(?). It was acquired from California by Ernest T. Jackson in 1880 and
donated to the PMAE by Patrick T. Jackson November 27, 1946.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of shell items.
They were acquired from California by Stephen Bowers on an unknown date
and donated by to the PMAE by E.A. Barber in December of 1877.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of bone items and
faunal remains. They were acquired by an unknown individual at an
unknown date and donated by to the PMAE by an unknown individual in
1877.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket tray.
It was acquired from Santa Barbara Mission, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles
County by Henrietta Page on an unknown date and donated to the PMAE by
Henrietta Page in 1927.
The one object of cultural patrimony is one lot of a basket. It was
acquired from California by William Alden Gale prior to 1847 and
donated to the PMAE by Lucy H. Eaton in 1913.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of shell items.
They were acquired from California by an unknown individual on an
unknown date and donated by to the PMAE by George W. Hammond in 1897.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of worked stone,
shells, and faunal remains. They were acquired from Southern California
by an unknown individual on an unknown date and donated by to the PMAE
by Frederick H. Rindge in 1894.
[[Page 24278]]
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of shell items.
They were acquired from California by an unknown individual on an
unknown date and donated by to the PMAE by George J. Engelmann in 1896.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of stone dishes and
a pestle. They were acquired from the Santa Barbara region, California
by an unknown individual in 1887 and donated by to the PMAE by an
unknown individual on an unknown date.
The one unassociated funerary object is one lot of stone dishes and
a mortar. They were acquired from California by Stephen Bowers in 1866
and donated by to the PMAE by Maria Whitney from the Estate of
Professor J.D. Whitney in 1896-97.
The one sacred object is one lot of a basket fragment. It was
removed from a cave near Castaic in Los Angeles County, California by
Stephen Bowers in 1885 as part of a PMAE Expedition and came to the
PMAE in 1886.
Determinations
The PMAE has determined that:
<bullet> The 22 unassociated funerary objects described in this
notice are 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 objects have 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> The 11 sacred objects described in this notice are
specific ceremonial objects needed by a traditional Native American
religious leader for present-day adherents to practice traditional
Native American religion, according to the Native American traditional
knowledge of a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization.
<bullet> The 32 objects of cultural patrimony described in this
notice have ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural importance
central to the Native American group, including any constituent sub-
group (such as a band, clan, lineage, ceremonial society, or other
subdivision), according to the Native American traditional knowledge of
an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
<bullet> There is a connection between the cultural items 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 items
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 items in this notice to a requestor
may occur on or after June 4, 2026. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, the PMAE 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 PMAE 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 27, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-08762 Filed 5-4-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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