sorry to bother you with this, but i wasn't sure who else to ask. i've recently seen some people on facebook selling native american artifacts, and after seeing your post about not keeping artifacts that you find, i've been wanting to do something about it. should i contact someone? the authorities, or the local tribe maybe? seeing that kind of thing on social media really just doesn't sit well with me, but i wasn't sure how/if i should go about this
Hi there, this questions isn't bothering me at all, but I may not be the best equipped person to answer it. I'm going to tag @midden-maiden and @art-thropologist because they might have some good insights.
I think that the response you give depends on whether the artifacts you are seeing fall under the category of looting (having been dug up or removed from a site) or replicas (things made to look like Indigenous artifacts but have been made recently). I don't know enough to give you advice for telling them apart.
You can contact your State Historical Preservation Office (SHPO). These are archaeologists who work for the state governments, and they might be able to direct you to the appropriate forum for your inquiry. There is also the Tribal Historical Preservation Office (THPO) which serves the same function as SHPO, but deals exclusively with Indigenous artifacts and Indigenous land.
Unfortunately, there may not be a whole lot that you can do to affect change in this situation. Both SHPO and THPO tend to be overworked and understaffed, and tracking artifacts is a time and resource intensive task. The artifacts that have the best chance of getting attention will be those that fall under NAGPRA, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which concerns human remains, artifacts associated with burials, and artifacts of cultural patrimony.
If you feel so inclined, and are able to do so, I would suggest going and buying something from an Indigenous artist or craftsperson. This is perhaps the best way you as an individual can support Indigenous communities by putting money in their pockets and sustaining their traditional practices.
As always, if anyone has relevant information to share, please feel free to do so.
