The Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, as caretaker of the College’s collection of Native American art and artifacts, is committed to both the legal and ethical principles of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the federal law that allows tribes to reclaim human remains and cultural items from museums and other institutions.
The museum actively works with Native American tribes to identify and repatriate the cultural items covered by NAGPRA, which include human remains, associated funerary items, unassociated funerary items, sacred items, and items of cultural patrimony.
NAGPRA combines administrative law, property law, and criminal law to protect the civil rights and religious freedoms of Native American tribes. In the past, many Native American human remains were brought to museums with little or no regard for the concerns of the affiliated communities. NAGPRA allows affiliated tribes to reclaim these human remains and certain cultural items subject to the legislation.
The Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College values open communication and respectful relationships during this process and aims to appropriately preserve Native American cultural items, assist tribes in their cultural heritage efforts, and promote collaborative research and public education.
As required by law, the museum provided NAGPRA Summaries to the National Park Service and relevant tribal communities in 1993 and NAGPRA Inventories of human remains and funerary items in 1995. Subsequent consultations with tribal representatives have identified items that will be repatriated in the near future.