Opportunity
Federal Register #2026-11713
Notice of Intended Repatriation of Native American Cultural Items and Human Remains
Posted
June 11, 2026
Identifier
2026-11713
This notice concerns the intended repatriation of Native American cultural items and human remains by two institutions: - Government Buyer: Department of the Interior, National Park Service - Institutions involved: - Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History (Santa Barbara, CA) - Mississippi Department of Archives and History - No OEMs or commercial vendors are involved, as this is not a procurement of goods or services
Key Details: - Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History plans to repatriate: - 18 trays containing approximately 5,314 unassociated funerary objects - Stone artifacts: scrapers, choppers, drills, projectile points, charmstones, donut stones, bowls, mortars, etc. - Bone artifacts: hairpins, wands, fish barbs, pry bars, ornaments, whistles, pins, gorges, wedges - Shell items: beads, ornaments, spangles, fish hooks - Asphaltum items, charcoal, cordage, debitage, flakes, soil, pigment, ochre, unsorted midden - Items excavated from Santa Rosa Island (Ranch House and Canada Verde sites) in 1927, 1948, 1951, and 1957 - Affiliated with the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians - Mississippi Department of Archives and History plans to repatriate: - Human remains of 62 Native American individuals - 13 lots of associated funerary objects (ceramics, lithics, organic materials, soil samples, shell, clay, metal, faunal remains, ash, pitfill, petrified wood) - Affiliated with the Quapaw Nation - Repatriation is in accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) - No products or services are being procured; this is a legal and cultural compliance action - No contract value, part numbers, or commercial competition is relevant
Description
The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History intends to repatriate certain cultural items defined as unassociated funerary objects that have cultural affiliation with Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. These items include stone, bone, shell artifacts, and other materials excavated from cemetery sites on Santa Rosa Island. The repatriation may occur on or after July 13, 2026. Requests for repatriation must be sent to the museum's authorized representative.