Midterm Review

1. Midterm Review Public Archaeology

2. Ethics • What organizations establish and promote codes of archaeological ethics? • The professional societies • Society for American Archaeology • American Anthropological Association • Society for Historical Archaeology • American Institute of Archaeology • Register of Professional Archaeologists

3. What are the main principles of archaeological ethics? • Stewardship of archaeological record • Professional conduct • Keep your word • No plagiarism • Observe proper scientific and archaeological standards • Don’t do things you’re not qualified to do • No commercialization • Work with descendent communities

4. Ethics • What organization regulates professional ethics in American archaeology? • Regulated by the Register of Professional Archaeologists • How is professional behavior regulated by the Register? • Provides a professional license that can revoked through a grievance procedure in cases of violations

5. Safety • Archaeology is relatively dangerous • Generally, regulated by OSHA • Excavation rules—trench collapses • Driving • General dangers of working outdoors • Hyperthermia • Hypothermia • Getting lost • Animal attacks • Falls • Unusual archaeological dangers • Histoplasmosis • Hantavirus • Valley Fever

6. What are… • Histoplasmosis • Mycobacterium found in damp caves, crawl spaces, and abandoned buildings especially when there’s lots of guano around • Hantavirus • Virus found in dry caves and abandoned buildings in the desert west. Comes from dried urine and fecal matter of rodents • Valley fever • A fungal infection caused by inhaling spores from the soil. Endemic in the southwest U.S.

7. How do stay safe? • Be prepared • Plan for local circumstances • Carry first aid kit • Know how to get to nearest hospital • Know first aid and CPR • Drive carefully • Don’t fool around • Don’t try to prove anything

8. What did the Antiquities Act Do? • Prohibited unauthorized excavation on federal land • Required licensing for legitimate excavations • Required curation of artifacts • Authorized the President in his sole authority to establish National Monuments by proclamation

9. What did the Historic Sites Act Do? • Established National Landmarks Program • All Landmarks are on the National Register of Historic Places • They are always, by definition, nationally significant • When a National Landmark is involved in Section 106 compliance (i.e., is threatened by a federal undertaking), ACHP regulations require that the National Park Service be consulted • So, Landmarks have a special status under Section 106

10. What Did the National Historic Preservation Act Do? • Established National Register of Historic Places • Established Advisory Council on Historic Preservation • Section 110 required Federal agencies to have historic preservation programs • Section 106 required federal agencies to carry out historic preservation consultation for all federal projects • Required curation, preservation of reports

11. Definitions • What is a SHPO? • What is an FPO? • What is a THPO? • What is the ACHP?

12. What is Section 106? • Procedural law • Overseen by ACHP—issues regulations • Requires: • 1) Federal agencies to take into account the affects of their actions on historic properties • 2) afford the Advisory Council a reasonable opportunity to comment

13. What is the Procedure? • Determine if there is an undertaking • Broadly defined, any federal project or federally licensed project • Define area of potential effect • Identify and evaluate historic properties • Determine if the undertaking will adversely affect historic properties • Consult with SHPO, THPO and other interested persons

14. Identification and Evaluation • What does “identification” mean (or require) in archaeology? • What is the legal standard for identification? • How do we evaluate an archaeological site? • What are the criteria used for determining significance during evaluation?

15. What are Historic Properties? • Property is historic if it’s eligible for the National Register • What is the National Register of Historic Places? • Maintained by NPS • Keeper ultimately decides if a property is eligible • What are the National Register criteria of eligibility? • A. associated with events • B. Associated with persons • C. exemplar of a style or work of a master, and districts • D. information important to history or prehistory • Note criteria considerations and the exceptions to them (usually at least 50 years old) • Also, properties have to have integrity

16. What types of properties can be eligible? • Types of things: • Districts • Sites • Buildings • Structures • Objects • Traditional cultural places (TCPs)

17. What is Integrity? • Integrity is a prerequisite for significance • Integrity of: • Location • Design • Setting • Materials • Workmanship • Feeling, AND • Association • Is evaluated scientifically for archaeological sites • Study degree of disturbance

18. Is indigenous participation required or permitted? • NHPA requires consultation with Federally recognized Indian Tribes • Including Alaskan Native villages and corporations • And Native Hawaiians • There are many tribes that are only state recognized • No consultation requirements • But SHPOs may want you to consult with them

19. Indigenous consultation • If the undertaking is on Indian land • Consult with the THPO if there is one • If there isn’t, then consult with tribal government and SHPO • If the undertaking is on land with which the tribe is culturally affiliated, • Consult with the THPO if there is one and if there isn’t with the tribal government • AND consult with the SHPO

20. What does the Archaeological Resources Protection Act do? • Protects archaeological sites on federal and Indian lands from unauthorized excavation • Provides for permitting of authorized excavations • Uniform regulations at 32CFR229/43CFR7 • Provides for curation of archaeological materials (see 36CFR Part 79)

21. Is curation required? • Curation of archaeological materials is required by ARPA, NHPA and even the Antiquity Act • The “Curation Regulation” is at 36 CFR Part 79 • It spells out the requirements, which are fairly commonsensical but complicated and extensive • There is a crisis in curation • There’s no space • Few repositories meet code

22. What does NAGPRA do? • Requires repatriation of certain cultural items • Requires consultation before excavation of these cultural items • Applies to federal agencies and museums receiving federal funds • Applies to Federally recognized tribes, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians

23. What are the NAGPRA cultural items? • NAGPRA Items covered by law: • Human remains (not including parts naturally shed) • Associated funerary objects • Unassociated funerary objects • Sacred objects • Objects of cultural patrimony

24. What does the retrospective portion of NAGPRA require? • Requires summaries and inventories of cultural items in existing collections by specified deadlines • Summaries of unassociated funerary objects, sacred items and objects of cultural patrimony • By 3 years after the law was passed (I.e., by 1993) • Inventories of human remains and associated funerary objects • By 5 years after the law was passed (I.e., by 1995) • Ironically, regulations only issued in 1995

25. What are NAGPRA summaries and inventories? • Summaries are lists of unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony • Inventories are descriptions of human remains and associated funerary objects • Should be developed in consultation with potential claimants and interested parties • Else, how do you know what is, say, sacred? • Have to be provided to interested parties (Indian tribes) under specified circumstances • Have to be sent to National NAGPRA program office • Potential claimants file claims for repatriation with Federal agency or other institution • Law specifies order of priority for repatriation • Lineal descendents first • Culturally affiliated tribes later

26. What is the prospective portion of NAGPRA? • Federal agencies have to consult with tribes before excavating NAGPRA cultural items. • Properly, this means consulting in advance of any action that might produce NAGPRA items • Can create comprehensive agreements with tribes to minimize disruption to routine business

27. What did the Kennewick Man Decision find? • Found that Federal agencies failed to show that Kennewick Man was Native American within the meaning of the law • Because they could not demonstrate any historical connection between the human remains and any modern tribes • Therefore, it was covered by ARPA, not NAGPRA

28. What do state and local laws require • Local • Local ordinances, especially zoning, provide local governments the power to control development on private land • Some local governments have historic preservation ordinances that provide protection to archaeological sites on private land • State • Usually regulates state projects and what happens on state lands