Pennsylvania museum closes Native American exhibit for repatriation

The State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg is set to close its Native American exhibit to facilitate the repatriation of thousands of artifacts and human remains to tribal nations. This action by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), reported by PennLive, aligns with the updated Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).

NAGPRA is a federal law protecting tribal gravesites and providing a mechanism for tribal nations to reclaim ancestral property from federally funded institutions. The PHMC’s collection includes some 908 individual human remains and 79,628 funerary objects subject to this law, which was enacted in 1990 and updated in 2024 to expedite the repatriation process. "The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission is fully committed to this process," Andrea Bakewell Lowery, the commission’s executive director, told PennLive.

The exhibit has been temporarily closed since early May so staff could identify and prepare items for return. The law has faced challenges in its implementation and enforcement, with some institutions found to be delaying compliance. James Riding In, a retired professor who is Pawnee, has said of unreturned remains, "We never ceded or relinquished our dead. They were stolen."

The removal process is expected to take months, and the exhibit will not reopen before the museum closes for renovations in August 2026, according to Bakewell Lowery. PHMC plans to develop a new Native American exhibit in consultation with tribal nations.