Southwest Indian relics: In search of cash Part III

Part III: Twitchy fingers

The idea of artifact hunting has a romantic hue attached to it. Visions of hobbyists out on a Sunday jaunt and picking up a stray arrowhead or the local resident hitting the jackpot in the backyard, are very much part of the American psyche.

Yet hunting for southwest artifacts is not a new phenomena.

Professional awareness came in 1880 when the newly formed Archeological Institute of America sent Adolph Bandelier to research the current state of affairs in the Southwest. He reported that relic hunters had already left their marks throughout vast swathes of ancient sites.

After two major public exhibitions in the 1890s, public interest in Indian artifacts really swelled. Scientists wanted objects for their own collections, tourists wanted an up close and personal experience, and builders sought out unique stones for their construction projects.

As the southwest became more accessible, artifacts began streaming out of it.

In 1906, the Antiquities Act was passed, setting set aside certain lands as national monuments and requiring permits for excavation and removal of any artifacts found there. It was an important first step, albeit a symbolic one as the coming decades held other crises such as economic recessions, depressions and two world wars.

Experts now agree it was the Green Collection auction at the New York Parke-Bernet gallery that finally kicked Native American artifact prices into the stratosphere. Colonel George Green, a former Civil War surgeon, had begun collecting Indian artifacts in 1870, his holdings eventually totaling over 2,500 pieces.

In 1971, 310 pieces from that collection were sold for a total price of $161,275. (1)

Artifact selling now seemed officially sanctioned, a blessing to combat the endless stagflation of the ‘70s, the market crashes in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s as well as the 2008 housing contraction crisis. The high prices willingly paid for a grubby old blanket, pot, or mask, with no questions asked, seemed a godsend to those looking to supplement their increasingly shaky income.

For others, it wasn’t personal, it was simply business, even after the Archeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) was passed in 1979 that made it a felony to remove and sell artifacts proven to have been removed from public lands.

One of the more noteworthy cases involved a minor Chicago art dealer, Meryl Platt. In 1979, three Hopi religious masks were stolen, eventually making their way to her gallery. When questions were raised about their provenance, Ms. Platt quickly sold the masks for $11,770 before certifying their overall value at $37,500 and donating them on behalf of her clients to a local art museum.

Authorities later tracked down one of the brokers allegedly handling the masks but could not charge him as the ARPA statute of limitations had expired. When asked about the recurring looting problems in the southwest, he responded, “I’ve excavated over a hundred ruins, big deal. [In 1985], I dug 185 pots in Arizona. When it comes to Southwest archeology, I’m the best. I’m one of the last outlaws.” (2)

This shrug-shoulder attitude is not unusual, nor are feelings of generational entitlement. The Shumway family is one of the best known examples. In 1989, Casey Shumway, told the Cedartown Standard, “Pot hunting has been a very respectable practice here in Utah, and a lot of good people have been involved.” According to Casey, his father and grandfather had stressed the need to, “Be careful in the pursuit and to go about the work with history in mind.”

These sentiments were later echoed in the words of Casey’s distant cousin, Earl Shumway, later convicted of grave robbing under the 1990 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act: “Around here, it’s not a crime but a way of life.”

Note: At this time, it is still not yet known whether the three Shumways charged in the 2009 looting raid, are related to Earl or Casey.

Another common attitude stems from a deep resentment against big government intervention.

In 1986, federal agents raided 17 homes and trading posts in Utah and Colorado, seizing hundreds of artifacts allegedly taken from public lands. In an area economically depressed for years, more people were turning to the hills for help in making ends meet. Reactions against the raids ran high in an area where the Sagebrush Rebellion is still discussed by the older generation.

Similar feelings were re-echoed after the recent 2009 raids in Blanding, Utah. In June, 2009, after 2 ½ years of working undercover, federal agencies arrested 23 people involved in a network to excavate and sell stolen artifacts from public and Native American lands.

The strong arm tactics of the arrests raised an outcry and when speaking to the Salt Lake Tribune, local resident Joy Holiday commented, “Everybody in Blanding is outraged. Why aren't they (the federal agents) out stopping things that hurt people?” (3)

Tomorrow – Part IV explores ‘The things that hurt people.’

References:
1. For Indian Artifacts, Price is Up: New York Times, Pg 24, November 20, 1971
2. Raiders of the Sacred Sites: New York Times, December 7, 1986
3. Stolen artifacts shatter ancient culture

Other Resources:
• A Very Large Array: Early Federal Historic Preservation: Natural Resources Journal, Pg 267 – 328, Volume 47
• New York Times: Fast Vanishing Relics of Prehistoric Peoples, July, 1903
• Case Study: The Destruction of America’s Archeological Heritage