A photograph of Chilkat chiefs Coudahwot (left) and Yehlh-gouhu (right) of the Con-nuh-ta-di at Klukwan standing outside the home of Chief Klart-Reech, dating to about 1895, helped identify the tunic in NMAI’s collection. The emblem just below his collar and the bear claw designs at the bottom of the shirt were distinctive. 19/9098
records were not always extensive or clear. So matching objects with a clan with what is often an intertwined spiderweb of sparse and sometimes conflicting information can be daunting. Enter history supersleuth Risa Arboli-
no. As a repatriation research specialist for NMAI, Arbolino sifts through piles of his- toric data in search of clues that might re- unite an object with its proper clan or tribe. Many of the Tlingit items in NMAI’s collec- tions were sold to the museum by U.S. Navy Lieutenant and collector George T. Em- mons in the early 1900s, so Arbolino pored through hundreds of his hand-written notes about them. She and NMAI archival staff worked with clan members to sort through historic records at the Smithsonian and oth- er institutions. Photos of the actual objects in use are
rare, but when such a photo is found, that is pure research gold. In the University of
Alaska’s digital archives, for example, is an 1895 photograph of George Shotridge (Ye- hlh-gouhu of the Con-nuh-ta-di) wearing a dance shirt that has a unique design above a bear face woven into the cloth. Arboli- no worked with NMAI photo archivists to match this photograph with a Tlingit shirt in the museum’s collection. A Marmot Hat (Tsax S’aaxw) believed to have been made in 1874 was identified as belonging to the Naanya.aayí clan in part through the dis- covery of an 1899 photo in the Alaska State Library Historical Collection of the hat with clan members. Yet even if the right clan for an item is
found, the category of the claim—sacred, funerary or object of cultural patrimony— must also be confirmed. All through the re- patriation process, NMAI staff will consult with tribal or clan representatives. Jacobs and other representatives of clans came back to the museums more than a dozen times
to consult on objects and eventually help NMAI staff shepherd items home. “It isn’t done in a vacuum,” says Arbolino. “We puz- zled it out together.” After all the research for an item is com-
pleted, an extensive report with a recommen- dation as to the object’s provenance is pre- sented to the Repatriation Committee of the NMAI’s Board. The Board will then evaluate all the collected materials regarding the claim and determine its outcome. The NMNH has a separate Repatriation Office that carries out a similar process of research and rec- ommendations in response to requests for NMNH collections.
TRAINS, PLANES AND BARGES
Once a claim is approved, the work is far from over. While some of the Tlingit ob- jects such as a metal dagger are sturdier than bark-woven hats or intricately woven tu- nics, all are carefully prepared for transport.
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 11
ALASKA STATE LIBRARY, WINTER AND POND PHOTOGRAPHS, ASL-P87-0296
PHOTO BY NMAI STAFF
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