Abstract Aside from the physical return of collections to affiliated Tribal Nations, consultation is perhaps the most important aspect of NAGPRA compliance. Consultation involves the creation of a relationship between an institution and a Tribal Nation that is based on transparency and open lines of communication and may take different forms, depending on Tribal preference. While repatriation is often viewed as the final step in returning NAGPRA collections to descendant communities, the logistics involved with the return of ancestral remains and their subsequent reburial are not often discussed. Both a method for bringing communities together and for providing healing, reburials may involve additional consultation and be more time intensive than other stages of the repatriation process. Although dependent on Tribal wishes, which are unique for each reburial, numerous steps must be addressed prior to returning ancestral remains and belongings to the earth. In 2021, Indiana University and several Tribal Nations completed the Angel Mounds repatriation and reburial, which was, at the time, the largest in midwestern history. From inception to reburial, the Angel Mounds repatriation project took fewer than five years to complete. Like all repatriations, the circumstances of the Angel Mounds repatriation were unique. This article discusses consultations associated with the return and reburial of Angel Mounds NAGPRA collections and outlines how the NAGPRA program at Indiana University coordinated and managed the process.
Thomas et al. (Wed,) studied this question.