Page 7 Anthro Notes
"KENNEWICK MAN"A TEACHER FOR ALL AGESWhy would a group of physical anthropologists andarchaeologists have to go to court for the right tostudy a 9,200-year-old skeleton they consider one ofthe most important discoveries ever made in thiscountry?
This past July, a U.S. District Court judge issued aruling that may make such study possible andclarified many of the controversial issuessurrounding the bones of "Kennewick Man."Who is "Kennewick Man?"On July 28, 1996, two college students watching aboat race spotted a skull in the banks of theColumbia River near Kennewick, Washington.Thinking it a murder victim, they called the sheriffsoffice. The skull was taken to the local coronerwho called upon the assistance of a local forensicarchaeologist, who, after recovering the rest of theskeleton, requested a CAT scan. The skeleton atfirst appeared to be that of an early European settleruntil a stone spear point was found embedded in thehip bone. Radiocarbon dating placed the skeleton'sage at 9,200 years ago.From preliminary observations, it appeared that
"Kennewick Man" died around the age of 50. Hepossessed some bodily and facial features that differfrom the Native Americans of that region. His longand narrow skull, large jaw with a pronounced chin,and arms long in proportion to the rest of his bodyraise the question of Kennewick's ancestry and hisrelationship to modern Native Americans.
Conflicting ClaimsThe skeleton was found on land belonging to theArmy Corps of Engineers. A coalition of fiveNorthwest tribes, led by the Confederated Tribes ofthe Umatilla Indian Reservation, filed a claim withthe Corps asking for the return of the skeleton,which they said should be buried immediately in asecret location without scientific study.
After the Umatilla filed a claim for the skeleton, theCorps of Engineers decided to hand over theKennewick remains to the tribal coalition. TheCorps, meanwhile, had denied requests from severalprominent scientists to carry out scientific studies ofthis rare and ancient find, which might shed light onlife at the end of the Pleistocene. The Corps alsodenied the completion of a DNA analysis that hadbeen started by the University of California-Davis,offered at no cost to the Corps. To safeguard theremains, Kennewick Man was taken by the Corps toa vault at the Batelle Pacific Northwest NationalLaboratory in Richland, Washington, where itremains today.The Corps' actions were based on theirinterpretation of the Native American GravesProtection and Repatriation Act, which defines
"Native American" as "of, or relating to, a tribe,people or culture that is indigenous to the UnitedStates." According to Alan L. Schneider, counselfor the scientists objecting to the Corps' actions,
Congress's use of the present tense would seemto imply that it did not intend for human remainsand other 'cultural items' to be subject to the actunless there is a demonstrated relationship topresent-day Native Americans. What kind ofrelationship this requires and how it is to beestablished are issues that have yet to beresolved... In the Kennewick Man case, there isno evidence at this point to support the ArmyCorps' decision. {Anthropology Newsletter,February 1997:18).
In recent years, Native Americans actively havesought to halt archaeological excavations on theirlands. Some believe that Native Peoples originatedin this land and that their ancestors did not cross theBering Strait; therefore, any skeletons found mustbe directly related to indigenous Native Peoples andmust be returned. Many consider human remainssacred and should not be the object of study.On the other side of the controversy stand thescientists, whose new scientific techniques such asDNA analysis and CAT scans, along withmeticulous methods of recording data, have made itpossible to obtain information on skeletal remains
Page 8 Anthro Notes
not available before. Such studies do not causesignificant harm to the remains. Scientists areinterested in comparing the remains of KennewickMan with those of similar age found in Nevada,Texas, Colorado, and Minnesota.
Scientists have long been involved in studies ofskeletal materials to obtain information aboutnutrition, disease, lifestyles, health, and cause ofdeath of early populations in North America. Thehuman skeleton provides a detailed record of the lifeof an individual and thus remains an extremelyimportant source of information about past lifeways.The Court CaseOnce the Corps decided to turn the remains over tothe tribal coalition, eight prominent anthropologists,including two Smithsonian scientists acting in theircapacity as private citizens, sought a legalrestraining order from the U.S. Courts to halt theCorps' transfer of the Kennewick remains to theUmatilla. The scientists stated that the skeleton, oneofthe oldest and most complete ever found, shouldbe made available for scientific study. Only a fewwell-preserved skeletons more than 8,000 years oldhave ever been discovered, and hence Kennewick isof interest to scientists worldwide.The court's decision came this past July, one yearafter the skeleton was discovered. The Judge sentthe case back to the Corps of Engineers, telling theCorps to reconsider its earlier decision to turn theskeleton over to the Umatilla without further study.The Court criticized the Corps' handling of the case,calling it "arbitrary" and "capricious." Among otherthings, the Court stated that the Corps:
acted before it had all of the evidence orfully appreciated the scope of the problem.The agency did not fully consider or resolvecertain difficult legal questions. The agencyassumed facts that proved to be erroneous.The agency failed to articulate a satisfactoryexplanation for its action. By the agency'sown admission, any decision in this matterwas premature and ought to be set aside andthe matter remanded to the agency for
further consideration (Civil No. 96-1481-JECourt's Opinion p. 31).The Judge went on to explain that the Corps musttake a fresh look at all the legal issues and fullyreopen the matter. Meanwhile, the government wasto retain custody ofthe Kennewick remains, and notdispose of them before full resolution of the issueshad been made. The Corps must reconsider theplaintiffs' request for permission to study theremains, protect them for their value for scientificstudy, and consider, among others, the followingissues:
a) Whether the remains are subject to NAGPRA;b) What is meant by terms such as "Native Ameri-can" and "indigenous" in the context ofNAGPRA and the facts of this case;c) Whether NAGPRA applies to remains from apopulation that is not directly related to modernNative Americans;d) The level of certainty required to establishbiological or cultural affiliation;e) Whether there is evidence of a link, biologicallyor culturally, between the remains and a modernNative American tribe; andf) Whether scientific study and repatriation of theremains are mutually exclusive or if bothobjectives can be accommodated.
Scientific Studies
Scientists believe that science should have a role inthe determination of what happens to theKennewick remains. Within the context ofrepatriation, scientists examine bones in museumcollections to establish correct cultural affiliationand ensure that Native Americans receive the bonesof their ancestors through repatriation transfers ofmuseum collections. Sophisticated techniques suchas craniofacial analysis involving a system ofcomplex measurements and angles help identify thespecific ethnic and tribal group to which thematerials belong. For example, distinct differencesamong Native American populations enablescientists to distinguish a Paiute from a Cheyenne.Other physical anthropology studies have revealed(continued on page 19)
Page 19 Anthro Notes
..
("Kennewick" continuedfrom page 8)
that some groups have displaced others in distinct
geographic regions, rather than one culture evolving
directly into the other.
Establishing clear cultural affiliation of such an early
individual to any present-day Native American
group is likely impossible. Scientific study of
Kennewick Man and other early remains, however,
can help answer questions not only about the life
and health of early inhabitants of North America,
but also the range of physical types or human
variation of these early people. Investigating these
areas may help solve other mysteries, such as the
puzzle ofthe origin ofthe Ainu people of Hokkaido,
Japan, who are considered perhaps the oldest
population of that region with features resembling
those of caucasoids—more body hair, less facial
flatness.
For many, "Kennewick Man," along with other very
ancient remains, holds national and international
significance, and therefore represents an inheritance
for the entire human family.
Further Readings
Fagan, Brian. 1995. Ancient North America: The Archaeology
ofa Continent. 2nd ed. Thames and Hudson.
Fladmark, Knut. 1 979. "Routes: Alternate Migration Corridors
for Early Man in North America." American Antiquity
44:55-69.
Greenberg, J. H, C. G. Turner II, and S. L. Zegura. 1986. "The
Settlement of the Americas: A Comparison of Linguistic,
Dental, and Genetic Evidence," Current Anthropology 27:
477-497.
Jantz, Richard L. and Douglas W. Owsley. 1997. "Pathology,
Taphonomy, and Cranial Morphometries of the Spirit Cave
Mummy." Nevada Historical Society Quarterly 40( 1 ):62-
84.
Steele, D. G. J. F. Powell. 1992. Peopling of the Americas:
Paleobiological Evidence. Human Biology 64:303-336.
For updated information, see the Smithsonian's Arctic Studies
Center web page: http://www.nmnh.si.edu.arctic/.
P. Ann Kaupp