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Friday, September 19, 2003

The British Museum won't return a mask to the Namgis First Nation in British Columbia, and will only let band members see a photograph of it.

The museum says it obtained the mask legally in 1944. But the mask was one of dozens the Canadian government stole from the Namgis in 1921 in an attempt to stamp out Native culture. The government arrested and imprisoned Namgis who were practicing a potlatch, which was against the law at the time.

The Namgis have been able to repatriate other masks but the British Museum says it will let someone make a replica of it.

Get the Story:
Reclaiming the Stolen Faces of Their Forefathers (The New York Times 9/19)
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Relevant Links:
British Museum - http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk

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