Native America Calling: The race to protect cultural treasures

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Native America Calling: The race to protect cultural treasures

Wednesday, November 12, 2025

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The race to protect cultural treasures

The storm that ravaged villages along Alaska’s west coast may have washed away thousands of artifacts that promised to provide valuable insights into early Yup’ik settlements.

The storm destroyed nearly 60 feet of shoreline near the village of Quinhagak. Along with it was a site that was the source of early masks, tools and other items that make up the world’s largest collection of Yup’ik artifacts housed at the local museum.

Researchers, who were already racing to recover the items threatened by thawing permafrost, say as many as 10,000 artifacts could be lost.

And in another blow, thieves made off with more than a thousand artifacts from the off-site storage facility utilized by the Oakland Museum of California. Oakland police and the FBI are working to find the culprits and recover the items.

The early assessment by authorities suggest the heist may have been more of a crime of opportunity than a targeted operation.