Hopi Tribe Seeks To Stop Auction of Sacred Artifacts In France

The Hopi Indian Tribe of Arizona is enlisting the help of the U.S. government to try to stop an auction in Paris next week of $1 million worth of sacred Hopi artifacts.  According to the New York Times yesterday, the Hopi spiritual items are being sold by a collector who purchased them over a 30-year period in the United States. The Hopis have sent a letter of objection to the Néret-Minet auction house, citing a clause in the tribe's 1936 Constitution that they say demonstrates the items are "held under religious custody by the Hopi people." Even though international agreements allow foreign nations to enlist U.S. aid in retrieving their antiquities from the United States, the U.S. does not have reciprocal agreements covering U.S. artifacts abroad.