Indiana University Returns Human Remains to Rapa Nui People

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana University has successfully returned human remains to the Rapa Nui people of Easter Island, marking its first international repatriation effort. This initiative was spearheaded by Jayne-Leigh Thomas, executive director of IU’s Indigenous Studies program, who visited the island in December 2024 to collaborate with Rapa Nui representatives on several ethical research projects related to repatriation.

“To know that I played a small part in returning these Rapa Nui ancestors to Easter Island is overwhelming and so personally rewarding,” Thomas said. “To be so warmly welcomed onto the island, to build relationships with Rapa Nui representatives, and to see the rich cultural heritage and archaeological sites was simply incredible.”

The remains in question were donated to IU in the 1990s by David M. Lodge, a descendant of United States Navy Rear Adm. George Henry Cooke. Cooke, a surgeon and medical officer, was part of Ulysses S. Grant‘s detail during the ex-president’s global circumnavigation from 1877 to 1879, and later served aboard the USS Mohican during its visit to Easter Island in 1886, where he collected large stone sculptures known as moai for the Smithsonian Institution.

Cited in Cooke’s report is Pakomio Mā‘ori, a Rapa Nui survivor of the 1862 Peruvian slave raids. His great-great-grandson, Francisco Nahoe, a Catholic priest and Franciscan friar, collaborated with Thomas on the repatriation process.

Over the past few years, the Rapa Nui community has actively pursued the repatriation of their ancestral remains, working with institutions across countries like New Zealand, Australia, Norway, Canada, the United States, and Chile. Nahoe serves as the North American delegate for Te Mau Hatu, a council of elders focused on recovery and repatriation efforts.

<p“Everyone knows the unique legacy of material culture that we inherited from our ancestors, whom we call tupuna,” Nahoe said. “The whole island is an outdoor museum of monumental statuary constructed on a scale unmatched anywhere. The Polynesians who carved the moai were a tiny and isolated population. It is their crania that Euro-American collectors carried away."

“We, their modern descendants, believe it is our duty to find and recover their remains. The United Nations and the Organization of American States have stressed the right of Indigenous peoples to repatriate their ancestral remains.”

In 2024, Nahoe and his cousin, Rapa Nui archaeologist Susana Nahoe, participated in IU’s INSTEP program, which addresses best practices regarding the repatriation of ancestral remains and cultural artifacts under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). With limited programs supporting international repatriation, NAGPRA is seen as a model for such efforts globally, drawing increasing interest in the training program.

“There’s no question that 35 years of compliance with this act have created a culture of repatriation in the United States,” Nahoe said. “However, IU is now leading the way by addressing these issues with Indigenous communities beyond NAGPRA.”

“It is not only obligatory to return ancestral remains; it is also right and just. If this is true in the U.S., it must also apply globally,” he added.

Thomas’ visit to Easter Island included meetings with government officials and community members to discuss future collaboration opportunities, such as international repatriation education, an osteological training program, and a potential artist-in-residence initiative for modern Rapa Nui sculptors at IU Bloomington.

Continuing her work in repatriation, Thomas aims to enhance IU’s NAGPRA leadership and the INSTEP program’s effects on international initiatives. She and Nahoe are also collaborating on a book project dedicated to global repatriation efforts.

Thomas expressed her aspirations to incorporate a repatriation certificate into specific IU master’s degree programs, promoting education about NAGPRA and consultation strategies alongside the importance of repatriation. She plans to explore broader repatriation projects in coordination with IU law faculty and IU Global Gateways.

“IU is fully committed to our NAGPRA work, with several large repatriation projects underway involving numerous federally recognized tribal nations. We also support the return of all Indigenous remains, not just those from the United States,” said Russell J. Mumper, IU’s vice president for research. “We are focused on forging strong partnerships and creating mutually beneficial research projects that highlight repatriation, ethical museum practices, and archaeological scholarship in collaboration with Indigenous communities both domestically and internationally.”