For Immediate Release by the Arkansas Archeological Survey:
The Arkansas Archeological Survey and Southern Arkansas University report the theft of 26 prehistoric Caddo Indian pottery vessels from the Arkansas Archeological Survey’s Research Station collections at Southern Arkansas University. The pottery vessels are all from the Cedar Grove site located on the Red River in Lafayette County, Arkansas. The vessels belong to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and are federal property. Photographs and complete documentation of each pottery vessel exist so they will be very difficult to sell on the open market.
The vessels are from Indian graves subject to the provisions of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, a federal law. If the vessels were transported across state lines they will be subject to the federal Archeological Resource Protection Act. Hence, the thieves can be prosecuted under two separate federal laws as well as state law. For these reasons, the SAU Police Department is working with the El Dorado office of the FBI in the investigation.
For a list and photographs of the stolen pottery vessels see: http://www.projectpast.org/sau/SAUCedarGroveMissingList_v3.pdf
For more information call:
Dr. Thomas J. Green
Director
Arkansas Archeological Survey
2475 N. Hatch Ave.
Fayetteville, AR 72704
479-575-3556 or 479-442-0261
or
Dr. Jamie C. Brandon
Research Station Archeologist
Arkansas Archeological Survey
Southern Arkansas University
PO Box 9381
Magnolia, AR 71754
870-235-4229
