Not saying he did any of that....but that is the type of thing they mean. I am willing to be the has Native American stuff from reservations. That is a big no no.
Could be stuff he collected at garage sales that was at one time dug up from reservations....
Maybe he had a Indian friend he bought it from not knowing it was from there....
If I have a friend from the rez and they give me some old artifact am I breaking the law or are they?
“If I have a friend from the Res’ and they give me some old artifact, am I breaking the law or are they?”
These days...hang on to your receipts!
“If I have a friend from the Res’ and they give me some old artifact, am I breaking the law or are they?”
These days...hang on to your receipts!
If you have arrowheads, blankets, regular cooking pots, beads or shards, you probably aren't going to be bothered. If you have funerary stuff or communal things, you will have to be able to prove that it has been in a collection/private hands since before 1906. "I bought it at a yard sale" won't be good enough. "It's been in the family" won't be good enough. You'd have to be able to prove it somehow. It is really important to know what you are buying and to buy from trustworthy sources.
Maybe he had a Indian friend he bought it from not knowing it was from there...
At the very least, he'd lose it. There are some things that Native Americans can't sell -funerary stuff, for example. If they can't legally sell it, he can't legally own it.
If I have a friend from the rez and they give me some old artifact am I breaking the law or are they?
Possibly both. Your friend can sell things like pots that follow certain rules, and of course contemporary items are fine. But he can never sell certain things, including things like Eagle feathers. It is really important to know and follow the law in this area.