American Indian Culture and Research Journal

Museum exhibits about Indians almost always draw an enthusiastic audience, but how did the personal belongings of Indian people come to be in museums? What do Indian people think of museum exhibits about their cultures? What do Indians think a museum’s responsibilities should be to the people whose culture it collects, displays, and interprets? This paper will provide an historical overview of the history of collection, display, and interpretation of Native peoples and their material culture in museums, and summarize what has been learned about the contemporary opinions of California Indian people on the subject of such museum activities. The terms Native and Indian are used interchangeably in this paper.