GALLUP Dr. Elizabeth Miller, executive director of the UNM-Gallup branch, recently signed an agreement between the UNM Board of Regents, UNM-Gallup and the Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial concerning storage of ceremonial archives and artifacts.
Photo: sitting (l. to r.): Dr. Beth Miller, executive director and Louis Bonaguidi, president, Inter-Tribal Ceremonial Association. Back (l. to r.): Associate Professor Dr. Teresa Wilkins; Flo Bartan, chairman, Inter-Tribal Ceremonial Board of Directors; and Joe Tanner, vice president, Inter-Tribal Ceremonial Association.
The agreement stipulated that the common goal of both parties is that the archives and artifacts of the Ceremonial which have been collected since the inception of the Ceremonial in the 1920s be safely preserved and that the items form the foundation of a long-term program.
UNM-Gallup will provide storage for the archives and artifacts that should help conserve them. The items will be stored for a period of up to 36 months, with payment for the storage to be assumed by the UNM-Gallup. The ownership of the items will remain with the Ceremonial Board.
While the items are stored, both UNM-Gallup and the Ceremonial Board will work to develop a plan for the long-term care and management of the archives and artifacts. They will also identify at-risk items, such as film archives, and look for resources to preserve these items.
Were still very much in the early stages of looking at the archives and artifacts, said Miller. We believe there are some things of value and others that are of historical interest, such as photographs. As we continue going through the Ceremonial archives and artifacts, we will certainly be thinking of how we can share this record of local history with the public.
Contact: Linda Thornton, (505) 863-7565 or Carolyn Gonzales, (505) 277-5920
Posted by scarr at June 21, 2005 01:26 PM