Allison Gister, left, and Carol Laumen of the Annenberg Foundation used a clandestine plan to secure the return of valuable Native American masks from a Paris auction this month. They executed the deal Dec. 9 from Los Angeles using telephone and online bids. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
French auctioneer Alan Leroy during the auction of sacred objects from the Hopi and San Carlos Apache tribes in Paris. (Joel Saget / AFP/Getty Images)
Masks for sale at the Paris auction site. A Hopi tribal spokesman said more than 1,000 sacred objects are still in the hands of outsiders. “We see them as spiritual beings,” he said. (Joel Saget / AFP/Getty Images)
A view of three Hopi masks from Arizona during a Paris auction of sacred objects from the Hopi and San Carlos Apache Native American tribes in December 2013. (Joel Saget / AFP/Getty Images)
A Wakaskatsina mask, a Katsina Jemez mask and a Hakto mask during a Paris auction of sacred objects from the Hopi and San Carlos Apache Native American tribes. (Joel Saget / AFP/Getty Images)
