Aleutian Burial Cave, Mummies Found

An ancient burial cave containing the mummified remains of more than 30 people has been found in the Aleutians. The discovery is being called one of the most important in Alaska in years.

A volunteer working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service discovered the cave in June while looking for fox dens on an uninhabited island, Chuck Diters, the agency’s regional archeologist, said Friday. Foxes are being eradicated to protect a rare species of goose.

“This discovery is unquestionably one of the most important archeological finds in Alaska in a half-century,” said Diters.

Well-preserved artifacts found in the cave include weapons, household goods, artwork, and some toys that were buried with children.

The location was not disclosed.

“They were real closed-mouth about it, very careful in order to protect it from pot hunters,” Diters said. “They didn’t even radio information about the find. We didn’t know about it until they got back to Adak in June.”

Since then, archeologists have been studying the cave’s contents.

The Aleut Corp., the regional native corporation that has rights to the remains and artifacts under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, authorized their removal to the University of Connecticut and Vassar College for further examination.

All will be returned to Alaska when the studies are complete to become the property of the Aleut Corp., Diters said.

Scientists believe the area around the cave was a village and they hope to expand their investigation next year.

“It’s rare we get the opportunity to excavate the burial and village site in the same situation,” Diters said.

Although not totally preserved, the human remains had been ceremonially mummified and wrapped for burial in finely woven grass mats, in accordance with Aleut burial rites, Diters said.

“We found bodies of both sexes and all ages, from less than 1-year-old infants to old, toothless elders,” said Lucy Lewis Johnson, an archeologist on the faculty of Vassar in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

“This cave has given us a priceless glimpse of a realm of culture,” she said.