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State, federal, and tribal properties for the most part already have people working to protect sites on their property. If the site you are concerned about is not on your property, please contact us and we can help you communicate your concerns to the appropriate legal official. For more information about protecting your site see the information on site stewardship provided by the DAHP. Be sure to inquire about incentives such as tax breaks that are available to land owners. The site can then be recorded, with the landowner’s permission, and will add to the general archaeological knowledge about our region. If it is an archaeological site, report it to the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP). This decreases the chance of looting at the site. Don’t call attention to the site or tell too many people about it. If the site you are concerned about is on your property there are a few things you should do. You can upload images to our online form listed below. Photos should always be taken with some sort of scale (a ruler is best, but even a common object such as a U.S. Do you have a photo of the object? Photos provide us an opportunity to do some preliminary research.When was it found? For cultural artifacts, this can help us determine whether or not there are any legal issues with which you should be concerned.If you are able to provide a map or an address where the artifact was found this is often very helpful. You should be as precise as possible even knowing general information, such as whether it came from a beach or a field, can be really helpful. Where was it found? Knowing where an object was found can greatly increase the chances that the Burke will be able to help you identify it.
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To better help identify your object, you should have as much of the following information available as possible when you contact the Burke. If the object was given to you by a family member, it might be a good idea to do a short interview with them keeping these questions in mind. In-person object identification is only available by prior appointment. Please note that we will not appraise your object nor authenticate items for sale. The Burke Museum specializes in artifacts and objects from the Pacific Northwest region and collections staff respond to identification requests on a time-available basis. Do you have an object that you'd like identified?
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