Cave Filled with Ancient Art Sells for $2M as Osage Nation Leaders Argue It's 'Rightfully' Theirs
Alan Cressler via AP
A Missouri cave filled with ancient art was recently sold to an anonymous buyer for $2.2 million, against the wishes of a local tribe.
Picture Cave, which is home to ancient drawings from the Osage Nation, was auctioned off by Selkirk Auctioneers & Appraisers on Tuesday. The sacred land dates back to 800-1100 C.E., according to the auction page and is considered "the most important rock art site in North America."
Citing the book Picture Cave- Unraveling the Mysteries of the Mississippian Cosmos, the auction page states that the ancient cave was home to sacred rituals, astronomical studies, oral history, and more. It also includes over 290 glyphs on the walls.
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The auction has been "truly heartbreaking" for the tribe.
"Our ancestors lived in this area for 1,300 years," a tribe spokesperson said in a statement to the Associated Press. "This was our land. We have hundreds of thousands of our ancestors buried throughout Missouri and Illinois, including Picture Cave."
Andrea Hunter, tribal historic preservation officer for the Osage Nation, told CNN, "It is our ancestors who are buried there in that cave. It is our ancestors that created the images that are on the walls and conducted the rituals that took place."
"It is absolutely the most sacred site that we have. And it rightfully should be in our ownership," Hunter added.
An Osage Nation spokesperson did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
Alan Cressler via AP Drawings in Picture Cave
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Speaking with the Associated Press, Carol Diaz-Granados — a research associate in the anthropology department at Washington University in St. Louis — gave insight as to why Picture Cave is so valuable to the Osage Nation.
"You get stick figures in other rock art sites, or maybe one little feather on the top of the head, or a figure holding a weapon," the research associate said. "But in Picture Cave you get actual clothing details, headdress details, feathers, weapons. It's truly amazing."
"Auctioning off a sacred American Indian site truly sends the wrong message. It's like auctioning off the Sistine Chapel," Diaz-Granados continued. "That's their cave. That's their sacred shrine, and it should go back to them."
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Diaz-Granados also told CNN, "It really sends the wrong message — that ancient sacred American Indian sites can be purchased for the 'right' amount of money, irregardless of their patrimony."
The Osage Nation previously made attempts to block the auctioning of Picture Cave, according to CNN.
The tribe and the Conservation Fund and the US Fish and Wildlife Service attempted to buy Picture Cave from the family who has owned the land, mainly for hunting purposes, since 1953 but all the parties could not agree on a cost, per the outlet.
Amid the sale, Selkirk Executive Director Bryan Laughlin told CNN, "Regarding time and unforeseen occurrence, I cannot say, but all indications thus far would be that the cave is going to be preserved very well."
Because the cave is also a human burial site, Missouri law makes it a crime to damage the property and/or profit from cultural items found there.
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Realtor and auctioneer Amelia Jeffers told Fox 2 Now that the buyers live nearby to the cave and are from Missouri.
"They want to see the property maintained and the land conserved and the cave particularly protected and conserved which has been a big conversation throughout these auction preparations," Jeffers said.
