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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, April 9, 2003

Hawaiian artifact sale called off online; eBay fine-tunes rules

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Staff Writer

The online auction service eBay will prohibit the sale of historic Hawaiian artifacts after receiving complaints about the sale of an 'ulu maika game stone that was reported to be from Kaho'olawe.

And the man who offered the game stone for sale says he will not make any further attempts to market it.

Joseph Sullivan, an eBay attorney and its director of compliance and law enforcement relations, reacted quickly after discussing the situation with Sara Collins, an archaeologist with the state historic preservation office.

"At her suggestion, I am going to update our policies to reflect clearly that certain of these types of items fall under our Native American artifact prohibited items policy," Sullivan said.

The seller of the 'ulu maika, a Big Island resident identified only by a screen name, told The Advertiser in an e-mail that he was not aware he was potentially violating both federal and state laws in marketing an artifact taken from Kaho'olawe. The island is owned by the state and overseen by the Navy, which is working on clearing it of unexploded munitions.

Although an eBay patron bid $305 for the 'ulu maika, the seller said he informed the bidder that the prospective transaction was illegal and that he would not further market the item.

Collins said it is legal for someone to sell a cultural artifact only if it is not associated with a burial and if it was found on the owner's land.

"We don't want to interfere with lawful purchases and sales," she said.

But many such items do not fall under that category, having been collected without permission from private property or from cultural sites on government land.

Collins said modern copies of ancient designs are not an issue.

"We have no problem with Hawaiian fishhook pendants if they say clearly that they are of modern make and of cow bone," Collins said. "It is technically illegal to knowingly sell a fake as genuine."

Navy Lt. Cmdr. Jane Campbell, who informed the seller of the 'ulu maika that the sale would be a violation of federal law, said she hopes the case will reduce future efforts to traffic in illegally obtained cultural objects.

"Bottom line, I think we caught it in time. But I'm sure there are things that we aren't catching," Campbell said.

Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.