Native American Tree and Scaffold Burial

     The burial was also affected by the social status, gender, and age in some tribes. Chiefs usually were placed higher in the tree, while squaws and children were placed in lower trees and sometimes even bushes.

     Even today, tree burial has an influence on the world around it. Or rather, the world has an influence on tree burial. Through all the years of bodies hanging in trees, modern humans have disrupted the trees for anthropological missions. But the Native American Graves Protection and Repartriation Act of 1990 solved this problem. It stated that anyone who was being paid to excavate artifacts had to return anything they discovered to its tribe if the tribe wanted it.

     Today’s accepted method of burial is even believed to have come from the Indians– after placing the body on scaffolding, the Dakota and Chippewa tribes took down important figures– such as chiefs– and buried them in the ground. They placed a totem-like structure at the foot of the body– it was called an ajedati. It bore an inscription of the person’s life accomplishments and has become the known predecessor of today’s gravestones. It is believed that we adopted this method of burial from the ajedati.

     Tree and scaffold burial was an ancient form of laying the dead to rest that the Native Americans embraced. They believed in its notions and honor the past of it today. Throughout the country– and the world– it speaks the variety of tradition through death to the curious scholar and imprints the memory of our Native American ancestors.

Works Cited

Craven, Margaret. I Heard the Owl Call My Name. Laurel Press, 1980.

Dykes, Trevor. Indian graves. 2006. (15 May 2009).

Greenberg, Annie. Indian Burial Customs Vary Widely. 2008. < http://www.reznetnews.org/article/indian-burial-customs-vary-widely-23930> (8 May 2009).

Fixico, Donald L, Alan L. Kolata, and Sharlotte Neely. “Indian, American.” The World Book Encyclopedia. 1995 ed.

Fulton, Robert. “Funeral Customs.” The World Book Encyclopedia. 1995 ed.

Lewis, Claudia. Indian Families of the Northwest Coast: The Impact of Change. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1970.

Spence, Lewis. North American Indians: Myths and Legends. New York: Avenel Books, 1986.

Through Indian Eyes. Pleasantville, New York: The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc, 1995.

Tree and Scaffold Burial. 2005. (8 May 2009).