How collections were formed
Confiscation by missionaries and officials, purchase under duress, salvage collecting during epidemics and famine, and grave excavation all contributed to museum holdings.
Legal frameworks
NAGPRA (1990) in the United States, national repatriation policies in Australia and New Zealand, and case-by-case negotiation in Europe now govern returns — unevenly and slowly.
Restricted objects
Some items should not be displayed or photographed at all. Institutions increasingly accept community-set access conditions on their own collections.