{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-53-53-361","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 53, § 53-361","heading":"Anthropological and archaeological projects","body":"\n\nA. Any person, or persons, making any investigations,\n\nexplorations, or excavations of any prehistoric ruins, ancient\n\nburial grounds, pictographs, petroglyphs, prehistoric specimens,\n\nutensils, and trinkets, and all other archaeological features\n\ndiscoveries in the state on state lands, shall donate to the state\n\nall articles, implements and material found or discovered by such\n\ninvestigations, explorations, or excavations, which shall be\n\ndeposited with a museum or other recognized repository in the state,\n\nwithin ninety (90) days after the permit termination date, as\n\nprovided in subsection F of this section.\n\nB. 1. The State Archaeologist, in consultation with the State\n\nHistoric Preservation Officer, shall study and evaluate the museums\n\nand institutions in this state and designate appropriate curatorial\n\nfacilities. The characteristics of museums and institutions to be\n\nconsidered in making this determination shall include:\n\na. the quality of the physical plant,\n\nb. previous experience in curation, and\n\nc. the availability of a professional staff trained\n\nin curation or archaeology.\n\n2. All original field records, notes, photographs and other\n\ninformation collected, except for personal journals or diaries, or\n\nreasonable facsimilies of those records, notes, photographs and\n\nother information shall be housed in the same repository as the\n\ncollections of artifacts and archaeological materials unless\n\notherwise specified in the permit or by the State Archaeologist in\n\nconsultation with the State Historic Preservation Officer.\n\n3. All those collections of artifacts, archaeological\n\nmaterials, field records, maps, notes, photographs and other\n\ninformation collected pursuant to the provisions of this act shall\n\nbe made available to the people of Oklahoma for study, examination\n\nand appreciation, provided that such availability can be arranged\n\nwithout contributing to the destruction or degradation of said\n\nartifacts, archaeological materials, field records, maps, notes,\n\nphotographs and other information and objects and that such release\n\nof information is in the educational interest of the citizens of\n\nOklahoma.\n\n4. Any repository for materials as designated in accordance\n\nwith paragraph 1 of this subsection may, as it deems necessary,\n\ncharge a reasonable, one-time fee of a permit holder to help defray\n\nthe costs of providing long-term storage of the materials.\n\nC. Before any exploration or excavation is made in or on any\n\nprehistoric ruins or archaeological site in Oklahoma, on the\n\nOklahoma State Register, or on property owned by or under the\n\ncontrol of the State of Oklahoma or any of its political\n\nsubdivisions, a permit shall first be obtained from the State\n\nArchaeologist, Oklahoma Archaeological Survey.\n\nSuch permit shall be issued upon:\n\n1. Receipt of an application from any state agency,\n\ninstitution, company or individual who can show cause for having\n\nsuch a permit for the taking, salvage, excavation, restoration or\n\nconducting of scientific or educational studies at, in or on\n\nproperties defined in this subsection;\n\n2. Payment of a fee of Fifty Dollars ($50.00);\n\n3. Determination by the State Archaeologist of the\n\nappropriateness of the permit request. This determination shall\n\ninclude:\n\na. application on a form approved by the State\n\nArchaeologist,\n\nb. specifications on the need for the indicated\n\nresearch activity and shall include a research design providing for\n\nthe recovery of scientific, archaeological or historical\n\ninformation,\n\nc. designation and qualifications of personnel\n\ninvolved in the project,\n\nd. specifications on the location, nature of the\n\nactivity and time period required for the work, and\n\ne. a signed statement from the landowner or, for\n\nstate lands, from the appropriate state agency, granting permission\na research design providing for\n\nthe recovery of scientific, archaeological or historical\n\ninformation,\n\nc. designation and qualifications of personnel\n\ninvolved in the project,\n\nd. specifications on the location, nature of the\n\nactivity and time period required for the work, and\n\ne. a signed statement from the landowner or, for\n\nstate lands, from the appropriate state agency, granting permission\n\nfor access and removal of archaeological or historical specimens;\n\n4. Signing an agreement to donate specimens or materials in\n\ncompliance with subsection A of this section; and\n\n5. A signed agreement establishing a mutually acceptable\n\nformula for determining a one-time fee, as authorized by subsection\n\nB of this section, or that no fee will be charged by the repository\n\nfor the long-term curation of deposited materials relating to the\n\nlicensed project.\n\nD. Each permit shall accurately specify the locations, nature\n\nof the activity and the time period covered by the permit, and shall\n\nauthorize or permit explorations or excavations only at the\n\ndescribed location.\n\nE. Copies of issued permits shall be on file with the State\n\nArchaeologist and the State Historic Preservation Officer.\n\nF. Each permit shall expire at midnight one (1) year after the\n\ndate of its issuance, provided, that any permit may be revoked by\n\nthe State Archaeologist, upon consultation with the State Historic\n\nPreservation Officer, at any time upon being convinced that\n\narchaeological activities authorized by the permit are being\n\nconducted unlawfully or improperly. It shall be the duty of the\n\nState Archaeologist to monitor all projects granted permits. The\n\nfollowing shall be considered proper actions for the conducting of\n\narchaeological work under a permit:\n\n1. One copy of the permit shall be at the site of the project,\n\neither in the possession of the Principal Investigator of the\n\nproject or a designated supervisory archaeologist at the project\n\nsite;\n\n2. The permit may be examined by the State Archaeologist or\n\nhis designated representative on demand at any time during the\n\nperiod of the permit; and\n\n3. Investigation or excavation of archaeological sites or\n\nruins listed on the permit must be conducted in accordance with the\n\nNational Historic Preservation Act, the Archaeological Resources\n\nProtection Act of 1979, and the permit provisions of this statute,\n\nas stipulated.\n\nThe permit may be renewed if cause is shown for the need of\n\nrenewal. The fee for renewal shall be at the rate for a new\n\napplication.\n\nG. A final report shall be submitted to the State\n\nArchaeologist and the State Historic Preservation Officer each\n\nwithin a reasonable period of time after the termination of the\n\npermitted project. Applications for new permits from delinquent\n\npermit holders shall not be granted until the delinquent final\n\nreports are delivered. This final report shall be in accordance\n\nwith federal standards and the \"minimal standard for reports\" which\n\nhave been adopted by the State Historic Preservation Officer and the\n\nOklahoma Archaeological Survey.\n\nH. The fees, if any, collected under the provisions of this\n\nsection shall be deposited in the Revolving Fund of the University\n\nof Oklahoma, and shall be used for the payment of the expenses in\n\nmaking investigations and for administration costs by the State\n\nArchaeologist as set out in this section; provided, that the State\n\nArchaeologist shall not issue any permit to any person until a\n\nthorough review has been made as to the purpose, place, and\n\ncondition of the proposed explorations or excavations.\n\nI. It shall be unlawful for any person to offer for sale or to\n\npurchase any archaeological specimen knowing the same to have been\n\nacquired in violation of this act.\n\nJ. Any person in possession of articles or materials acquired\n\nin violation of this act shall forfeit them to the state, pending\n\nreturn to their rightful owner.\ne, place, and\n\ncondition of the proposed explorations or excavations.\n\nI. It shall be unlawful for any person to offer for sale or to\n\npurchase any archaeological specimen knowing the same to have been\n\nacquired in violation of this act.\n\nJ. Any person in possession of articles or materials acquired\n\nin violation of this act shall forfeit them to the state, pending\n\nreturn to their rightful owner.\n\nK. It shall be unlawful for any person to intentionally and\n\nknowingly deface American Indian or aboriginal paintings,\n\npictographs, petroglyphs or other marks or carvings on rock or\n\nelsewhere that are of archaeological interest and pertain to early\n\nAmerican Indian or aboriginal habitation of the country. It shall\n\nbe unlawful to willingly injure, disfigure, remove or destroy any\n\narchaeological resources, including but not limited to, a\n\nprehistoric or historic structure, site, monument, marker,\n\nmedallion, burial, burial marker or artifact without lawful\n\nauthority as provided in this or related statutes. It shall be\n\nunlawful to enter onto the enclosed lands of another with the intent\n\nto intentionally injure, disfigure, remove, excavate, damage, take,\n\ndig into or destroy any archaeological remains or any prehistoric or\n\nhistoric site, American Indian or aboriginal campsite, artifact,\n\nburial, ruin or other materials wherever situated within the state\n\nwithout the consent of the owner.\n\nL. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section\n\nshall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall forfeit\n\nto the state for final disposition all articles and materials and\n\nrelated records wrongfully acquired through his action or efforts,\n\nand shall also be fined not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)\n\nand not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or imprisoned in\n\nthe county jail, not exceeding thirty (30) days, or both.\n\nM. In order to protect and preserve historical, archaeological\n\nand scientific information, matters and objects and other\n\narchaeological remains, which may from time to time be found on\n\nprivately owned lands within Oklahoma, the Legislature declares as a\n\nstatement of purpose that archaeological excavations on privately\n\nowned lands should be discouraged except in accordance with and\n\npursuant to the spirit and authority of this statute. Persons\n\nhaving knowledge of the location of archaeological sites in the\n\nState of Oklahoma are encouraged to communicate such information to\n\na reputable museum, institution of higher learning, a recognized\n\nscientific or historical institution or society or the Oklahoma\n\nArchaeological Survey. Those institutions, societies or museums\n\ncontacted with such information should in turn inform the State\n\nArchaeologist, Oklahoma Archaeological Survey, so that the\n\ninformation may be recorded in the inventory of sites maintained for\n\nthe state.","path":["OK Code","Title 53"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os53.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"3efbd2ad744d3e6eb9662c2e695e8d242aee2528e2ba3f0754565f52869ed245","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-53-53-355","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-53-53-4.12"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}