While pipestone will continue to be carved into various objects, pipes made from it will not be sold at Pipestone National Monument's visitor center/NPS
Pipes carved from pipestone will no longer be sold at the visitor center at Pipestone National Monument out of respect for Native American beliefs. The National Park Service and the Pipestone Indian Shrine Association reached that decision in consultation with federally recognized tribes associated with the Monument.
The cultural demonstration program at the monument, located in Pipestone, Minnesota, will continue, with added financial support from the National Park Service. This impactful interpretive program employs Native American carvers and craftspeople to share their culture and history with the public. The store at the monument will continue to offer Native American-made items, including small pipestone crafts with additional information about their significance. The Shrine will open a second location in downtown Pipestone.
“We respect that there are many different points of view about pipestone, and we are committed to learning from the perspectives of tribes and descendant communities,” said monument Superintendent Lauren Blacik. “We know there are and will be different opinions about the decision to end pipe sales at the monument, and we appreciate the efforts made by the Shrine, tribes, craftspeople, and local partners to resolve this complex and long-standing issue.”
Pipestone is a metamorphic clay (silicate of alumina) argillite or catlinite (named after George Catlin). According to the National Park Service, "The red color results from oxidation of trace amounts of iron. The formation of the soft red stone called pipestone began about 1.2 billion years ago when oceans covered Minnesota. Layers of clay and sand collected on the ocean floor and became buried by other sedimentary materials."
Law and policy direct federal agencies to consult with tribes on topics concerning their ancestral lands. Pipestone National Monument consults regularly with 23 tribes based on their historic use of the quarries, for some tribes stretching back hundreds of years or more.
For decades, the National Park Service has been aware of different perspectives about whether and how pipestone should be sold. In 2013, several tribes requested formal, government-to-government consultation on the issue. Since then, the National Park Service has received considerable feedback from tribes, mostly opposing pipe sales at the monument.
“We stand strong with the consensus of the tribes who also protect this sacred ground seen as the blood of our people,” said Faith Spotted Eagle, chair of the Ihanktonwan Treaty Steering Committee. The 1858 Treaty of the Yankton protected the quarries as a part of the Ihanktonwan reservation. “We also remember the numerous spiritual people, some of whom have gone on to the spirit world, who fought for this on spiritual runs, numerous meetings, ceremonies, and continual vigilance.”
“This decision is generations in the making," said Dyan Youpee, tribal historic preservation officer of the Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux Tribes. "When I first came to Pipestone as a child, I had so many questions about how these sacred resources were being cared for and why we were not managing them ourselves. Today we are involved in the protection of our sacred resources, and I am hopeful that future generations will not have the same worries I did. They will know they are a part of preserving pipestone."
The Shrine is the official cooperating association partner of Pipestone National Monument and has managed the store at the visitor center since 1958. The National Park Service and the Shrine work together to choose sales items and resolve any problems concerning the store at the Monument.
Pipes are central to many Native American ceremonial practices and traditions, and the decision to carry a pipe is a deep personal, spiritual, and cultural responsibility. “We have come to understand that decisions about pipe carrying are most appropriately made without involvement by the National Park Service,” said Blacik.
Many local quarriers and carvers working today are the third-, fourth-, and fifth-generation in their families to carry on the tradition.
Comments
What exactly is the problem with carving pipes?
No problem carving them. It sounds like the carving demonstrations will continue, but they were selling pipes made from that stone on site. Apparently the tribes consider pipes to be sacred items.
So? That is their belief, not someone elses.
They're very deferential to the concerns of the tribes that mine from the quarry. The article mentioned that law and policy requires continual consultation with those tribes.
If the Shrine is not selling Pipes anymore, where can I buy a Pipe made by them ?
It would be like selling fake play Bibles with no words in them to nonChristians so their kids could play Christian having no intention to learn about the religion; or selling tin chalices outside the Vatican for non-Catholics to give to their kids for birthday presents so they could play Mass. Or selling rolled up "authentic Torah" scrolls for non-Jewish tourists outside the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.
The chanupa (sacred pipe- Lakota term) isn't even taken out or handled except for sacred ceremony and then only by the designate Pipe Carrier for that group/family. The piple is a very big deal if you know anything about the culture or the history of the place. Its not seen as an 'object' but a sacred conduit between humans and the spirit world. I'ts no game. And it's one of the rare few ceremonial practices not completely ruined by nonIndian curiosity seekers and opportunists wanting to make a buck.
Pipestone Nat Park is one of the few original sacred sites for the Plains people not grabbed for farmland, hog farms, dairy operations, powerline easements, etc. A truly rare and special place that is quiet and heavy with history. Kind of like Gettysburg NP. And it's still an active pipestone quarry for the historical tribes who used it. Only hand tools are allowed. And if you go there you'll see the massive effort it takes (like, and entire summer) to sit in the hot sun and pound out the surrounding rock with a hammer and chisel to expose the narrow band of beautiful pipestone. Its only like 2-5 inches deep in places, and the easy-to-reach vein is long gone so they're working in rock trenches 5-10 feet below the surface that fill with rain water and mud half the year.
It's a respect thing. So having mass-produced "sacred pipes" for sale on the wall behind the cash register at the Visitor Center gift shop kinda defeats the whole purpose and history of the place. The Pipestone Monument /quarry area has been a sacred DMZ among the plains tribes for centuries. They agreed to let each other quarry the unique stone for their own ceremonial pipes.
Hope that helps. If you haven't, go visit the place, talk to the native guys who sit there and do the carving by hand and talk to visitors. They consider it an honor and duty to represent their people, demonstrate the art, and help the rest of us get a very small glimpse of an entire earth-honoring, nature-based culture and spirituality that most westerners know nothing about.
Jeff
South Bend, IN
The owner of a native shop said "they are just sticks and stone till the pipe is blessed". Spiritual tools should be honored and may hold powerful energy. The site in Pipestone is like no other because of the energy and needs protection. Last time I was there the strong smell of polluted water was overwhelming. Run off from the farms in the area may be a issue.
Everytime I touch the red stone I;m energized and hope that twisted people don't interfer with people getting pipes. I suppose we should restrict who has a bible based on race. Anything that connects people to a higher energy level should not be in terfered with in these times of hate..
It's not yours obviously, what if anyone came into your backyard... Then they took a crucifix from your house and used it for profit making it into something you didn't believe in. Does that make sense a little bit?