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A collection of ancient carved wooden figures, tools, and stone artifacts arranged in trays

Yup’ik dolls, jewelry, and other artifacts at the Nunalleq museum. Katie Basile/The New York Times

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Racing to Save History

A storm hit Alaska and scattered Indigenous artifacts along the shore. The Yup’ik people are now attempting to salvage them.

August 31, 2026
By Sachi Kitajima Mulkey

Jim McMahon

Last October, the morning after a storm slammed into western Alaska, Jimmy Jones was collecting driftwood on the beach near Quinhagak, a fishing village. When he reached to pick up a log, a face stared up at him from the sand beneath.

For a second, he worried he’d found a human body. But looking closer, Jones realized it was a wooden mask.

The remnants of Typhoon Halong, which killed at least one person and displaced hundreds around the region, had eaten into 60 feet of shoreline and destroyed an archaeological dig site 3 miles south called Nunalleq. Thousands of artifacts had been swept up and scattered along the Bering Sea coastline. Many of them were 600 years old, left behind by the ancestors of the Yup’ik people who live in Quinhagak today (see “Alaska’s Native People,” below).

In the days that followed, Quinhagak residents raced to recover the artifacts washing ashore.

Last October, the remnants of Typhoon Halong slammed into western Alaska near the fishing village of Quinhagak. The next morning, Jimmy Jones was collecting driftwood on the beach. When he reached to pick up a log, a face stared up at him from the sand beneath.

For a second, he worried he’d found a human body. But looking closer, Jones realized it was a wooden mask.

The storm, which killed at least one person, displaced hundreds around the region. It had eaten into 60 feet of shoreline. An archaeological dig site 3 miles south called Nunalleq was destroyed. Thousands of artifacts had been washed away and scattered along the Bering Sea coastline. Many of them were 600 years old. They had been left behind by the ancestors of the Yup’ik people who live in Quinhagak today (see “Alaska’s Native People,” below).

In the days that followed, Quinhagak residents raced to recover the artifacts washing ashore.

Katie Basile/The New York Times

Searching for artifacts on the beach last October; a Yup’ik woman holds a recovered harpoon tip (inset).

A Sacred Site

For centuries, many Yup’ik artifacts were preserved in frozen ground. Elders initially felt that disturbing Nunalleq, which is considered sacred and contains human remains, would be a breach of cultural values.

But with climate change bearing down on the Arctic, saving artifacts like these has become more urgent. As the planet warms and sea levels rise, shorelines are slowly eroding. And as Arctic soils thaw, objects inside begin decomposing.

The warming climate may also enable disasters like Typhoon Halong, says Rick Thoman, a climate specialist at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Before 2022, there was one recorded instance of a typhoon tracking far enough north to reach the Arctic. In recent years, there were three.

For centuries, many Yup’ik artifacts were preserved in frozen ground. Elders initially felt that disturbing Nunalleq, which contains human remains and is considered sacred, would be a breach of cultural values.

Saving artifacts like these has become more urgent now because of climate change in the Arctic. Shorelines are slowly eroding because of rising sea levels. And as Arctic soils thaw, objects inside begin decomposing.

The warming climate may also enable disasters like Typhoon Halong, says Rick Thoman, a climate specialist at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Before 2022, there was one recorded instance of a typhoon tracking far enough north to reach the Arctic. In recent years, there were three.

Katie Basile/The New York Times

Jimmy Jones with a Yup’ik mask he found on the beach after a storm hit western Alaska

The Nunalleq dig began in 2009, and the small town now boasts what’s likely the largest collection of Yup’ik artifacts in the world. There are nearly 200,000 items preserved in a cultural center that doubles as an archaeology lab and museum.

The artifacts were “waiting for us to tell their story,” says Warren Jones, Jimmy Jones’s father and the chief executive of Qanirtuuq, the corporation that owns the tribe’s land and represents its interests to the U.S. government. “We have to do this for the future generation—they need to know where each and every one of us came from.”

The promise to keep the artifacts in town was the main reason Grace Hill, an elder in Quinhagak, supported the dig.

“Before, many of our objects were taken and not returned to us because there was no way to preserve them here,” Hill says. Now Quinhagak residents are deeply involved with every step of the process. “That’s the best part,” she adds.

The Nunalleq dig began in 2009. The small town now has what is likely to be the largest collection of Yup’ik artifacts in the world. There are nearly 200,000 items preserved in a cultural center that doubles as an archaeology lab and museum.

The artifacts were “waiting for us to tell their story,” says Warren Jones, Jimmy Jones’s father. He is the chief executive of Qanirtuuq, the corporation that owns the tribe’s land and represents its interests to the U.S. government. “We have to do this for the future generation—they need to know where each and every one of us came from.”

The promise to keep the artifacts in town was the main reason Grace Hill, an elder in Quinhagak, supported the dig.

“Before, many of our objects were taken and not returned to us because there was no way to preserve them here,” Hill says. Now Quinhagak residents are deeply involved with every step of the process. “That’s the best part,” she adds.

The Purchase of Alaska
A brief history of the state and how Indigenous peoples were affected by colonization

The Storm’s Toll

Richard Knecht, an archaeologist who leads the work at Nunalleq, has seen coastal erosion destroy Indigenous heritage sites before: In the early 2000s, rising sea levels claimed a dig near Kodiak, Alaska. Still, the damage to Nunalleq in October took his breath away, he says.

The recovery effort was well underway when Knecht arrived after the storm. Dozens of residents had already started salvaging artifacts by the boxful. Some, such as wooden bowls, masks, dolls, and spoons, were in perfect condition. There were fragments of others, such as kayak paddles, arrow shafts, and the soles of a child’s boots.

Recovered objects were soaked in a preservative before being cataloged and stored in the town’s museum. At least 1,000 artifacts were rescued this fall, Knecht estimates—but once snow fell, the community had to pause recovery efforts. They started back up in May. There were likely 10,000 more artifacts still frozen in the beach sand.

For many residents, the storm has been a wake-up call, emphasizing the importance of protecting both the artifacts and the town. Hill, for example, hopes Quinhagak can be shifted to higher ground.

“The greatest thing I want,” she says, “is to preserve all the things we have as much as possible.”

Richard Knecht, an archaeologist who leads the work at Nunalleq, has seen coastal erosion destroy other Indigenous heritage sites. In the early 2000s, rising sea levels claimed a dig near Kodiak, Alaska. Still, the damage to Nunalleq in October took his breath away, he says.

The recovery effort was well underway when Knecht arrived after the storm. Dozens of residents had already started saving artifacts by the boxful. Some, such as wooden bowls, masks, dolls, and spoons, were in perfect condition. Others, such as kayak paddles, arrow shafts, and the soles of a child’s boots, were fragments.

Recovered objects were soaked in a preservative before being cataloged. They are now stored in the town’s museum. At least 1,000 artifacts were rescued this fall, Knecht estimates. The community had to pause recovery efforts when the snow started to fall. They started back up in May. There were likely 10,000 more artifacts still frozen in the beach sand.

For many residents, the storm has been a wake-up call. There is now an emphasis on protecting both the artifacts and the town. Hill, for example, hopes Quinhagak can be shifted to higher ground.

“The greatest thing I want,” she says, “is to preserve all the things we have as much as possible.”

Sachi Kitajima Mulkey covers climate for The New York Times.

Sachi Kitajima Mulkey covers climate for The New York Times.

Alaska’s Native People

The state has one of America’s largest Indigenous populations

Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Yup’ik teens in Newtok, Alaska

In Alaska today, there are 229 federally recognized Indigenous tribes, compared with 347 in the lower 48 states combined. Indigenous people make up 15 percent of Alaska’s population, speaking nearly two dozen different Alaska Native languages.

 Anthropologists believe Alaska’s Indigenous people originated in Asia, crossing over the Bering Strait land bridge that connected Asia and North America thousands of years ago. Russians established the first European settlement near present-day Kodiak in 1784, and Russia continued to govern the area until 1867, when the U.S. purchased the territory for $7.2 million.

Alaska became a state in 1959. After decades of Indigenous pressure, Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971, which divided 44 million acres of land among regional “corporations” in which Native peoples are the shareholders. Many shareholders have voting rights that allow them to weigh in on what happens to the land.

—Chrisanne Grisé

In Alaska today, there are 229 federally recognized Indigenous tribes, compared with 347 in the lower 48 states combined. Indigenous people make up 15 percent of Alaska’s population, speaking nearly two dozen different Alaska Native languages.

 Anthropologists believe Alaska’s Indigenous people originated in Asia, crossing over the Bering Strait land bridge that connected Asia and North America thousands of years ago. Russians established the first European settlement near present-day Kodiak in 1784, and Russia continued to govern the area until 1867, when the U.S. purchased the territory for $7.2 million.

Alaska became a state in 1959. After decades of Indigenous pressure, Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971, which divided 44 million acres of land among regional “corporations” in which Native peoples are the shareholders. Many shareholders have voting rights that allow them to weigh in on what happens to the land.

—Chrisanne Grisé

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