JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A fragment of a mask that was preserved for hundreds of years in permafrost sat in the muck of a low tide in the western Alaska
This photo provided by Richard Arden Knecht shows various tools, utensils and other artifacts that were recovered after the Typhoon Halong scattered them from a significant Yup'ik archaeological site, known as the Nunalleq site, in Quinhagak, Alaska, Oct.
2025. JUNEAU, Alaska — A fragment of a mask that was preserved for hundreds of years in permafrost sat in the muck of a low tide in the western Alaska community of Quinhagak. Wooden spoons, toys, a fishing lure and other artifacts were strewn, in some cases for miles, along the beach. The Yup’ik community near the edge of the Bering Sea was spared the widespread devastation wrought by the remnants of Typhoon Halong on its neighbors further west earlier this month. But it suffered a different kind of blow: The lashing winds and storm surge devoured dozens of feet of shoreline, disrupting a culturally significant archaeological site and washing away possibly thousands of unearthed artifacts. About 1,000 pieces, including wooden masks and tools, were recovered in Quinhagak after the storm ravaged parts of southwest Alaska on Oct. 11 and 12. But many more pieces — perhaps up to 100,000 — were left scattered, said Rick Knecht, an archaeologist who has worked on the Nunalleq, or old village, project for 17 years. That’s roughly the number of pieces previously recovered from the archaeological site. Meanwhile, freezing temperatures and ice have settled into the region, stalling immediate efforts to find and recover more displaced artifacts on searches done by four-wheeler and foot. Knecht called what happened a major loss. The site has yielded the world’s largest collection of pre-contact Yup’ik artifacts. Much of what’s known about Yup’ik life before outsiders arrived stems from the project, said Knecht, an emeritus senior lecturer in archaeology at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. “When there are holes or disturbances in the site, it’s like trying to read a book with holes in the pages. You’re going to miss a few things,” he said. “And the bigger those holes are, the weaker the story gets. There’s a few holes in the book right now.” While the name of the original village isn’t known, it was attacked by another village and burned around 1650, he said. Knecht has worked with elders and others in Quinhagak to combine their traditional knowledge with the technology and techniques used by the archaeology teams to study the past together.The storm dispersed artifacts from a site long preserved by permafrost, Knecht said. A longstanding concern has been the threat that climate change — melting permafrost, coastal erosion, the potential for more frequent or stronger storms — has posed to the site, he said. It poses risks to the community itself. Erosion threatens major infrastructure in Quinhagak, including a sewage lagoon, homes and fish camps. Thawing permafrost is also unsettling and undermining buildings, according to a 2024 report from the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium. The excavation project itself began after artifacts began appearing on the beach around 2007. Part of the site that washed out had been excavated previously. “There was a big chunk where we’d only gone about halfway down and left it for later because we prioritized parts of the site that were most at risk from marine erosion,” Knecht said. When he left in July, there was a roughly 30-foot buffer to the sea. The storm took out the buffer and another 30 feet of the site, he said. It also left what Knecht described as piano-sized clumps of tundra on the tidal flats.“I just drove right by it because all the landmarks I’m used to on the beach and at the site were gone or changed,” he said. Work to preserve the rescued artifacts has included soaking the marine salts from the wood and placing the pieces in special chemicals that will help them hold together when they dry out, he said. If one were to just take one of the wooden artifacts off the beach and let them dry, they’d “crack to pieces, sometimes in a matter of hours.”Archaeologists hope to return to the site next spring for a “rescue excavation” of layers exposed by the storm, he said. In some ways, it feels like when teams saw the site in 2009: “We’ve got this raw site with artifacts popping off in every way,” he said. “So we’re starting from scratch again.”JUNEAU, Alaska — A fragment of a mask that was preserved for hundreds of years in permafrost sat in the muck of a low tide in the western Alaska community of Quinhagak. Wooden spoons, toys, a fishing lure and other artifacts were strewn, in some cases for miles, along the beach. The Yup’ik community DENVER — After months of extraordinary steps to ensure his party maintains control of the U.S. House of Representatives in next year’s midterms, President Donald Trump is turning his sights toward the voting process in next week’s elections. That pivot is raising alarm among Democrats and others who warn that he may be testing A former South Carolina sheriff is expected to plead guilty Thursday to federal charges that he stole from his force’s benevolence fund and took pain medication that was supposed to be destroyed as part of a pill take-back program. Former Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright signed a plea agreement last month with federal prosecutors on SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie is trying to get more homes built for people like Liam Murphy: a fifth-generation city kid who found himself repeatedly outbid for tiny two-bedroom houses that wound up selling for $1.6 million. Murphy, 39, now lives about an hour’s drive away from his job as a NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The parents of children killed in a shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville are fighting to keep police investigative records a secret, even after many documents were leaked to a conservative media outlet. In a Tennessee appeals court on Thursday, attorneys for the parents and The Covenant School will GREGORY, TX — Thick smoke blanketed a rural community in southern Texas and many residents were ordered to evacuate as firefighters worked to contain a blaze on Wednesday evening, officials said. The Mill Fire in Gregory, Texas, about 150 miles southeast of San Antonio, had grown to 15 acres and officials had Tyson O’Neill, owner of Generator Supercenter of Puget Sound in Lynnwood, said homeowners must stop treating backup power like a luxury.As small and medium-sized businesses in the Seattle-Tacoma region prepare to capitalize on renewed economic momentum and easing interest rates, Bonneville Seattle stands as the premier media partner to amplify their growth.Medicare open enrollment runs from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, giving beneficiaries a crucial opportunity to review and change their plans.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading your heating, air conditioning, or heat pump system, 2025 is the year to act.Prostate cancer is a very serious disease, but most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. Many treatment options are available, especially in Seattle.In 7 Steps to a Successful Retirement, CPA and advisor Brian Evans lays out a clear, principle-driven roadmap to help individuals transition from working years to a comfortable retirement.
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