Construction has paused at Vancouver International Airport after the discovery of what could be Musqueam artifacts at a work site on the southern half of Sea Island.
The Musqueam Indian Band has been notified of the finding in the area encompassing YVR’s South Airfield. The items have now been sent to a certified archaeology and heritage lab for technical assessments, the airport said in a Wednesday news release.
“This archaeological discovery demonstrates the longstanding and continued tie between Musqueam people and their ancestral territories,” said Tamara Vrooman, president of the Vancouver Airport Authority in the release co-signed by the Musqueam Indian Band.
“For this reason, finding these artifacts is not unexpected and something we plan for together with Musqueam.”

The xʷməθkʷəy̓əm have occupied the unceded land on which the airport now lies since time immemorial.
Vrooman said YVR is dedicated to protecting the recently-discovered artifacts, and that the airport has developed protocols for chance historical finds in collaboration with the First Nation.
“Musqueam – our elders, knowledge holders, and staff – will work together with YVR to do the right thing. We recognize this is an important process and are committed to continuing to walk this path together with YVR,” said the nation’s chief, yəχʷyaχʷələq Wayne Sparrow, in the release.
Global News has reached out for more information on the kinds of items discovered and the precise date of discovery.

YVR signed a friendship agreement with the Musqueam Indian Band in 2017, and more than 100 members of the First Nation now work at the airport.
On the same day they revealed the discovery of the artifacts, the pair collaboratively opened a new Musqueam gathering place near the baggage carousel in the domestic arrivals area. The space features exhibits that will help travellers learn more about the First Nation’s history and culture, in addition to a hand-carved, 10-metre canoe made from a 600-year-old red cedar log.
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