Ceremony in Honor of the Return of the Latte Stones

Saturday August 9, 2025
10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Gallery Lawns

Beginning August 9, 2025, Bishop Museum will initiate a phased return of more than 10,000 pieces from the museum’s collection to the Mariana Islands. This landmark decision comes after three years of collaboration with government officials, and colleagues at peer institutions in Guåhan and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), and is among the largest known ethical returns to ever occur.

Bishop Museum, in partnership with the Government of Guam and the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Guam Museum, the Guam Cultural Repository, and the NMI Museum invites the Chamorro community and friends to participate in a special ceremony on August 9, 2025 at 10 a.m. on the Gallery Lawns of the Bishop Museum near the latte. Prayer and offerings made of natural materials will be gifted.

The public is welcome to gather with us and to honor the latte stones as we celebrate their journey back home. Please enter and check-in through the Museum’s main entrance.

Note: Access to this ceremony is free admission. This does not include access to the museum galleries. If you would like to access the museum galleries, please purchase a general admission ticket or show your museum membership card upon arrival.

This program is funded by the Mellon Foundation