U.S. Embassy asks for delay of Native American artifact auction PARIS, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- The U.S. Embassy said it asked a Paris auction house to delay selling sacred objects from the Hopi and San Carlos Apache tribes. The embassy delivered a letter to the auction house on Saturday asking for the delay, Radio France Internationale said. The embassy said the tribes should be given time to identify the objects and investigate whether they have a claim to recover the items under the law. The auction of the mask and headdresses is set to take place at the Eve auction house Monday and Tuesday. "The objects are of great importance to the Arizona-based Hopi and San Carlos Apache peoples and should not be offered for sale precipitously and in the absence of consultation with the two tribes," the statement reads. Earlier this year, French firm Neret-Minet ignored requests by activists and sold 70 masks for $1.2 million. The sale of sacred Native American artifacts is banned in the United States, but there is no equivalent law in France.