(1) "Council" means the Vermont Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

(2) [Repealed.]

(3) "Division" means the Division for Historic Preservation.

(4) "Field investigations" means the study of the traces of human culture at any land or water site by means of surveying, digging, sampling, excavating, or removing surface or subsurface objects or going on a site with that intent.

(5) "Historic preservation" means the research, protection, restoration, and rehabilitation of buildings, structures, objects, districts, areas, and sites significant in the history, architecture, archaeology, or culture of this State, its communities, or the nation.

(6) "Historic property" or "resource" means any building, structure, object, district, area, or site that is significant in the history, architecture, archaeology, or culture of this State, its communities, or the nation.

(7) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Agency of Commerce and Community Development.

(8) "Site" means any aboriginal mound, fort, earthwork, village location, burial ground, historic or prehistoric ruin, mine, cave, or other location which is or may be source of important archaeological data.

(9) "Specimen" means a relic, artifact, remain, object, or any other evidence of a historical, prehistorical, archaeological, or anthropological nature, which may be found on or below the surface of the earth, and which has scientific or historical value as an object of antiquity, as an aboriginal relic, or as an archaeological sample.

(10) "Underwater historic property" means any shipwreck, vessel, cargo, tackle, or underwater archaeological specimen, including and found at refuse sites or submerged sites of former habitation, that has remained unclaimed for more than 10 years on the bottoms of any waters. (Added 1975, No. 109, § 4; amended 1995, No. 190 (Adj. Sess.), § 1(a); 2001, No. 35, § 8.)