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2mo ago

Vatican Expected to Return Dozens of Indigenous Artifacts to Canada This Year

The plan routes items through Canadian bishops to the Museum of History for identification by originating communities.

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FILE - Pope Francis dons a headdress during a visit with Indigenous peoples at Maskwaci, the former Ermineskin Residential School, Monday, July 25, 2022, in Maskwacis, Alberta. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
Father Nicola Mapelli (left) Director of Anima Mundi, the Vatican's ethnological museum, inspects an Inuit kayak with art restorers Catherine Riviere (centre) and Martina Brunori, on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. The kayak was a gift to the Vatican by the Canadian Bishops for the world ethnological exposition of 1925. Chris Warde-Jones/The Globe and Mail

Overview

  • Officials say the Holy See is preparing to announce the handover of a few dozen objects in the coming weeks, with a goal of getting them to Canada before year’s end.
  • The transfer will follow a church‑to‑church approach, with the Vatican donating items to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops under an understanding that Indigenous communities will be their ultimate keepers.
  • Once in Canada, the artifacts will go to the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau for provenance research and consultation to determine community origins and next steps.
  • The collection draws from the Anima Mundi ethnographic holdings and includes pieces such as an Inuit kayak, many of which were sent to Rome for a 1925 exhibition that the Vatican has long described as gifts to Pope Pius XI.
  • The Assembly of First Nations says talks are active and that ceremonial protocols and other logistical details must be finalized before any return, as Inuit and Métis national organizations continue to press for restitution.