Overview
- Pope Leo XIV presented the items to a Canadian bishops’ delegation during a November 15 audience in the Apostolic Palace.
- The objects come from the Vatican Museums’ Anima Mundi collection and were originally sent by missionaries for the 1925 Vatican Missionary Exhibition.
- A joint Vatican–CCCB statement described the move as an act of “ecclesial sharing” and a concrete sign of dialogue, respect and fraternity.
- The Vatican provided provenance documentation, and the Canadian bishops committed to safeguard and preserve the pieces in cooperation with Vatican cultural authorities.
- The CCCB said it will transfer the artifacts to National Indigenous Organizations to reunite them with their communities of origin, reflecting calls since Pope Francis’ 2022 apology and ongoing debates over how the items were first obtained.