LIMA, Jan 17 (NNN-ANDINA) — Peru’s Ministry of Culture has received 202 cultural goods that were repatriated from the United States, Germany, Belgium, Canada, and Spain, thanks to the efforts made by the Cultural Heritage Directorate at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Peruvian Consulates and Embassies accredited to said countries, as well as local authorities.
During the ceremony held at Torre Tagle Palace in Lima, Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Ignacio Higueras highlighted the coordinated work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Interior, the Public Ministry, and Interpol, which “contribute, in a committed way, to the success of these efforts to recover our cultural goods.”
Joined by Deputy Cultural Heritage and Cultural Industries Minister Haydee Rosas, Higueras remarked that “Peru has positioned itself as a benchmark in the international fight against illicit trafficking of cultural goods.”
The list of 202 repatriated cultural goods includes 198 archaeological, one historical-artistic, and three archival-documentary goods.
Out of the 198 archaeological pieces, 154 were voluntarily returned by citizens, 42 were obtained from seizures made by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the German Police, while two were returned by the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History in Los Angeles, US.
Among the main pre-Hispanic objects are two quipus and lithic elements such as cabezas de porra and sculptures from the Inca Culture, instruments and textile fragments from the Chancay Culture and metal pieces with Chimu cultural affiliation, as well as ceramic pieces in Moche, Nazca, Lambayeque, and Inca styles, among others.
On the other hand, a historical-artistic good was returned by the F.C. Gundlach Foundation in Germany. It is a wooden glass from the colonial era with polychrome decoration that dates back to the 16th century. Additionally, three other archival-documentary goods were returned by Belgian auction house Booneshares.
These goods include two printed and handwritten bills from the National Credit Board, from 1829 and 1836, and a voucher issued by the Lima Mint, from 1838. — NNN-ANDINA
