Bolivia Repatriates Over 45 Artifacts from England, US, Chile

Bolivia is getting its cultural patrimony back, stolen and taken to Argentina, Chile, England and the United States.

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Bolivia’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism and its foreign ministry announced that five countries are returning at least 47 artifacts to the South American country, including pre-Colombian ceramics and mummies.

"By the first week of December, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will … repatriate fossils, ceramics, and other artifacts from five countries," said Culture and Tourism Minister Wilma Alanoca. She added that the various artifacts that were taken from the country will later be on display to the public.

Chile’s government is set to return 42 fossils, Argentina will give back a sacred Mollo culture vessel, as will England. Holland will return two pots crafted by the Tiahunacu culture that lived around Lake Titicaca about 2,000 years ago. The United States is set to return an Indigenous Chullpa culture mummy of an 8-year-old girl.

Alanoca this process of repatriation is being facilitated by binational agreements and national legislation that protects the country’s cultural assets.

Jose Luis Paz, director of Archeology and Museum department of the cultural ministry explained that the artifact recovered from England was going to be auctioned, while the vessel in Argentina is already in the hands of Bolivia’s embassy in Buenos Aires.

The 42 fossils in Chile got there through illicit trafficking.

Last year Bolivia repatriated 26 artifacts and ceramics from Germany and 34 from Argentina.