In pics: Colombia repatriates 274 priceless artefacts from US
Priced artefacts
A member of the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History (ICANH) handles archaeological pieces recovered in the United States, at the Palacio de San Carlos in Bogota on September 26, 2022
An American woman's kind gesture
Most of those returned to Colombia were handed over voluntarily by an American woman who inherited them from her late husband. He had acquired them in the southwestern Colombian city of Cali in the 1970s.
Handful of them on display
These are residing at the offices of the foreign affairs ministry in Bogota. A handful of the ancient artifacts that have been now put on display.
Some confiscated by FBI
While most of them were returned by the American woman, others are confiscated by the FBI as part of an agreement between the two countries to return cultural objects that have been sold on the black market.
Plundered by Spanish conquistadors in 1492
These artifacts "left this country illegally, we don't know exactly when," said Alhena Caicedo, director of Colombia's ICANH anthropology and history institute.
They come from various regions of Colombia where peoples such as the Tumaco, Narino, Quimbaya, Tayrona and Sinu lived before the arrival of Spanish conquistadors in 1492.
730 more artefacts still in other countries
Colombia says it has another 730 artifacts in its diplomatic missions around the world that need repatriatinge
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