220 archaeological artifacts returned to Mexico

By Goodrich, Riquelme y Asociados

The Government of Mexico received 220 archaeological pieces, part of its cultural heritage, that were returned with assistance from authorities in Argentina, Canada, Switzerland and the United States. 

The artifacts, recovered by Mexico’s embassies and consulates abroad, are protected under the Federal Law on Archaeological, Artistic and Historical Monuments and Zones.

Expert analyses confirm that these pieces were created by various pre-Hispanic cultures in Mexico across different periods. The items were voluntarily returned by private individuals to Mexico's embassies in Argentina, Switzerland and the U.S., and to Mexico's consulates in Albuquerque, Philadelphia, Kansas City, Oxnard, Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver. The items will be given to the National Institute of Anthropology and History for their study, care, preservation, and promotion.
Archaeological cultural heritage refers to any relics, structures, deposits and discoveries preserved on land or in water, created through human activities during the prehistoric or historical periods.

Every year, thousands of artefacts disappear from museums, churches, private collections, public institutions or archaeological sites. From antique weapons to paintings, from coins to watches, from religious objects to archaeological finds, tens of thousands of specimens forming part of the world’s archaeological and cultural heritage are stolen or looted.

Trafficking in items dating back to previous generations began thousands of years ago. However, over the past few decades, the phenomenon has, unfortunately, become a problem of epidemic proportions.

Estimates of the size and profitability of black markets in looted, stolen and smuggled works of art and antiquities are notoriously unreliable, but specialists agree that this is one of the world’s biggest illegal enterprises, worth billions of US dollars, which has naturally attracted interest from organized crime as well as military and terrorist groups.

Returning a nation's looted cultural heritage or stolen artwork, promotes goodwill with foreign governments and citizens, while significantly protecting the world's cultural heritage and knowledge of past civilizations.