Italy Returns 101 Ancient Treasures to Mexico

The Italian government has recently repatriated 101 archaeological artifacts to Mexico, as part of the country's national cultural heritage. The exchange was facilitated by María Teresa Mercado Pérez, the Undersecretary of Foreign Relations, during a special event in Rome. She was joined by representatives of Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and officials from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), a branch of Mexico's Ministry of Culture.

The majority of the returned items are anthropomorphic figures that were previously seized by the Carabinieri, Italy's national police force, in the cities of Rome, Perugia, Udine, Ancona, and Cosenza. The repatriation ceremony took place at the Mexican Embassy in Rome, attended by the Mexican Ambassador to Italy, Carlos García de Alba, and Giorgio Silli, the Italian Undersecretary of State for Foreign Relations and International Cooperation, among others.

Mercado Pérez emphasized the symbolic importance of the event, highlighting the strong bilateral relationship between Italy and Mexico. She also conveyed the Mexican government's gratitude to the Italian authorities for the significant restitution of the artifacts. Silli echoed these sentiments, expressing satisfaction with the cooperation and emphasizing the importance of cultural heritage to the identities of both nations.

Diego Prieto Hernández, the General Director of INAH, provided further details about the artifacts via a virtual link. He confirmed that the items were seized in various Italian cities and noted that the bilateral cooperation also extends to training specialized personnel of the Mexican National Guard, based on the Carabinieri model, to combat looting and trafficking of cultural goods.

He described the artifacts, saying, "Most are anthropomorphic figures, which demonstrates the enormous value that our ancestors gave to the human body. There are also decorative elements and everyday objects. They originate from various regions of Mesoamerica and span a period from 900 BC to the Spanish occupation of current Mexican territory in the 16th century."