Indigenous group seeks help repatriating cultural items from Switzerland
Indigenous leaders say the 10,000-item collection includes sacred objects and some pieces may have Indigenous origins, prompting an urgent fundraising drive.
- On Tuesday, Dakota Tipi First Nation councillor Karl Stone and advocate Coleen Rajotte launched a $20 million fundraising campaign to repatriate thousands of Indigenous artifacts from a private Swiss museum.
- The collection owner is retiring and seeks about $17 million for the items, while the project requires an additional $3 million for transportation and storage costs.
- Several beaded bandolier bags from Algonquin, Ojibway, and Cree communities are included, alongside cradleboards and long guns associated with the Battle of the Little Bighorn, dating back nearly 250 years.
- Gerald Neufeld, a retired engineer and Ojibway speaker from Pauingassi First Nation, emphasized the need to authenticate and price the items, noting similar pieces have sold for $95,000.
- Stone described the items as "sacred and holy," explaining that repatriation is a vital part of the healing process for Indigenous people in the region.
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36 Articles
Swiss collector wants thousands of Indigenous artifacts returned to communities
A Swiss collector who has amassed thousands of Indigenous artifacts says he is eager to have his collection repatriated back to the communities it has come from. Vincent Escriba has accumulated roughly 3,500 ceremonial and traditional items, including cradleboards, sacred pipes and firearms believed to be associated with the period of the Battle of the Little Bighorn. He previously housed the items in a museum he ran in Switzerland that closed…
Indigenous advocacy group calls on Swiss collector to avoid private sale of artifacts - Winnipeg
Bringing Them Home is calling for the return of thousands of Indigenous artifacts that belonged to a Swiss collector who is considering selling the items as he nears retirement.
The Chronicle-Journal
'Whatever it takes:' Indigenous group seeks help repatriating items from Switzerland
WINNIPEG - Sacred pipes, intricately beaded regalia and firearms believed to be associated with the period of the Battle of the Little Bighorn are some of the thousands of Indigenous artifacts a group of First Nations leaders and advocates are…
These objects include babyboards, sacred calumets and firearms.
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