The Vatican has officially returned 62 Indigenous artefacts to Canada’s Catholic bishops, framing the handover as “a concrete sign of dialogue, respect and fraternity” after decades of calls from Indigenous communities for the return of cultural heritage removed during colonial-era missions.

The formal transfer took place on Saturday, November 15, 2025, in Vatican City, when Pope Leo met with representatives of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, including its president, Bishop Pierre Goudreault.

The bishops confirmed they will pass the artefacts to Canada’s National Indigenous Organisations, which will oversee their eventual return to the communities from which they were taken.

The History Behind the Artefacts

The 62 items were originally sent to Rome nearly a century ago for a 1925 Vatican exhibition curated under Pope Pius XI. The exhibit aimed to showcase the global reach of Catholic missions and the cultures they encountered. Many of the pieces later became part of the Missionary Ethnological Museum and were eventually absorbed into the Vatican Museums in the 1970s.

While the Vatican maintains that the objects were “gifts” to Pius XI, Indigenous leaders and historians dispute this claim, noting that such offerings could hardly have been voluntary at a time when missionaries wielded significant influence over Indigenous communities.

Cultural Genocide and Confiscation

During this period, Catholic religious orders were instrumental in enforcing Canada’s forced assimilation policies, which the Truth and Reconciliation Commission has described as “cultural genocide.”

As part of this policy, items essential to Indigenous spiritual and traditional practices were confiscated. Notably, the 1885 potlatch ban criminalized integral First Nations ceremonies. Many confiscated objects ended up in museums across Canada, the United States, and Europe, as well as in private collections.

Momentum for Repatriation

The push to return the artefacts gained renewed momentum following Pope Francis’ 2022 visit to Canada, where he met with Indigenous delegations and issued a historic apology for the church’s role in residential schools. During that visit, Indigenous leaders viewed several items in the Vatican’s collection, including wampum belts, an Inuit kayak, ceremonial masks, and weapons, and requested their return. Pope Francis expressed support for returning objects “where it’s necessary to make a gesture.”

The recent handover comes exactly 100 years after the original 1925 exhibition that brought the items to Rome.

A joint statement from the Vatican and the Canadian bishops described the transfer as “an act of ecclesial sharing” and emphasized the Catholic leadership’s commitment to ensuring the artefacts are “properly safeguarded, respected and preserved” until they are returned to their rightful communities.

This milestone represents a historic step in reconciliation between the Catholic Church and Indigenous peoples in Canada, highlighting the importance of returning cultural heritage and acknowledging past injustices.