Traditional documents held in the Vatican museums are finally returning to Canada

The century-old kayak has spent decades locked away in the confines of the Vatican museum, its steering frame still held together, though the Sealtskin cover is partially covered.

Because of seeing the generations, the ship carries the stories of the western societies of the Arctic, its Sleek, has a weakness is a witness to the hunt for signs of the Inuvialiaiting of Send

After complex negotiations, the Kayak and other personal belongings of the indigenous people are set to return home, a powerful symbol for the communities whose children live in Kamokili.

Sources tell CBC the Vatican and the Canadian Catholic Church are making good progress toward an agreement to return cultural items before the end of the year, with a canoff made by the Canadian Conference of Canadian Bishops (CCCB).

The CCCB released a statement saying it “works closely with indigenous peoples on important issues, including artefacts, many of which currently support their communities” from which they come. ”

It said the official announcement will come directly from the Holy See, probably in the coming weeks.

‘The offering of the church’

Items, including a rare kayak, One of only five such objects in the worldwill begin going to the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que.

There, experts will assess their status, verify their age and origin, and work with a committee of representatives to determine where they should be placed.

A source told CBC The Handoff is planned as a concession to the “church of the church”, which allows the Vatican to avoid prioritizing the return of cultural objects or communities.

A similar model was used when the Vatican returned pieces of the Parthenon marble to Greece in 2023 – the act was officially framed as a “religious donation” to the Greek Orthodox Church, rather than the Greek state.

A source not authorized to speak on the matter said the Vatican will give the art to Canadian bishops with the clear understanding that they will then pass it on to indigenous communities.

The kayak and other items were originally sent to Rome in 1925 for a world exhibition organized by Pope Pius Xi, who had invited Catholic missionaries around the world to send “examples of traditional life” to the regions where they work.

About 100,000 objects arrived in Rome, many of them taken from indigenous communities during forced conversions, cultural repression and, in Canada, the settlement program. Most became part of the Vatican’s permanent collection.

Along with the Inuvialiait Kayak from the west of the Arctic is a face mask from Haida Gwaii, who had made leather moccasins, etchings on birch bark and birch handle and dog skin and dog skin.

Most of the traditional Vatican remains are kept in the “animis mundi” ethnological stock of the museums.

Returning items is part of the ‘cooling trip’

In 2023, a year after Pope Francis’ “Pentient” trip to Canada where he apologized to some members of the church group in residential schools, the Catholic leader acknowledged the importance of restoration.

Then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, along with Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly, pressured the Vatican to bring the items back to Canada during meetings in Rome.

For indigenous leaders, the expected return is symbolic and personal.

“All of those artifacts are sacred, important things in the healing journey of many school survivors,” said the late Indian Prime Minister Bobby Cameron inside. Interview with CBC in May.

His organization, which represents the First Nations of Saskatchewan, has repeatedly asked the Vatican for the return of sacred objects, including pipes and the Regalia of the Regalia.

Cameron renewed that demand following the election of Pope Leo XIV in May.

In 2023, Victoria officially approached the doctrine of adoption, the papal position of the 15th century was used to determine the colonies, but traditional lawyers said that tangible actions mean that tangible actions such as the return of money are the key to reconciliation.

Academic researchers say that the Vatican’s claim is that dance The materials were sent as “gifts” to the Pope regardless of the coercive context of their collection.

Gloria Bell, MCGILLY ART HISTORIAN ART AND COMMUNICATION ALL things were taken under the ban potlatch movement from 1885 to 1951.

Within weeks, the return of the Inuvialiaialiaitiit Kayak and other artifacts will mark not just a physical massacre, but a visible response to decades of cultural loss.