The Mexican government has returned an ancient bronze sculpture to Nigeria after it was seized by customs officials at the capital’s main airport.
The sculpture is believed to date back to the 6th Century from the south-western city of Ife, the AFP news agency reports.
An official from Mexico’s foreign ministry is quoted as saying that the sculpture had been illegally exported.
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Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (Inah) tweeted a photo of the sculpture:
Diego Prieto, the head of Inah, is quoted as saying that experts had “determined that it was a piece of Yoruba origin”.
Julián Ventura Valero, from the foreign affairs ministry, said at a ceremony to return the artifact that both Mexico and Nigeria were determined to recover their heritage, according to a government statement.
“For Mexico, the recovery of illegally stolen cultural property is a priority,” he is quoted as saying.
“We oppose the illegal commercialisation of archaeological pieces, an important cause of the impoverishment of the cultural heritage of the nations of origin, since it undermines the integrity of cultures and, therefore, of humanity.”
