Switzerland returns ancestral remains to Chile after a century
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Switzerland returned the remains of three Kawésqar ancestors to Chile after they had been held in the Basel Museum of Natural History for over a century.
The returned remains included two skeletons and one skull of Indigenous people. This repatriation followed historical research and international cooperation between Chile and Switzerland. The Kawésqar people are an Indigenous group from southern Chile, historically known as Alacaluf. Their ancestral lands include the Patagonian archipelago.
The process of returning the remains involved collaboration with the National Museum of Natural History of Chile and representatives from the Kawésqar community. Chilean authorities received the remains in a formal ceremony, marking their return to their homeland. The repatriation signifies a step toward acknowledging and addressing historical injustices related to the collection of ancestral remains. The return of these ancestral remains allows the Kawésqar people to reconnect with their heritage and perform traditional burial rites.
This act of restitution reflects a growing global movement to repatriate cultural heritage and ancestral remains to their rightful owners.
