The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., announced the repatriation of three antiquities valued at $160,000 to Mexico, including one seized from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The return of the objects is a result of multiple investigations into illegal trafficking networks, including one that led to the conviction of Eugene Alexander last summer. According to a press release announcing the news, “This marks this Office’s sixth repatriation to the People of Mexico totaling 52 antiquities valued at more than $13 million.”
The object seized from the Met is a Standing Male Figure dating back to ca. 100-400 that had been sold by the New York-based Merrin Gallery and donated to the museum. An Xochipala Bowl from ca. 1200–900 B.C.E. had appeared at Merrin Gallery before it was seized in December. An Aztec Obsidian Micro-Blade Core dating to ca. 1000–1500 was seized from Alexander this past October.
“The Government of Mexico extends its deepest gratitude to District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Matthew Bogdanos, and the outstanding Antiquities Trafficking Unit for their unwavering commitment to protecting the world’s cultural heritage,” said Mexican Consul General Marcos Bucio Mújica. “The return of these three archaeological objects marks yet another milestone in an extraordinary partnership that, over the years, has also played a vital role in reconstructing the cultural identity of our nation.”
The Manhattan D.A.’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit said it has now secured convictions against 18 individuals for cultural property-related crimes and recovered nearly 6,400 cultural treasures valued at more than $490 million. It has returned more than 6,000 objects to 38 countries, and said the extradition of seven alleged traffickers is pending.
