Australian Museum Returns 17 Sets of Rapa Nui Remains to Delegation

Ancestral remains from Rapa Nui began their return journey from the Australian Museum on Thursday, Abc reported. Seventeen sets of remains and one sample of human hair left the institution accompanied by a Rapa Nui delegation. The items had been held in the museum's collection for 143 years.

The remains were removed from sacred burial sites during a European naval expedition in 1882 and purchased by the museum the following year. The Australian Museum holds more than 22 million objects and specimens. The repatriation is overseen by the Chilean government because Rapa Nui is a special territory of Chile.

Custodian documents were signed on Wednesday at a formal farewell ceremony at the museum. The event featured a Fijian farewell song, ukulele music, and a ceremonial exchange by delegates. Kim McKay, director and chief executive of the Australian Museum, offered an unreserved apology on behalf of the institution.

McKay stated the repatriation is significant for Australian history and for the Rapa Nui community. Laura McBride, a Wailwan woman and director of First Nations at the museum, said she understands the tensions from past collecting practices because her own ancestors and objects were taken from Country. The museum's Pasifika team first engaged with Rapa Nui descendants two years earlier.

Australia has no legally binding law requiring institutions to repatriate ancestral remains. Repatriations occur through voluntary agreements, policy, and ethics. This differs from the United States, which has a federal law that legally compels repatriation of Native American ancestral remains and cultural items.