On board the papal plane, Apr 30 (EFE).- Pope Francis was willing to return, as far as possible, the works of art from the time of the colonization of America present in the collections of the Vatican Museums and claimed by the indigenous peoples, during the press conference today on the return from his trip to Hungary.
“To the extent that it is possible, please, it must be done,” Pope Francis told reporters during the flight back to Rome from Budapest, which he has been visiting for three days.
The Pope addressed this issue when asked about the requests of the indigenous peoples of Canada who hope that the Vatican Museums return some objects that the missionaries brought to Europe and that they now claim as part of the reparation process for the treatment they suffered, also for part of the Catholic Church.
During his trip to Canada in July 2022, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and indigenous associations asked Pope Francis for the Vatican to return a series of indigenous objects that the Holy See museums have kept since 1925.
According to Francisco, these negotiations “are underway” and the dialogue with the indigenous peoples has been “very fruitful.”
Greece recovered three fragments of the Parthenon
The Vatican Museums returned to Greece earlier this year three fragments of the Parthenon that were on display, by decision of Pope Francis and as a gesture to the country’s Orthodox Church.
The three fragments of the pediment, the frieze and a metope from the Parthenon have been kept in the Museums since the 19th century.
“It is the seventh commandment, if you have stolen…”, said the pope, explaining that he is available to return works of art or objects in possession of the Vatican Museums, although he added that “discernment” must be made in each case because “If the Egyptians come to claim, we cannot return the obelisk (in Saint Peter’s Square).”
“Sometimes wars and colonizations make them take other people’s things. The Parthenon thing was a fair gesture, it had to be done,” he added.
And he added that “to the extent that it can be restored, it is necessary.” For the Pope, returning the works of art from the time of the colonization of America is a gesture that “it is better to do” but “sometimes it is not possible due to political or real impossibility, but to the extent that it is possible, it should be done by Please, so you don’t get used to putting your hand in other people’s pockets”.