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Lawyers for Yale University are expected to respond in March to a federal lawsuit brought by the government of Peru over artifacts from the Incan site of Machu Picchu. 

The Machu Picchu antiquities include Incan mummies, skulls, and other human remains, as well as pottery, ceramics and art.  They were excavated nearly a century ago by Yale explorer Hiram Bingham the Third and shipped to New Haven for research under an agreement with the Peruvian government.   Now Peru wants them back.

In its lawsuit, Peru says it “seeks to defend its legal property rights concerning its cultural heritage”.  Peru calls for the immediate return of all of the relics and compensation for breaches of agreement. Peru claims that a traveling exhibit of the Machu Picchu collection generated millions of dollars for Yale; a charge the university denies. Peru also says that Yale hasn’t done much of the scientific research that was originally promised; the university has posted a list of studies on its website. 

Yale claims title to the materials,  and says under the laws of the day, finders of artifacts were allowed to keep them.
At a time when cultural property disputes are reshaping collections, the case is expected to be closely watched by museums and research universities around the world. 

Photo courtesy Flickr Creative Commons/johotravels