A Canadian art specialist is questioning the Vatican’s official narrative regarding the acquisition of tens of thousands of Indigenous artifacts from various countries, including Canada. In the early 1920s, Pope Pius XI requested Catholic missions worldwide to contribute artifacts, including Indigenous cultural items, for a 1925 Vatican Mission Exposition. Approximately 100,000 artifacts were sent to the Vatican by Catholic missions, many of which became part of the Vatican’s permanent collection.
Among the collection are significant items like a human face mask from Haida Gwaii, a rare kayak from the Inuvialuit in the western Arctic, beaded skin moccasins, birch bark etchings, and a dog sled model made of walrus ivory and sealskin. While the Vatican claims these artifacts were gifts, research by Gloria Bell, an art history professor at McGill University, suggests a more complex history involving Indigenous individuals creating items under duress and potential theft from communities.
Bell’s investigation revealed instances of cultural objects being seized during the potlatch ban from 1885 to 1951, a period when participating in traditional feasts was criminalized. She also uncovered evidence suggesting that residential school students in the United States produced souvenirs for the 1925 Vatican exhibit. Bell emphasized the need for further research into the possibility of similar actions in Canada.
Efforts are underway to repatriate Indigenous artifacts, including a rare kayak, from the Vatican. Duane Smith, chair of the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, is advocating for the return of the kayak, one of only five of its kind globally. He hopes for proactive collaboration between the church, government, and Indigenous communities to facilitate the repatriation process.
Bell urges the Vatican to engage with Indigenous communities, return cultural items, and digitize records for community access. She highlights the importance of acknowledging and rectifying colonial narratives within the Vatican’s collection. Bell’s upcoming book, based on her extensive research and experiences, aims to shed light on Indigenous perspectives excluded from historical exhibits and promote awareness of this overlooked history.