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Clay figures returned to Mexico

In September 2021, two clay figures, a figurine and a handled vessel were returned to the United Mexican States.  The figures are attributed to the Teotihuacán culture of the Valley of Mexico and are presumed to date from between AD 200 and 600.

In the center of the picture is a clay figure of a human head with a headdress on a white background, with a ruler diagonally above it on the left and a ruler with colored boxes on the right. Below the clay figure is a business card. One of the clay figures that were returned to Mexico. Source: CC-BY-SA 4.0

Teotihuacán is one of the most important prehistoric ruined cities in the Americas. The city is primarily known for its step pyramids such as the Pyramid of the Sun and was permanently inhabited beginning in the sixth century BC. Since 1987, this archaeological site has been on UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage list.

In spring 2021, the two clay figures were offered for sale online. The competent investigative agency secured the figures in April 2021 as it was suspected that they had been imported illegally. In the early 1990s, they were bought in Mexico’s Tula region and subsequently removed from Mexico to Germany in ignorance of the Mexican export ban. In September 2021, the figures were handed over to the Mexican authorities in Hanover.

The handover delegation consisting of three responsible officials, each presenting a document, stands around a light-colored wooden table on which large-format papers and folders lie in front of white partitions. Delegation at the handover ceremony at the Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage in Hanover. Source: CC-BY-SA 4.0