National Customs Service inspectors seized heritage items from the looting of a funerary trousseau from the Arica culture at the El Loa outpost, 152 kilometers south of Iquique.
The items were in a package bound for Antofagasta and have incalculable archaeological value.
The information on the procedure and the heritage investigation was provided by the Regional Director of Customs, Cristian Molina Silva and the Seremi of Cultures, Arts and Heritage, Laura Díaz Vidiella; together with the person in charge of the regional technical office of the National Monuments Council, Patricia Henríquez; the person in charge of the Archaeology Area of the National Monuments Council, Nelson Gaete González and the advisor of the National Monuments Council, Mauricio Uribe Rodríguez.
The Regional Director of the Iquique Customs explained that “Our service carries out various protection actions and one of them is related to heritage assets, whether anthropological, archaeological, paleontological, historical or artistic, both from Chile and from other countries.In this context, the inspectors detected that one of the packages that arrived in a truck contained objects presumably of heritage origin, therefore it was seized in accordance with national laws and international agreements. After that, a joint effort was established with the National Monuments Council.
The box contained 22 ceramic, basketry, metal and textile items, however the initial investigation found more remains inside the garments and the number of pieces found could be increased to 30, which will have to be determined through laboratory analysis.
The legal department of the National Monuments Council initiated the relevant complaints and legal actions according to Law No. 17.288 on National Monuments.
Patricia Henriquez added that "Based on the visual recognition of the seized pieces, they would be materials associated with the Arica Culture, possibly from a mortuary context, given the signs of the liquefaction process such as bodily fluids and imprints present on some of the packaging textiles.". In addition, the campaign “Don't take it, don't destroy it"framed in the Heritage Day.
Laura Diaz pointed out that “For our ministry, it is important to educate. That the younger generations know that we must take care of our heritage sites and preserve our history. That is why we launched this campaign, which we will implement on Heritage Day. We must know that if we find something in a heritage site, we must not keep it in our pockets, because it could be a vestige of some ancestral culture. We must not be reckless in approaching these areas, because we can affect them as happened with the Giant of Atacama.".
It should be noted that all archaeological or paleontological sites and pieces that exist on or under the surface of the national territory are considered archaeological monuments and property of the State. Likewise, to carry out archaeological excavations, authorization from the National Monuments Council is required.
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