The case of the repatriation of the Tupinambá mantle : challenges and solutions for the restitution of cultural goods and their impacts on the promotion of human rights for indigenous peoples in Brazil

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da Silva Néto, Pedro Henrique Monteiro de Barros; Sadowski, Mirosław M. and Bonaviri, Gianluigi Mastandrea and Ceccotti, Filippo, eds. (2025) The case of the repatriation of the Tupinambá mantle : challenges and solutions for the restitution of cultural goods and their impacts on the promotion of human rights for indigenous peoples in Brazil. In: Heritage in War and Peace IV. University of Strathclyde Publishing, Glasgow. ISBN 9781914241802 (https://doi.org/10.17868/strath.00093384)

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Abstract

Restitution of cultural heritage has been consolidated as an essential demand in the human rights context, especially in the context of indigenous peoples, whose cultural artefacts were expatriated during the colonial period. This article examines the repatriation of the Tupinambá mantle as a milestone in the struggle for recognition and realisation of the rights of Brazil's original peoples. On the basis of the analysis of the mantle case, the role of indigenous protagonism in defending their cultural heritage and collective identity is highlighted, as are the legal and institutional challenges faced in the process of restitution of cultural objects. The study addresses the coloniality of power, being, and knowledge; contextualises international and national norms that regulate the repatriation of cultural heritage; and evaluates the limitations and possibilities of advances in the recognition of this right. Finally, the work proposes pathways for strengthening repatriation policies aligned with the principles of indigenous peoples' self-determination, historical justice, and interculturality.

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