Police in California are investigating the theft of over 1,000 items from the Oakland Museum of California. The burglary occurred Oct. 15 at an off-site storage facility. Stolen items include metalwork jewelry, Native American baskets, and everyday memorabilia like athletic trophies. Museum director Lori Fogarty says the theft appears to be a crime of opportunity. The investigation is being disclosed publicly as the artifacts might appear at flea markets or pawn shops. Authorities are working with the FBI's art crime unit and have anyone with information to contact Oakland police or the Art Crime Team.
The Vatican is expected to soon announce that it will return a few dozen artifacts sought by Indigenous communities in Canada. It's part of its reckoning with the Catholic Church's troubled role in helping suppress Indigenous culture in the Americas. The items, including an Inuit kayak, are part of the Vatican Museum's ethnographic collection, known as the Anima Mundi museum. The collection has been a source of controversy for the Vatican amid the broader museum debate over the restitution of cultural artifacts taken from Indigenous peoples during colonial periods. Officials say negotiations are proceeding positively and that an announcement could come from the Vatican in a few weeks.
