Brazil’s Tupinambá Indigenous people reunite with sacred cloak after 380 years

São Paulo, Brazil – Nearly four centuries after being taken from Brazil during its colonization, a sacred Tupinambá cloak has been returned to its Indigenous people, potentially marking a step toward repatriating other pillaged, sacred artifacts. 

On Thursday, around 200 Indigenous people gathered in Rio de Janeiro to celebrate the cloak’s return from Denmark after all these years. 

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Sonia Guajajara, Brazil’s Minister of Indigenous Peoples, attended the event. Guajajara called for the repatriation of other cultural items taken from Brazil. 

It is believed that at least 10 additional Tupinambá cloaks remain scattered throughout European museums.

“We are witnessing a moment of historical revision. The return of the cloak marks the beginning of what I believe could become a movement to establish protocols for accessing numerous sacred items, both within and outside Brazil,” said Guajajara.

Measuring 1.2 meters (3.9 feet) long and 80 centimeters (2.6 feet) wide, the cloak is crafted from thousands of bright red feathers of the guará bird, a rare and unique species. 

It holds deep spiritual significance for the Tupinambá people, who reside in the southern region of the northeastern Bahia state. 

During the ceremony, members of the Tupinambá community used the occasion to press President Lula for the demarcation of their ancestral lands. Indigenous land demarcation is a process that guarantees the possession of the land and the exclusive use of its natural resources to the Indigenous peoples who live on it.

“Mr. President, give us back our land,” the Tupinambá chanted.

For the Tupinambá, the cloak is a sacred, centuries-old artifact that connects them to their ancestors. 

Historians note that numerous Indigenous artifacts were looted during Brazil’s colonization. The Tupinambá cloak is believed to have been taken by Dutch colonizers around 1644 and later given to Denmark, where it had been on display at the National Museum in Copenhagen since 1689.

In July this year, the cloak returned to Brazil in secret after a diplomatic agreement. 

However, after waiting over 300 years to reunite with this important piece of their heritage, the Tupinambá people will not see the cloak returned to their community. 

Instead, the artifact will become part of the collection at Brazil’s National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, effectively moving from one museum to another.

In an interview with Agência Brasil, the Tupinambá leader, Chief Jamopoty, expressed hope that her people would have regular access to the cloak and that, in the future, the sacred item would be physically closer to their community.

“We are in talks with the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples and the museum to establish protocols. We are here today, but we don’t know what tomorrow holds. We want future generations to understand what this cloak represents for the Tupinambá,” said Jamopoty.

President Lula echoed the sentiment, advocating for the cloak’s eventual return to the Tupinambá lands.

“It is in the National Museum, but I hope everyone understands that its rightful place is not here. Our governor in Bahia has a historic obligation to create a space that can house this cloak, which holds profound spiritual meaning for the Tupinambá people. For us, it is a rare artistic treasure, but for the Tupinambá, it is a spiritual entity, a symbol of ancestral continuity that promotes the culture of their people,” Lula remarked.