The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) has concluded a major repatriation agreement, returning a significant collection of 19th-century artifacts to the Haida Nation in British Columbia. The items include rare argillite pipes intricately carved with ancestral stories and several 'Coppers'—heavy shield-shaped plates of beaten copper that functioned as vital symbols of wealth and social standing in potlatch ceremonies. The objects were originally removed from Haida Gwaii during a period of intense colonial pressure on Indigenous cultural practices.
The return was celebrated with a ceremony in Toronto before the artifacts were transported back to the Haida Gwaii Museum. ROM leadership emphasized that the repatriation is part of their commitment to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), moving toward a model of shared stewardship and reconciliation. Haida leaders noted that the return of these 'living ancestors' is a crucial step in revitalizing traditional governance and cultural protocols for future generations.