The Kaurna community had submitted a request for the objects to be returned in 2019 after extensive provenance research, including important contributions by Kaurna scholars.
“The reason behind the return is an acknowledgement that these objects contribute to the Kaurna community’s sense of identity, given their provenance, historical context and important role as historic witnesses of the material culture,” the statement said.
The two missionaries also researched the Kaurna language and published vocabulary lists.
The restitution has now taken place in Sydney thanks to the support of the Saxon State Ministry for Science, Culture and Tourism (SMWK), the Federal Foreign Office’s Embassy of Germany in Canberra and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS).
