Mexico finds many fakes among Meso-American artifacts seized from infamous private dealer

Mexico: Fakes dominate seized artifact collection

MEXICO CITY — A collection of supposed pre-Hispanic artifacts seized from a controversial private antiquities dealer in Germany contains many pieces that are fake, Mexico’s government archaeology agency said Thursday.

The National Institute of Anthropology and History said most of the larger, impressive pieces seized by German authorities from Costa Rican dealer Leonardo Patterson are modern copies of ancient artifacts.

The institute said experts who examined the collection of 1,029 sculptures, pots and figurines had determined 252 are fakes.

“Several of the forged pieces, in fact, evidence the use of modern machinery and tools while being assembled,” the statement said.

An additional 691 pieces “are authentic and originate from Mexico’s current territory,” apparently making them eligible for return to Mexico. The remaining 86 were not from the Meso-American region, according to a statement by the institute.

Academics say Patterson built a reputation over the course of decades — and across several continents — for trading and displaying artifacts of dubious provenance.

In 2008, Munich police seized more than 1,000 purported Aztec, Maya, Olmec and Inca antiquities from Patterson after an international investigation and a chase across Europe.

At the time, Mexico, Peru and Costa Rica said some of the pieces in the exhibit — valued by investigators at more than 74 million euros (US$100 million) — were stolen and were trying to get them back.

In a 2008 interview, Patterson maintained he had done nothing illegal and said he assembled the exhibit from several private collectors.

Among the false objects are several large piecest, such as an Olmec head statue, a carving of a reclining pre-Hispanic deity known as a “chac mool,” and bas-reliefs carvings, columns, masks, and mural fragments.

The genuine pieces include animal and human figurines, pots, incense burners, jewelry, and weapon and knife points.

Experts had long claimed Patterson’s exhibits and collection contained some fakes, mixed with some apparently real pieces.

The statement did not say whether the genuine artifacts would be returned to Mexico. It said only that Mexican government agencies “will continue working together to recover this heritage, resorting to all legal procedures and authorities concerned with this case.”