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Washington’s Smithsonian Institution has returned two sacred war gods taken from the Zuni Indians in the 1800s. The sacred Ahayu:Da figures were returned during a quiet weekend ceremony. Since 1978, the Zuni Pueblo tribe has sought the return of at least 70 objects. “We mentioned to the museum that we do not care to get everything back that museums carry which were taken off our lands, but just those things that are really important to our people,” Zuni Gov. Robert Lewis said. Smithsonian officials said the return of the items was only the second time in the institution’s history that it has returned artifacts to an Indian tribe.
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