MEXICO RETURNS A PAINTING TO PERU 

• An example of Mexico’s desire to cooperate in protecting and returning protected cultural property

The Foreign Ministry, with the assistance of the Customs Administration, returned a painting entitled “The Lady of Sorrows” to Peru today which is part of its cultural heritage and was removed from Peru in violation of its domestic legislation.

"The Lady of Sorrows" is an oil painting on canvas of evident age that measures about 1.80 meters by 1.20 meters. It comes from the colonial workshop of the Peruvian southern Andes school of art and was returned via the Peruvian embassy in Mexico in accordance with the Convention for the Protection, Conservation, Recovery and Return of Stolen or Illegally Exported or Transferred Archaeological, Artistic, Historical and Cultural Property that was signed by both countries in 2002.

 Under the convention, both countries must exhaust all legal means at their disposal to recover and return to the other, cultural property protected under national laws that has been illegally exported or transferred.

The Mexican government reiterates its firm commitment to collaborating fully with the international community to return cultural property that has been removed improperly from its country of origin.