Argentina has returned to Portugal a valuable copy of the Missale Romanum from 1727, which was stolen from the National Palace of Sintra in 1997 and recovered by the Argentine Federal Police in 2021, highlighting international cooperation between the two nations.
“It is a great personal satisfaction to return to Portugal, on behalf of the Republic of Argentina and the Federal Police, a piece of Portuguese identity because cultural goods create the identity of peoples. This restitution is also a celebration that strengthens ties between the two nations,” stated Deputy Commissioner Gerardo Damián Vogel of the Department of Cultural Heritage Protection, International Cooperation Directorate of the Argentine Federal Police, during the handover ceremony.
The handover took place on Friday at the Portuguese Embassy in Argentina, following the announcement on August 4 that Argentina would return 200 heritage items belonging to Peru, Mexico, Paraguay, and Portugal.
The valuable ‘Missale Romanum ex Decreto Sacrosancti S. Pii V Pontificis Maximi’ is a 1727 edition of the Roman Missal [pictured is a 1651 edition], printed in Venice by the ‘Typographia Balleoniana,’ created with the guidelines of the Council of Trent, convened by Pope Pius V.
It was recognized by Popes Clement VIII and Urban VIII.
In 2021, the Argentine Customs Department at Buenos Aires International Airport detected the international shipment of a historic document.
Suspecting illegal activity, Argentine authorities launched an investigation that included a search and seizure operation at a business dealing in the purchase and sale of books and documents.
During this operation, 300 items listed in the Interpol database were seized by the Department of Cultural Heritage Protection of the Argentine Federal Police.
The Roman Missal was listed as stolen from the National Palace of Sintra in 1997.
“From there, Argentina informed us of what had been recovered, and we organized the formal return of the item,” explained Portuguese Ambassador Gonçalo Teles Gomes, who is now responsible for the piece until it is sent to Portugal.
“We are now coordinating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Parques de Sintra, the institution that oversees the monuments of Sintra, to find the best way to protect the missal and send it with the appropriate insurance by diplomatic pouch to Portugal,” the ambassador continued.
It was observed at the location that the missal was not even removed from its original box and was taken immediately after delivery to the ambassador’s office to an adjoining room, where specialists awaited to handle and assess its condition for possible restoration before being returned to Portugal.
During the handover of the liturgical book by Deputy Commissioner Gerardo Vogel to Ambassador Teles Gomes, both countries emphasized the importance of international cooperation for cultural heritage preservation.
“From now on, this object gains even more historical value because Argentina is now part of it. It is an honor and a joy to recover this piece because it’s like recovering part of our identity. International cooperation is fundamental for heritage recovery. This restitution is mutual respect for history,” stated an emotional Teles Gomes.
Cultural goods trafficking ranks fourth in international illicit trade. Over the past four years, Argentina has returned more items than all other countries in the world over the last 15 years.
More than 4,500 archaeological items have been returned to Peru alone.
“According to Interpol’s General Secretariat statistics in Lyon, France, the Department of Cultural Heritage Protection in Argentina is the highest-rated unit in the Americas. We have recovered over 48,000 items and returned about 5,000 to countries,” Deputy Commissioner Gerardo Vogel proudly stated.
After leaving the Portuguese Embassy, Vogel went to Argentina’s Institute of Anthropology and Latin American Thought to return 45 Egyptian mummies over 3,000 years old.
