The removal coincides with Wednesday's announcement by the federal government to spend $10 million to repatriate and document about 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander items held in 194 international collections.
A Sydney auction house on Tuesday night pulled 11 sacred and secret Aboriginal objects from sale following complaints they included priceless and highly revered totems that should only be seen by initiated men.
The items removed were "secret, sacred objects that are highly restricted and significant to Aboriginal men’s ceremonial life", said Mr Angeles, who is a member of the advisory committee on Indigenous repatriation.The auction of oceanic and Aboriginal tribal art originally included five sacred etched stones and wooden objects, known as Tjuringa, from Central and Western Australia.
"These items are sacred representations of our ancestors, stories and deep connection to our sovereign lands and in most cases are the personal and private property of senior Aboriginal land owners. To Aboriginal men they are not commodities and should never have monetary value placed upon them because they are priceless and highly revered.
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