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(soft orchestral music)
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archeological site of La Mina on the northern coast of Peru
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was looted until it virtually disappeared.
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It was the site of the tomb of the Lord of La Mina,
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a ruler of the ancient Moche culture.
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Some said it was the biggest looting
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of a Peruvian archeological site since the Spanish invasion
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500 years earlier.
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Among the stolen pieces from La Mina
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was a startling gold headdress.
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It was finally recovered as a result
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of a feud between two of the most important figures
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in the worldwide trade in antiquities.
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But before that, this extraordinary headdress
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went on a journey from La Mina to the Peruvian capital,
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and then across the Atlantic to Spain, Germany, and England.
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It left a trail of greed, deception, and murder.
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It's no wonder that some in Peru
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believe the headdress carries the curse of the Moche Lords.
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(suspenseful music)
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(wind blowing)
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(peaceful music)
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The deserts of northern Peru.
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1500 years ago, the Moche, one of the most advanced
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civilizations in South America, walked this land.
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20 years ago, grave robbers discovered the tomb
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of a Moche Lord, previously unknown to archeologists.
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It was claimed that a goat herder first stumbled upon it
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before the serious looters moved in.
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They virtually emptied it.
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What they took was priceless.
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Ceramic figures and bowls,
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but most valuable of all,
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a stunning gold headdress.
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(thunder booming)
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From it shown the face of a sea God
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with eight flowing Medusa like tentacles.
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It was soon dubbed the Mona Lisa
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of ancient South American art.
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From that moment, the whereabouts of the golden headdress
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was lost in mystery.
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One that wasn't solved for nearly 20 years.
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Peru is most famous for the high culture of the Incas
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that dominated the civilization of the Andes
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for over 300 years from 1200 AD.
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Much less well known is the Moche culture
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that existed nearly 1,000 years before the Incas.
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The Moche inhabited the deserts and coast of northern Peru.
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They were farmers and fisherman.
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And 2,000 years ago, Moche civilization
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turned this barren landscape into a fertile land
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that supported one of the richest cultures in the Americas.
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A series of river valleys crossed their land,
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and they created elaborate irrigation systems
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to support a thriving, rural economy.
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The Moche were one of the great early civilizations
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of the ancient Andes, if not the entire new world.
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What we have in the Moche is a series of kingdoms,
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or lordships, specifically based
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within large valley systems.
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We have only come to know about the Moche
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in the last few decades as archeologists
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have uncovered their remains.
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Within the last 30 years or so,
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spectacular excavations along the north coast of Peru,
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we find tombs of rulers who would have been
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very special members of their society.
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The greatest tomb excavation
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was at Sipan in 1987.
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The site was rescued from grave robbers,
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who had already begun looting the area.
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15 years later, a lavish museum was built
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to house the art and artifacts of the Royal Tombs of Sipan.
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(Walter speaking a foreign language)
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Through the Moche ceramics
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we have learned that they were a culture
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with extraordinary aesthetic qualities.
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Each Moche ceramic object is an exquisite work of art
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of the highest standard.
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The beauty, the expressiveness, and their realism.
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With no written language,
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everything we know about the Moche
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comes from their art.
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It was a society based on religion, warfare,
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ruling elites, and sacrifices.
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The Moche were great craftsmen,
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producing dazzling works of art,
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painted ceramics, and extraordinary metal work,
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like the missing golden headdress.
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This is what a tomb of a Moche King might have looked like.
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The mummified body surrounded by a store
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of the most fabulous works of art.
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And at its center, a golden headdress.
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(suspenseful music)
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In an area as vast as that which the Moche once ruled,
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many grave sites have gone undiscovered by archeologists.
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Others have been left unprotected.
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And here in this remote region,
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there are rich pickings to be had by looters
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willing to supply an international market
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worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
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This grave robber agreed to talk to us
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provided we didn't know his face.
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(man speaking a foreign language)
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I dug these goods from a grave
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over there in that hole at a depth of a meter and a half.
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I dug down and I found the mummy at the center,
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so I pulled it out and took all of its belongings.
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I took away all its things and then left the skeleton
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where I found it.
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The best thing I've ever sold was
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a de court of copper breast plate.
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It was Moche.
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It was 40 cents meters high with drawings.
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It had some monkeys at the sides
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and some peanuts carved in relief.
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It was all made of copper.
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(peaceful music)
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One place where the grave robbers
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can sell their loot and tourists can buy it
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is the local witchcraft market.
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Here no one seems to ask questions about
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where it all comes from.
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(man speaking a foreign language)
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This is a Moche ceramic
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from the Moche culture of La Mina.
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It's at least 1500 years old.
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These ceramics are usually for shamans
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to perform the healing.
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This one represents a woman.
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You can also find some that represent the man.
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This one is used to clean the woman
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when she is feeling down or in a bad way.
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This one is from the Moche culture.
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(peaceful music)
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Doctor Walter Alva agreed
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to take us to the site of La Mina,
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where it's believed the headdress was looted
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nearly 20 years ago.
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It's 400 miles north of the Peruvian capital, Lima,
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and an hours drive from the nearest main town.
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Today there is nothing in this bleak landscape
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to indicate the splendor of the original tomb.
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(man speaking in foreign language)
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We are climbing to the area
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where the tomb used to be located,
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as you can see in the hills opposite the valley.
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In the upper part you can see a group of rocks.
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And as I said, the place doesn't give any sign
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of having construction on the surface
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or the remains of monumental architecture.
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The idea was always that the tomb blend in
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with the landscape,
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so it remains hidden within the hills.
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It gives us the same impression
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as the Valley of Kings in Egypt.
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When rumors first began to emerge
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about the looting at La Mina,
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Doctor Alva had set off with his wife
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and a local policeman to investigate.
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What they found was shocking and dangerous.
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(man speaking in foreign language)
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They noticed our presence.
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A group of people left running and jumped into a car,
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a pick up truck.
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Between them, there was a man armed with a shotgun.
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They obviously escaped when they saw us.
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The idea of grave robbers carrying weapons
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makes Doctor Alva apprehensive to this day.
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It may seem extraordinary, but many
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of the archeological sites remain unprotected.
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Doctor Alva takes no chances.
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He always carries a hand gun on his belt.
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Finally we arrived at the site where the octopus headdress
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was once hidden.
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(man speaking a foreign language)
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This is exactly the place
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where in 1988 a fabulous funerary chamber was looted.
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The tomb belonged to a Moche Lord
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and he was buried with gold objects.
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We will never be able to know the exact
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quantity and variety.
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But nothing had prepared Doctor Alva
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for the devastation he saw.
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When we inspected the place,
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we realized that we were in front of the tomb
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that had been completely looted.
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Around it we could see terrible destruction.
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As if a bomb had exploded.
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Everything was broken and we noticed
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fragments of copper objects and of wall paintings.
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From the fragments that remained,
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and his knowledge of other Moche tombs,
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Doctor Alva tried to build a picture
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of what had been at La Mina.
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Today, the looted tomb at La Mina
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has been covered again and left unmarked in the desert
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in the hope that its anonymity will protect it
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from further looting.
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But what happened to the octopus headdress?
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In the months after the robbery,
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there was no trace of any of the priceless looted objects
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and few clues about who was now in possession of them.
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The tomb raiders may have been at the bottom
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of the trafficking food chain,
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but they surely knew the significance
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of what they had plundered in the desert.
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And they would have known where to take it
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to realize its value on the international market.
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(peaceful music)
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(upbeat music)
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This was almost certainly the first destination
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for the headdress after it was dug from the ground.
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Lima, the capital of Peru, is a metropolis
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of almost nine million inhabitants.
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Like many great South American cities,
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there is much poverty, but also great riches.
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Among the wealthy are the great collectors
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of ancient Peruvian art.
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Some would pay a small fortune to own an object
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as rare and as beautiful as the
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octopus headdress from La Mina.
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One of the high profile buyers of Peruvian art at Lima
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was Raul Apesteguia.
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His private collection was immense.
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(man speaking in foreign language)
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In Lima, everybody knew
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that Raul Apesteguia was a consultant
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for collectors and of people
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linked to the study of art.
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He also moved within a circle of intellectuals.
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(upbeat music)
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Although Raul Apesteguia was well respected
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in the artistic and academic world,
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there was suspicions that he might have known something
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about the 1988 looting at La Mina,
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though he was never interviewed by the police.
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(peaceful music)
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Four years after the robbery, in 1992,
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the world saw the headdress for the first time.
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Stunning photographs of some of the pieces
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looted from La Mina were published in a book
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called, Gold from Ancient Peru.
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Most startling of all, the octopus headdress
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from La Mina was featured on the front cover.
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Raul Apesteguia was one of the contributors.
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(suspenseful music)
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Then three years later in 1995, a second book was published,
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containing yet more photographs of the octopus headdress.
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Once again, Raul Apesteguia's contribution was credited,
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along with an extensive list of other notables,
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included the Nelson Rockefeller Foundation.
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The list also included a German industrialist
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and collector called Anton Roeckl.
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He knew Apesteguia and would later have a key role
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in the continuing search for the gold from La Mina.
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(Walter speaking a foreign language)
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The strongest possibility
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is that a local trafficker who acquired the pieces
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acted as a middle man and sold 'em
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to Raul Apesteguia, if he had them, which we have to assume.
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Raul Apesteguia had the international contacts
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and was an expert, a consultant, and art collector in Lima.
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He probably offered them or established the contacts
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for the pieces to be sold in Europe.
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00:15:43,380 --> 00:15:46,547
(airplane taking off)
267
00:15:49,210 --> 00:15:51,400
But to what extent Raul Apesteguia
268
00:15:51,400 --> 00:15:54,590
was implicated in the looting of the octopus headdress
269
00:15:54,590 --> 00:15:56,410
we may never know.
270
00:15:56,410 --> 00:15:58,683
And Mr. Apesteguia isn't saying.
271
00:16:07,005 --> 00:16:09,755
(peaceful music)
272
00:16:22,214 --> 00:16:27,214
On January 26th, 1996, Raul Apesteguia was dressing
273
00:16:27,440 --> 00:16:31,640
for a family party in his 15th floor apartment in Lima.
274
00:16:31,640 --> 00:16:34,760
At 8:00 p.m. two men walked in the front entrance
275
00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:37,190
of the apartment building and took the elevator
276
00:16:37,190 --> 00:16:38,693
to the 15th floor.
277
00:16:47,290 --> 00:16:49,700
Before he finished putting his shirt on,
278
00:16:49,700 --> 00:16:52,572
Raul Apesteguia heard a knock on the door.
279
00:16:52,572 --> 00:16:55,572
(suspenseful music)
280
00:17:05,140 --> 00:17:07,670
The two men attacked Raul Apesteguia
281
00:17:07,670 --> 00:17:11,710
and ransacked the apartment, leaving him for dead.
282
00:17:11,710 --> 00:17:13,613
The killers got away clean.
283
00:17:28,170 --> 00:17:31,370
Journalists were soon alerted to the murder.
284
00:17:31,370 --> 00:17:34,260
Garcia Panta left his office and rushed
285
00:17:34,260 --> 00:17:36,456
to the scene of the attack.
286
00:17:36,456 --> 00:17:38,840
(Garcia speaking a foreign language)
287
00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:39,760
We are at the residence
288
00:17:39,760 --> 00:17:42,703
in San Felipe where Raul Apesteguia lived.
289
00:17:47,280 --> 00:17:49,483
Some suspicious people arrived here by car.
290
00:17:50,440 --> 00:17:53,070
Mr. Apesteguia's apartment was on the 15th floor,
291
00:17:53,070 --> 00:17:55,900
that's where the crime occurred.
292
00:17:55,900 --> 00:17:57,910
His mother lived on the 13th floor,
293
00:17:57,910 --> 00:17:59,730
and that's where they were going to have a dinner party
294
00:17:59,730 --> 00:18:00,830
for his father-in-law.
295
00:18:11,960 --> 00:18:14,977
When they came down, the lift stopped on the fourth floor.
296
00:18:14,977 --> 00:18:17,140
The doors opened and there was a woman staring
297
00:18:17,140 --> 00:18:17,990
straight at them.
298
00:18:20,930 --> 00:18:22,380
They thought they had already reached the ground floor.
299
00:18:22,380 --> 00:18:24,670
After they realized their mistake,
300
00:18:24,670 --> 00:18:26,750
they quickly pressed the button for the ground floor,
301
00:18:26,750 --> 00:18:28,523
but the lady jokingly told them,
302
00:18:30,220 --> 00:18:31,813
hey, it's not Halloween yet.
303
00:18:31,813 --> 00:18:33,500
It's only January.
304
00:18:33,500 --> 00:18:35,050
Why are you dressed as a mummy?
305
00:18:36,450 --> 00:18:38,370
This woman was a prime eye witness
306
00:18:38,370 --> 00:18:39,700
in the case.
307
00:18:39,700 --> 00:18:41,340
She told the police that the two men
308
00:18:41,340 --> 00:18:43,610
were carrying a box stuffed with what appeared
309
00:18:43,610 --> 00:18:45,393
to be ancient artifacts.
310
00:18:51,514 --> 00:18:52,710
(man speaking a foreign language)
311
00:18:52,710 --> 00:18:53,840
His son went upstairs to see
312
00:18:53,840 --> 00:18:55,530
why his father was taking so long.
313
00:18:55,530 --> 00:18:57,660
And found him lying in a pool of blood.
314
00:18:57,660 --> 00:18:59,823
The man was already dead.
315
00:19:03,060 --> 00:19:06,060
(suspenseful music)
316
00:19:12,180 --> 00:19:14,310
Lima was shocked by the brutal death
317
00:19:14,310 --> 00:19:16,610
of this well known resident.
318
00:19:16,610 --> 00:19:20,300
Publicly, there was no obvious motive for the murder,
319
00:19:20,300 --> 00:19:22,680
but some had their suspicions.
320
00:19:22,680 --> 00:19:25,143
The revenge of the Moche Lords.
321
00:19:26,723 --> 00:19:28,930
(man speaking a foreign language)
322
00:19:28,930 --> 00:19:30,190
In relation to the death
323
00:19:30,190 --> 00:19:32,490
of Raul Apesteguia, it was said that there was
324
00:19:32,490 --> 00:19:34,390
a Moche curse behind it.
325
00:19:34,390 --> 00:19:35,740
Anyone who would dare touch the tomb
326
00:19:35,740 --> 00:19:37,257
would have the curse fully upon them.
327
00:19:37,257 --> 00:19:39,530
And something bad would happen to them.
328
00:19:39,530 --> 00:19:40,883
It's a popular belief.
329
00:19:45,220 --> 00:19:47,680
But as the investigation unfolded,
330
00:19:47,680 --> 00:19:49,668
police began to receive information that the murder
331
00:19:49,668 --> 00:19:53,500
was a different kind of revenge altogether.
332
00:19:53,500 --> 00:19:56,923
One inflicted by traffickers of archeological treasures.
333
00:19:59,170 --> 00:20:02,170
It also emerged that the well respected expert
334
00:20:02,170 --> 00:20:06,543
on Peruvian antiquities had a less than unblemished past.
335
00:20:08,810 --> 00:20:10,000
(man speaking a foreign language)
336
00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:12,540
In 1971, Raul Apesteguia was caught
337
00:20:12,540 --> 00:20:14,560
with a group of tomb robbers in Nazca,
338
00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:16,413
250 miles south of Lima.
339
00:20:17,410 --> 00:20:19,830
He was indicted as a trafficker and went to jail,
340
00:20:19,830 --> 00:20:21,780
but only for a short period.
341
00:20:21,780 --> 00:20:24,320
In Peru these activities are quite common.
342
00:20:24,320 --> 00:20:27,220
But people like Apesteguia wouldn't do the field work.
343
00:20:27,220 --> 00:20:29,030
He would have some rural workers from the area
344
00:20:29,030 --> 00:20:29,983
doing this for him.
345
00:20:31,230 --> 00:20:32,870
At the time of his murder,
346
00:20:32,870 --> 00:20:35,600
it was not clear if the golden headdress from La Mina
347
00:20:35,600 --> 00:20:38,623
was part of Raul Apesteguia's collection or not.
348
00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:44,420
But 10 months after the murder and nine years
349
00:20:44,420 --> 00:20:46,840
after the octopus headdress was looted,
350
00:20:46,840 --> 00:20:49,869
there was a surprising development 6,000 miles away
351
00:20:49,869 --> 00:20:52,027
on another continent.
352
00:21:03,125 --> 00:21:05,792
(choir singing)
353
00:21:14,040 --> 00:21:16,840
News came that a golden octopus headdress
354
00:21:16,840 --> 00:21:18,580
had turned up in Spain.
355
00:21:18,580 --> 00:21:22,270
It was on the back cover of a catalog for a new exhibition.
356
00:21:22,270 --> 00:21:25,430
For the curators, the gold octopus headdress
357
00:21:25,430 --> 00:21:28,306
was the centerpiece of their display.
358
00:21:28,306 --> 00:21:31,440
(Mariano speaking a foreign language)
359
00:21:31,440 --> 00:21:32,690
This particular piece
360
00:21:32,690 --> 00:21:34,890
I was fascinated to exhibit.
361
00:21:34,890 --> 00:21:37,370
With great pleasure I would exhibit it again
362
00:21:37,370 --> 00:21:40,953
if I had the chance because I believe it's a great object.
363
00:21:47,290 --> 00:21:49,900
Santiago is famous as a destination
364
00:21:49,900 --> 00:21:51,500
for pilgrims.
365
00:21:51,500 --> 00:21:54,750
The exhibition was held first in the university,
366
00:21:54,750 --> 00:21:57,420
but it proved so successful that it transferred
367
00:21:57,420 --> 00:22:00,000
to the huge church of Santo Domingo
368
00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:01,250
in the heart of the city.
369
00:22:02,125 --> 00:22:04,792
(choir singing)
370
00:22:12,498 --> 00:22:14,900
(Carlos speaking a foreign language)
371
00:22:14,900 --> 00:22:16,990
It wasn't only a success,
372
00:22:16,990 --> 00:22:18,750
but from the information I remember,
373
00:22:18,750 --> 00:22:22,110
at its time it was the most visited exhibition in Spain
374
00:22:22,110 --> 00:22:23,260
after the Prado Museum.
375
00:22:31,570 --> 00:22:33,260
In the search for the looted headdress
376
00:22:33,260 --> 00:22:37,150
from La Mina, the exhibition in Spain was problematic.
377
00:22:37,150 --> 00:22:40,370
Although the octopus headdress in the exhibition catalog
378
00:22:40,370 --> 00:22:42,670
was similar to the one from La Mina,
379
00:22:42,670 --> 00:22:45,020
it was not quite the same.
380
00:22:45,020 --> 00:22:47,450
This one had 12 tentacles.
381
00:22:47,450 --> 00:22:49,720
La Mina's had eight.
382
00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:53,043
But the Spanish exhibition was not quite a dead end.
383
00:23:01,200 --> 00:23:05,850
A year later, in 1997, a huge coffee table book
384
00:23:05,850 --> 00:23:08,910
on ancient art from the Americas was published.
385
00:23:08,910 --> 00:23:11,700
And there next to the 12 tentacled octopus
386
00:23:11,700 --> 00:23:15,390
from the Spanish catalog was the eight tentacled version
387
00:23:15,390 --> 00:23:16,483
from La Mina.
388
00:23:25,200 --> 00:23:26,910
The book had been brought together
389
00:23:26,910 --> 00:23:29,140
by the men who also assembled the exhibits
390
00:23:29,140 --> 00:23:31,280
for the Spanish exhibition.
391
00:23:31,280 --> 00:23:32,873
Leonardo Patterson.
392
00:23:38,210 --> 00:23:41,030
Leonardo Patterson is a well known collector
393
00:23:41,030 --> 00:23:42,580
of ancient artifacts.
394
00:23:42,580 --> 00:23:44,960
He is a great sportsmen, playing polo
395
00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:46,300
with the rich and famous.
396
00:23:46,300 --> 00:23:49,460
He was born in Costa Rica, lived in the United States
397
00:23:49,460 --> 00:23:51,150
during the seventies and eighties,
398
00:23:51,150 --> 00:23:52,633
before moving to Germany.
399
00:23:54,351 --> 00:23:56,361
(Mariano speaking a foreign language)
400
00:23:56,361 --> 00:23:57,300
The image Mr. Patterson gives
401
00:23:57,300 --> 00:24:00,520
is of a spontaneous man who gets personally involved
402
00:24:00,520 --> 00:24:02,260
with the pieces he holds.
403
00:24:02,260 --> 00:24:05,130
I don't know if he has any other activities.
404
00:24:05,130 --> 00:24:07,040
So did Leonardo Patterson known
405
00:24:07,040 --> 00:24:08,493
where the headdress was?
406
00:24:11,430 --> 00:24:14,550
In London, there was an art collector who was convinced
407
00:24:14,550 --> 00:24:17,823
that Patterson knew exactly where the headdress was.
408
00:24:19,210 --> 00:24:22,330
But this was no ordinary collector.
409
00:24:22,330 --> 00:24:23,913
His name is Michel Van Rijn.
410
00:24:24,860 --> 00:24:26,520
He admits that he once a trafficker
411
00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:28,130
and looted antiquities.
412
00:24:28,130 --> 00:24:31,290
He says he gave it up 15 years ago to work
413
00:24:31,290 --> 00:24:32,760
for the other side.
414
00:24:32,760 --> 00:24:35,900
He know claims he uses his knowledge and contacts
415
00:24:35,900 --> 00:24:39,010
to retrieve stolen historic works and return them
416
00:24:39,010 --> 00:24:41,180
to their country of origin.
417
00:24:41,180 --> 00:24:43,590
Among the works he has recovered were these
418
00:24:43,590 --> 00:24:47,090
fantastic mosaics looted from an orthodox church
419
00:24:47,090 --> 00:24:48,503
in northern Cypress.
420
00:24:54,240 --> 00:24:57,310
In 2000, Van Rijn eventually came across
421
00:24:57,310 --> 00:25:00,040
Leonardo Patterson's book with the photograph
422
00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:02,010
of the octopus headdress.
423
00:25:02,010 --> 00:25:03,990
He believed the book contained pictures
424
00:25:03,990 --> 00:25:05,733
of stolen Peruvian art.
425
00:25:11,820 --> 00:25:14,250
I saw the Patterson book.
426
00:25:14,250 --> 00:25:15,730
It's not a catalog, it's a book.
427
00:25:15,730 --> 00:25:17,330
I mean it's a coffee table book,
428
00:25:18,290 --> 00:25:21,570
but full of incredible looted works of art
429
00:25:21,570 --> 00:25:23,600
from, especially from Peru.
430
00:25:23,600 --> 00:25:25,346
And there's all these golden pieces,
431
00:25:25,346 --> 00:25:28,689
so I blew everything wide up.
432
00:25:28,689 --> 00:25:33,689
Since 2000, I kept on hammering on them, hammering on them.
433
00:25:34,480 --> 00:25:37,063
(upbeat music)
434
00:25:37,970 --> 00:25:39,870
Van Rijn launched a ferocious
435
00:25:39,870 --> 00:25:43,731
personal campaign against Patterson over the Internet.
436
00:25:43,731 --> 00:25:46,314
(upbeat music)
437
00:25:50,601 --> 00:25:53,120
I'm going to show you the Patterson specials
438
00:25:53,120 --> 00:25:55,420
and the Peru specials.
439
00:25:55,420 --> 00:25:58,530
And he has been on the menu ever since.
440
00:25:58,530 --> 00:26:01,540
He has his own icon on my website
441
00:26:01,540 --> 00:26:05,330
where everything is translated in Spanish.
442
00:26:05,330 --> 00:26:09,650
So he has the doubtful honor to have many hits
443
00:26:09,650 --> 00:26:10,543
on my site.
444
00:26:13,130 --> 00:26:15,310
Patterson's icon on the website
445
00:26:15,310 --> 00:26:18,000
is the golden headdress from La Mina.
446
00:26:18,000 --> 00:26:21,270
Van Rijn makes a series of allegations against Patterson
447
00:26:21,270 --> 00:26:23,833
and his alleged links to looted antiquities.
448
00:26:25,150 --> 00:26:27,650
We asked Leonardo Patterson to give us an interview
449
00:26:27,650 --> 00:26:30,960
to discuss what he knew about the looted octopus headdress.
450
00:26:30,960 --> 00:26:33,250
He declined to comment directly,
451
00:26:33,250 --> 00:26:36,903
but instructed his lawyer in London to speak on his behalf.
452
00:26:38,021 --> 00:26:41,170
(upbeat music)
453
00:26:41,170 --> 00:26:43,330
Mr Van Rijn has a number of campaigns
454
00:26:43,330 --> 00:26:44,370
against all sorts of people.
455
00:26:44,370 --> 00:26:46,070
You've only got to look at his website
456
00:26:46,070 --> 00:26:48,330
to appreciate that.
457
00:26:48,330 --> 00:26:51,210
I think personally he got the wrong end of the stick
458
00:26:51,210 --> 00:26:54,757
and assumed that Mr. Patterson was the owner of this
459
00:26:54,757 --> 00:26:57,920
and a number of other Peruvian artifacts.
460
00:26:57,920 --> 00:26:59,960
In fact I don't think that was the case at all.
461
00:26:59,960 --> 00:27:01,720
What had happened was that Mr. Patterson
462
00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:06,570
had put on an exhibition in Spain in 1997.
463
00:27:06,570 --> 00:27:09,560
And I think a number of pieces have been wrongly attributed
464
00:27:09,560 --> 00:27:12,840
to him when in fact they were the property
465
00:27:12,840 --> 00:27:14,003
of other collectors.
466
00:27:18,210 --> 00:27:20,610
So Patterson denied any wrong doing,
467
00:27:20,610 --> 00:27:23,590
but that didn't stop Van Rijn publishing allegations
468
00:27:23,590 --> 00:27:27,253
against him, some at least from reputable sources.
469
00:27:28,360 --> 00:27:33,113
The Patterson file, famous lawsuits.
470
00:27:35,010 --> 00:27:38,360
His publication of the Journal of Field Archeology.
471
00:27:38,360 --> 00:27:41,170
And winter 1984.
472
00:27:41,170 --> 00:27:43,900
A recent arrest in Boston has called attention
473
00:27:43,900 --> 00:27:46,790
to the existence of fake Maya frescoes
474
00:27:46,790 --> 00:27:48,920
on the international market.
475
00:27:48,920 --> 00:27:52,710
The accused, art dealer Leonardo Patterson, was charged
476
00:27:52,710 --> 00:27:55,390
with wire fraud for attempting to sell
477
00:27:55,390 --> 00:27:57,580
a supposed Maya fresco.
478
00:27:57,580 --> 00:27:59,700
While the piece was accompanied by two letters
479
00:27:59,700 --> 00:28:02,360
of authentication and other documents,
480
00:28:02,360 --> 00:28:05,263
it is now identified as a fake.
481
00:28:06,500 --> 00:28:09,060
Well that's only one, the time that he was arrested.
482
00:28:09,060 --> 00:28:12,180
He was arrested another time and he did worse.
483
00:28:12,180 --> 00:28:15,290
Once more, in July 2001,
484
00:28:15,290 --> 00:28:18,830
the legal authorities in Mexico issued a press release.
485
00:28:18,830 --> 00:28:22,010
It said, according to the information provided by
486
00:28:22,010 --> 00:28:25,900
INTERPOL Switzerland, Mr. Patterson had a record on theft
487
00:28:25,900 --> 00:28:28,400
and trafficking in animals, art works,
488
00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:30,290
and archeological pieces.
489
00:28:30,290 --> 00:28:33,643
In the United States of America, as well as in Europe.
490
00:28:35,850 --> 00:28:38,311
I haven't seen the evidence.
491
00:28:38,311 --> 00:28:41,760
If he is hounded by INTERPOL,
492
00:28:41,760 --> 00:28:44,073
why is he still at liberty?
493
00:28:44,923 --> 00:28:47,130
I mean if he has committed so many crimes,
494
00:28:47,130 --> 00:28:49,270
why hasn't he, why isn't he imprisoned?
495
00:28:49,270 --> 00:28:52,350
I mean it's very easy to blacken someone's name
496
00:28:52,350 --> 00:28:54,983
and to cast expressions on them,
497
00:28:56,220 --> 00:28:57,890
but where at the end of the day is the hard evidence?
498
00:28:57,890 --> 00:28:59,771
And I have to say when it comes to Mr. Patterson,
499
00:28:59,771 --> 00:29:02,930
there's a lot of allegations, but I haven't seen
500
00:29:02,930 --> 00:29:04,553
an awful lot of hard evidence.
501
00:29:05,651 --> 00:29:08,651
(suspenseful music)
502
00:29:13,130 --> 00:29:16,320
One man with hard evidence of Patterson's past
503
00:29:16,320 --> 00:29:19,060
was an officer in the U.S. Customs Service,
504
00:29:19,060 --> 00:29:20,900
Charles Kosczka.
505
00:29:20,900 --> 00:29:23,480
Leonardo was a character.
506
00:29:23,480 --> 00:29:26,530
I mean if you met him once, you would remember him.
507
00:29:26,530 --> 00:29:29,343
He doesn't blend in with the general population.
508
00:29:31,450 --> 00:29:34,400
I know he has two felony convictions
509
00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:36,613
from the United States to date.
510
00:29:37,750 --> 00:29:40,610
The first one had to do with fake art,
511
00:29:40,610 --> 00:29:42,810
which was being sold to somebody who didn't know
512
00:29:42,810 --> 00:29:43,643
it was a fake.
513
00:29:43,643 --> 00:29:45,993
And that he plead guilty to.
514
00:29:50,180 --> 00:29:52,210
The second offense involved bringing
515
00:29:52,210 --> 00:29:54,700
rare turtle eggs into America.
516
00:29:54,700 --> 00:29:57,400
Patterson didn't go to jail for his first offense,
517
00:29:57,400 --> 00:30:00,160
but the charge or smuggling endangered species
518
00:30:00,160 --> 00:30:03,020
broke his probation and Officer Kosczka
519
00:30:03,020 --> 00:30:04,550
was sent to arrest him.
520
00:30:04,550 --> 00:30:08,670
I wanted to arrest him so I contacted
521
00:30:08,670 --> 00:30:11,010
his probation officer.
522
00:30:11,010 --> 00:30:14,230
And I said, when is he due to report to you next?
523
00:30:14,230 --> 00:30:16,800
And it was about a week or so later.
524
00:30:16,800 --> 00:30:17,907
And I was waiting for him.
525
00:30:17,907 --> 00:30:20,143
And when he showed up, I arrested him.
526
00:30:21,850 --> 00:30:24,890
He was embarrassed obviously having handcuffs put on him.
527
00:30:24,890 --> 00:30:28,750
I let him cover his handcuffs with a hat
528
00:30:28,750 --> 00:30:30,240
or something like that.
529
00:30:30,240 --> 00:30:33,710
I felt no physical danger, even though I was
530
00:30:33,710 --> 00:30:36,690
armed with a 357 Magnum on my hip.
531
00:30:36,690 --> 00:30:38,170
I walked him, instead of putting him in the car,
532
00:30:38,170 --> 00:30:40,920
I walked him two blocks through the street of New York.
533
00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:45,310
For this violation of parole,
534
00:30:45,310 --> 00:30:48,750
Patterson served a short prison sentence in the mid 1980s
535
00:30:48,750 --> 00:30:49,950
in a Texas Penitentiary.
536
00:30:58,362 --> 00:31:01,112
(peaceful music)
537
00:31:06,270 --> 00:31:09,480
Michel Van Rijn traveled repeatedly to Lima
538
00:31:09,480 --> 00:31:13,060
trying to persuade the authorities in Peru to take action.
539
00:31:13,060 --> 00:31:16,750
He met Walter Alva and together they went to the police
540
00:31:16,750 --> 00:31:18,143
with their allegations.
541
00:31:24,200 --> 00:31:27,450
Then Alva, Van Rijn, and the Chief of INTERPOl
542
00:31:27,450 --> 00:31:30,010
in the Peruvian capital posed for the photo
543
00:31:30,010 --> 00:31:32,703
that was published the next day by newspapers.
544
00:31:34,800 --> 00:31:38,883
To Van Rijn's surprise, time went by and nothing happened.
545
00:31:40,630 --> 00:31:43,250
With the Peruvian authorities dragging their feet,
546
00:31:43,250 --> 00:31:47,243
Van Rijn decided to take action against Patterson himself.
547
00:31:48,083 --> 00:31:50,290
(upbeat music)
548
00:31:50,290 --> 00:31:52,750
Publication of Leonardo Patterson's past
549
00:31:52,750 --> 00:31:55,640
by Michel Van Rijn intensified the feud
550
00:31:55,640 --> 00:31:56,743
between the two men.
551
00:31:59,540 --> 00:32:02,630
The allegations on the website are pure nonsense,
552
00:32:02,630 --> 00:32:03,760
absolute rubbish.
553
00:32:03,760 --> 00:32:06,930
But they are deeply unpleasant to anyone
554
00:32:06,930 --> 00:32:08,620
that's subjected to them.
555
00:32:08,620 --> 00:32:11,050
I think these are allegations that have been
556
00:32:11,050 --> 00:32:14,320
promoted by Mr. Van Rijn and if you repeat a lie
557
00:32:14,320 --> 00:32:16,070
often enough, it becomes the truth.
558
00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:21,140
By 2004, Leonardo Patterson
559
00:32:21,140 --> 00:32:23,580
had grown tired of the insults and claims
560
00:32:23,580 --> 00:32:26,540
that Van Rijn was publishing on his website.
561
00:32:26,540 --> 00:32:30,010
Patterson's German lawyer issued a writ to gag order.
562
00:32:30,010 --> 00:32:34,640
This really is the amends to refrain from publishing,
563
00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:38,280
make available, or otherwise put any statements
564
00:32:38,280 --> 00:32:42,200
of any legal, defamatory, offensive, racist,
565
00:32:42,200 --> 00:32:44,900
insulting, or libelous nature with regard
566
00:32:44,900 --> 00:32:47,080
to Mr. Patterson.
567
00:32:47,080 --> 00:32:49,340
This implies in particular to statements
568
00:32:49,340 --> 00:32:52,860
that Mr. Patterson is a thief or a robber.
569
00:32:52,860 --> 00:32:56,570
Mr. Patterson is a driving force in the illicit trade
570
00:32:57,858 --> 00:32:58,933
of Columbian artifacts.
571
00:33:00,021 --> 00:33:01,280
Mr. Patterson bribes persons.
572
00:33:01,280 --> 00:33:04,133
And I signed Micky Mouse to the lawyer.
573
00:33:05,120 --> 00:33:07,780
Van Rijn didn't take the writ seriously.
574
00:33:07,780 --> 00:33:09,860
He simply published it on his website,
575
00:33:09,860 --> 00:33:12,023
alongside all the other allegations.
576
00:33:15,080 --> 00:33:17,770
But six months later, a German court issued
577
00:33:17,770 --> 00:33:19,780
an injunction against Van Rijn,
578
00:33:19,780 --> 00:33:22,023
which once again he laughed off.
579
00:33:23,710 --> 00:33:27,160
Mr. Patterson had been vilified by Mr. Van Rijn
580
00:33:27,160 --> 00:33:30,010
on his website or a period of about three years
581
00:33:30,010 --> 00:33:31,180
prior to that.
582
00:33:31,180 --> 00:33:34,590
In 2004, he managed to get an injunction
583
00:33:34,590 --> 00:33:38,140
from the German courts to stop Mr. Van Rijn
584
00:33:38,140 --> 00:33:40,850
defaming him and libeling him in that fashion.
585
00:33:40,850 --> 00:33:44,040
But Mr. Van Rijn had taken absolutely no notice
586
00:33:44,040 --> 00:33:45,290
of it whatsoever.
587
00:33:45,290 --> 00:33:48,150
And I think he was just very keen to explore
588
00:33:48,150 --> 00:33:51,210
any other way in which he could have his name
589
00:33:51,210 --> 00:33:52,460
removed from the website.
590
00:33:55,660 --> 00:33:57,450
Van Rijn thought that once Patterson
591
00:33:57,450 --> 00:34:00,090
realized that the gag order hadn't worked,
592
00:34:00,090 --> 00:34:02,060
Patterson would have to come up with a different way
593
00:34:02,060 --> 00:34:02,973
of persuading him.
594
00:34:08,640 --> 00:34:10,440
He approached me by phone.
595
00:34:10,440 --> 00:34:15,230
He tried to you know persuade me in all kind of ways.
596
00:34:15,230 --> 00:34:19,540
First bullying, and when that didn't go anywhere,
597
00:34:19,540 --> 00:34:23,830
then he was trying to entice me in accepting
598
00:34:23,830 --> 00:34:28,070
something from him to get it off the website.
599
00:34:28,070 --> 00:34:30,463
He was offering all kinds of things.
600
00:34:32,640 --> 00:34:34,420
But what exactly would it take
601
00:34:34,420 --> 00:34:36,050
to get Van Rijn off his back
602
00:34:36,050 --> 00:34:39,800
and what Patterson insisted were false allegations
603
00:34:39,800 --> 00:34:40,890
off his website?
604
00:34:40,890 --> 00:34:44,940
I went along with his game a little bit
605
00:34:44,940 --> 00:34:48,570
because I thought that it was a great opportunity
606
00:34:48,570 --> 00:34:53,570
to get one of the most spectacular Moche headdresses back.
607
00:34:58,670 --> 00:35:00,570
Van Rijn thought he could come to a deal
608
00:35:00,570 --> 00:35:03,490
with his adversary, Leonardo Patterson,
609
00:35:03,490 --> 00:35:06,350
which would enable him to recover the priceless treasure
610
00:35:06,350 --> 00:35:08,380
for the Peruvian authorities.
611
00:35:08,380 --> 00:35:12,450
I let myself be enticed and drawn in.
612
00:35:12,450 --> 00:35:16,620
I said, well, if you bring me one of the octopi
613
00:35:16,620 --> 00:35:20,310
published in your book, then I'm willing
614
00:35:20,310 --> 00:35:23,660
to sit down with you and to discuss it.
615
00:35:23,660 --> 00:35:25,010
So it took a long time.
616
00:35:25,010 --> 00:35:27,313
In the end, he gave in.
617
00:35:29,670 --> 00:35:31,500
So that was the deal.
618
00:35:31,500 --> 00:35:34,740
Van Rijn would remove all the allegations against Patterson
619
00:35:34,740 --> 00:35:37,240
from his website if Patterson delivered
620
00:35:37,240 --> 00:35:39,490
the gold octopus headdress to him
621
00:35:39,490 --> 00:35:42,280
so that he could return it to its rightful place,
622
00:35:42,280 --> 00:35:44,590
a museum in Peru.
623
00:35:44,590 --> 00:35:47,150
Mr. Van Rijn wanted that piece.
624
00:35:47,150 --> 00:35:51,130
Mr. Patterson duly set about procuring
625
00:35:51,130 --> 00:35:52,403
that particular piece.
626
00:35:59,650 --> 00:36:01,910
Leonardo Patterson flew to London
627
00:36:01,910 --> 00:36:03,453
from his home in Munich.
628
00:36:05,690 --> 00:36:07,913
He went to Van Rijn's Chelsea flat.
629
00:36:12,740 --> 00:36:16,590
Van Rijn needed proof that Patterson had the headdress.
630
00:36:16,590 --> 00:36:18,660
He thought he was setting a trap,
631
00:36:18,660 --> 00:36:20,573
but would Patterson walk into it?
632
00:36:27,740 --> 00:36:30,510
The two controversial art collectors chatted
633
00:36:30,510 --> 00:36:32,253
for hours over a barbecue.
634
00:36:33,920 --> 00:36:37,350
Eventually Leonardo Patterson made Van Rijn
635
00:36:37,350 --> 00:36:39,940
the offer he could not refuse.
636
00:36:39,940 --> 00:36:42,190
So he was sitting here.
637
00:36:42,190 --> 00:36:45,370
He must have felt at home between my statues,
638
00:36:45,370 --> 00:36:47,720
the Manifesto against the art world.
639
00:36:47,720 --> 00:36:49,230
This craziness.
640
00:36:49,230 --> 00:36:51,191
Then he produced the octopus.
641
00:36:51,191 --> 00:36:56,191
And my son sneaked down at 15 and he took a photo
642
00:36:56,640 --> 00:36:58,550
with his mobile.
643
00:36:58,550 --> 00:37:00,920
So that was a bad, bad day for Leonardo
644
00:37:00,920 --> 00:37:02,887
because my God he was like (mumbling sounds).
645
00:37:04,700 --> 00:37:08,420
And boy was he shocked, believe me.
646
00:37:08,420 --> 00:37:11,153
So we had him, check, photograph.
647
00:37:12,133 --> 00:37:13,563
Evidence.
648
00:37:16,730 --> 00:37:20,130
The circumstances were that they were having a barbecue.
649
00:37:20,130 --> 00:37:22,940
It was the summer, very pleasant.
650
00:37:22,940 --> 00:37:26,210
They reached this agreement at that meeting
651
00:37:26,210 --> 00:37:29,660
and shook hands in front of Mr. Van Rijn's children.
652
00:37:29,660 --> 00:37:34,660
And that was the moment which the deal was sealed.
653
00:37:34,670 --> 00:37:37,210
I think he just felt, whatever it takes,
654
00:37:37,210 --> 00:37:39,650
I want to sort this thing out and get myself
655
00:37:39,650 --> 00:37:40,563
off this website.
656
00:37:47,690 --> 00:37:49,600
After the meeting with Van Rijn,
657
00:37:49,600 --> 00:37:51,630
Patterson flew back to Germany.
658
00:37:51,630 --> 00:37:53,640
The question now was where exactly
659
00:37:53,640 --> 00:37:55,800
was the octopus headdress?
660
00:37:55,800 --> 00:37:58,360
Van Rijn for one had assumed it was in the possession
661
00:37:58,360 --> 00:38:01,420
of his old adversary, Leonardo Patterson.
662
00:38:01,420 --> 00:38:03,000
But was it?
663
00:38:03,000 --> 00:38:04,623
Had Van Rijn got it wrong?
664
00:38:07,377 --> 00:38:10,377
(suspenseful music)
665
00:38:11,670 --> 00:38:14,780
In the last week of July 2006,
666
00:38:14,780 --> 00:38:17,070
Patterson returned to London.
667
00:38:17,070 --> 00:38:20,463
In his luggage was the gold octopus headdress.
668
00:38:21,870 --> 00:38:24,270
Patterson met with Van Rijn at the offices
669
00:38:24,270 --> 00:38:26,993
of Patterson's lawyer, Martin Bale.
670
00:38:28,410 --> 00:38:30,690
He came with his German lawyer.
671
00:38:30,690 --> 00:38:34,400
And we had a meeting here arranged in this office
672
00:38:34,400 --> 00:38:37,410
for the 28th of July where we met
673
00:38:37,410 --> 00:38:38,913
Mr. Van Rijn and his lawyer.
674
00:38:40,930 --> 00:38:43,080
So the piece was brought to his lawyer's office.
675
00:38:43,080 --> 00:38:46,130
I had a discussion with him off the record,
676
00:38:46,130 --> 00:38:49,020
downstairs, outside of the lawyer's office.
677
00:38:49,020 --> 00:38:51,180
Look, you know, lawyers upstairs,
678
00:38:51,180 --> 00:38:52,540
but we are we.
679
00:38:52,540 --> 00:38:56,750
Just take the mask and you have something very valuable
680
00:38:56,750 --> 00:38:59,290
for your kids, et cetera, for you.
681
00:38:59,290 --> 00:39:01,117
And you do whatever you want,
682
00:39:01,117 --> 00:39:03,780
but take me off the website please
683
00:39:03,780 --> 00:39:05,633
because you know it's harming me.
684
00:39:08,540 --> 00:39:10,920
Mr. Van Rijn asked if he could see the piece.
685
00:39:10,920 --> 00:39:15,470
It had come in a plastic bag wrapped up for safe keeping.
686
00:39:15,470 --> 00:39:18,170
We got it out and unwrapped it,
687
00:39:18,170 --> 00:39:19,563
and there it was.
688
00:39:21,250 --> 00:39:24,250
(suspenseful music)
689
00:39:31,640 --> 00:39:34,430
So when I was in the lawyer's office,
690
00:39:34,430 --> 00:39:36,840
and I saw this piece in my hands,
691
00:39:36,840 --> 00:39:39,970
I started literally shaking because it is magical
692
00:39:39,970 --> 00:39:42,960
because it's cruel and beautiful at the same time.
693
00:39:42,960 --> 00:39:45,237
And it absolutely talks to you.
694
00:39:46,499 --> 00:39:49,499
(suspenseful music)
695
00:39:56,710 --> 00:39:58,650
But before the meeting wound up,
696
00:39:58,650 --> 00:40:00,450
Patterson produced a document to claim
697
00:40:00,450 --> 00:40:03,460
to show the providence of the gold headdress.
698
00:40:03,460 --> 00:40:06,250
It's contents were quite shocking.
699
00:40:06,250 --> 00:40:07,500
Yes, I think that's it.
700
00:40:08,670 --> 00:40:10,320
The document claimed to show
701
00:40:10,320 --> 00:40:12,590
that the headdress had been legitimately imported
702
00:40:12,590 --> 00:40:16,310
into Germany, but both the importer and the collector
703
00:40:16,310 --> 00:40:18,090
were now dead.
704
00:40:18,090 --> 00:40:20,660
It also stated that the headdress had been bought
705
00:40:20,660 --> 00:40:23,770
in 1987 from another now dead man.
706
00:40:23,770 --> 00:40:26,460
None other than Raul Apesteguia,
707
00:40:26,460 --> 00:40:30,883
the Peruvian collector murdered in a Lima apartment in 1996.
708
00:40:32,787 --> 00:40:34,975
(knocking on door)
709
00:40:34,975 --> 00:40:37,975
(suspenseful music)
710
00:40:45,030 --> 00:40:47,740
Van Rijn was not at all convinced that this document
711
00:40:47,740 --> 00:40:51,130
legitimized providence of the headdress was genuine.
712
00:40:51,130 --> 00:40:53,040
It was doctored in a hurry.
713
00:40:53,040 --> 00:40:56,170
You could see the lines that he had taken
714
00:40:56,170 --> 00:40:57,520
from another piece.
715
00:40:57,520 --> 00:41:00,570
You know it was signed probably another piece
716
00:41:00,570 --> 00:41:03,600
which was important in the past.
717
00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:05,680
They put something together,
718
00:41:05,680 --> 00:41:10,680
and it was like so obvious that the document was forged.
719
00:41:14,730 --> 00:41:16,390
It was agreed that Van Rijn would
720
00:41:16,390 --> 00:41:18,610
make contact again with Patterson's lawyer
721
00:41:18,610 --> 00:41:20,250
in the coming days.
722
00:41:20,250 --> 00:41:22,310
Meanwhile, the headdress would remain
723
00:41:22,310 --> 00:41:24,223
in the safe keeping of Martin Bale.
724
00:41:28,360 --> 00:41:30,803
It was absolutely no where I could think of putting it
725
00:41:30,803 --> 00:41:33,620
that would be safe, certainly in this office,
726
00:41:33,620 --> 00:41:37,800
so it was left that I would actually take it home with me
727
00:41:39,430 --> 00:41:42,231
and babysit it for the weekend.
728
00:41:42,231 --> 00:41:44,981
(peaceful music)
729
00:41:48,417 --> 00:41:51,680
I surprised my wife and family considerably.
730
00:41:51,680 --> 00:41:54,093
I wrapped it on the kitchen table, showed them.
731
00:41:57,140 --> 00:41:59,230
And it frightened the life out of my two daughters.
732
00:41:59,230 --> 00:42:01,823
They called it the Peruvian scary thing.
733
00:42:03,093 --> 00:42:05,410
And were very keen that at night I would shut the door
734
00:42:05,410 --> 00:42:09,323
and not let this octopus out to get all of them.
735
00:42:12,500 --> 00:42:15,820
So I looked after it and made sure nothing happened to it
736
00:42:15,820 --> 00:42:17,570
and then brought it back to the office
737
00:42:17,570 --> 00:42:18,860
on the Monday and then made some
738
00:42:18,860 --> 00:42:20,495
obscure arrangements for it.
739
00:42:20,495 --> 00:42:23,245
(peaceful music)
740
00:42:31,630 --> 00:42:34,610
But Van Rijn was taking no chances.
741
00:42:34,610 --> 00:42:36,137
Now he was certain that both Patterson
742
00:42:36,137 --> 00:42:37,970
and the headdress were in England.
743
00:42:37,970 --> 00:42:40,873
He called his contacts at Scotland Yard.
744
00:42:43,720 --> 00:42:46,200
We received information to suggest that an object
745
00:42:46,200 --> 00:42:48,990
that had been stolen abroad was in this country.
746
00:42:48,990 --> 00:42:51,113
At that point, we have a duty to act.
747
00:42:52,670 --> 00:42:55,000
But neither Scotland Yard nor INTERPOL
748
00:42:55,000 --> 00:42:57,620
could act until they had positive confirmation
749
00:42:57,620 --> 00:42:59,800
that the headdress had indeed been looted
750
00:42:59,800 --> 00:43:01,053
from the tomb at La Mina.
751
00:43:04,660 --> 00:43:06,600
Only one man could do that.
752
00:43:06,600 --> 00:43:09,210
And his name was Doctor Walter Alva.
753
00:43:09,210 --> 00:43:10,995
Van Rijn had sent him a photograph.
754
00:43:10,995 --> 00:43:14,135
(man speaking a foreign language)
755
00:43:14,135 --> 00:43:15,203
With the photo I received
756
00:43:15,203 --> 00:43:16,500
through an email,
757
00:43:16,500 --> 00:43:18,093
I immediately realized that we had an object
758
00:43:18,093 --> 00:43:19,943
that came from La Mina.
759
00:43:21,170 --> 00:43:23,210
A few days afterwards, the Peruvian police
760
00:43:23,210 --> 00:43:25,170
asked me for a report in order to send it
761
00:43:25,170 --> 00:43:27,570
to the British police so they could take action.
762
00:43:29,848 --> 00:43:32,848
(suspenseful music)
763
00:43:36,870 --> 00:43:40,480
I had both INTERPOL Peru already on notice
764
00:43:40,480 --> 00:43:44,550
with Walter Alva years before these pieces were looted.
765
00:43:44,550 --> 00:43:46,350
And Walter had confirmed it,
766
00:43:46,350 --> 00:43:50,939
so why we had to wait and at the risk that
767
00:43:50,939 --> 00:43:54,350
Leonardo might pull the mask from the lawyer's office,
768
00:43:54,350 --> 00:43:55,843
it would have disappeared.
769
00:43:58,640 --> 00:44:00,620
But days went by.
770
00:44:00,620 --> 00:44:03,050
Patterson checked out of his hotel.
771
00:44:03,050 --> 00:44:04,890
Had the headdress gone with him
772
00:44:04,890 --> 00:44:07,290
or was it still in the possession of his lawyer?
773
00:44:08,610 --> 00:44:10,950
Our real concern was to ensure that the object
774
00:44:10,950 --> 00:44:13,301
remained where it was until such time
775
00:44:13,301 --> 00:44:15,143
we could act upon it.
776
00:44:16,386 --> 00:44:19,386
(suspenseful music)
777
00:44:24,920 --> 00:44:27,380
It was a tense waiting game.
778
00:44:27,380 --> 00:44:29,990
Detective Sergeant Rapley searched his emails
779
00:44:29,990 --> 00:44:34,520
every few hours, but still no instructions came from Peru.
780
00:44:34,520 --> 00:44:37,930
Was it too late to recover the ancient Peruvian treasure?
781
00:44:37,930 --> 00:44:39,513
Had they missed their chance?
782
00:44:42,166 --> 00:44:45,166
(suspenseful music)
783
00:44:46,441 --> 00:44:51,000
(man speaking a foreign languge)
784
00:44:51,000 --> 00:44:52,490
We exchanged information
785
00:44:52,490 --> 00:44:54,610
with INTERPOL London.
786
00:44:54,610 --> 00:44:57,630
And after receiving confirmation of the piece's origin
787
00:44:57,630 --> 00:45:00,150
from Doctor Alva, it was concluded
788
00:45:00,150 --> 00:45:03,203
that the piece was as much a headdress.
789
00:45:04,332 --> 00:45:06,915
(upbeat music)
790
00:45:08,800 --> 00:45:11,150
With INTERPOL finally giving the go ahead,
791
00:45:11,150 --> 00:45:14,290
Scotland Yard handed the case to their undercover agent,
792
00:45:14,290 --> 00:45:16,320
Michelle Roycroft.
793
00:45:16,320 --> 00:45:18,200
She called lawyer, Martin Bale,
794
00:45:18,200 --> 00:45:20,623
who was now on a family holiday in France.
795
00:45:22,650 --> 00:45:25,570
She said that she understood that I had the gold piece.
796
00:45:25,570 --> 00:45:27,090
I said that I did.
797
00:45:27,090 --> 00:45:30,750
She told me that in her view and the view
798
00:45:30,750 --> 00:45:33,500
of the British police, it was a stolen item.
799
00:45:33,500 --> 00:45:37,250
It was claimed by the cultural heritage of Peru
800
00:45:37,250 --> 00:45:41,906
and that she was very much wanting to come to my office
801
00:45:41,906 --> 00:45:44,500
and come and get it.
802
00:45:44,500 --> 00:45:48,110
What I said that I would do is get back to the office,
803
00:45:48,110 --> 00:45:50,440
have a word with the client, give her call,
804
00:45:50,440 --> 00:45:52,593
and thereafter we made an appointment.
805
00:45:55,740 --> 00:45:59,477
On August 15th, 2006, Agent Roycroft
806
00:45:59,477 --> 00:46:02,850
and a second officer set out for the London offices
807
00:46:02,850 --> 00:46:04,880
of Patterson's lawyer.
808
00:46:04,880 --> 00:46:07,970
Would they finally retrieve the golden headdress
809
00:46:07,970 --> 00:46:10,400
20 years after it was looted?
810
00:46:10,400 --> 00:46:13,700
We sent around two plain clothed female officers.
811
00:46:13,700 --> 00:46:14,600
We don't carry guns.
812
00:46:14,600 --> 00:46:17,050
It was not necessary to conduct surveillance
813
00:46:17,050 --> 00:46:18,639
or observations.
814
00:46:18,639 --> 00:46:20,613
It wasn't necessary to conduct a search of the premises.
815
00:46:21,810 --> 00:46:24,990
I remember Michelle Roycroft meeting me.
816
00:46:24,990 --> 00:46:28,990
She said, I will sit down outside of his office
817
00:46:28,990 --> 00:46:32,450
until he is back in his office to seize this piece.
818
00:46:32,450 --> 00:46:34,910
And I mailed her back and said, well I'm going to
819
00:46:34,910 --> 00:46:37,453
bring you the chair to sit on.
820
00:46:40,440 --> 00:46:43,450
Finally, Agent Roycroft and lawyer Martin Bale
821
00:46:43,450 --> 00:46:44,990
met face to face.
822
00:46:44,990 --> 00:46:49,080
She showed me one or two pieces of paper which she had.
823
00:46:49,080 --> 00:46:50,750
When the object was asked for,
824
00:46:50,750 --> 00:46:53,133
the gentleman kindly produced it from a safe.
825
00:46:54,330 --> 00:46:56,000
I brought down the piece.
826
00:46:56,000 --> 00:46:57,393
I showed it to her.
827
00:46:58,270 --> 00:47:00,500
She put it to me quite simply that
828
00:47:00,500 --> 00:47:04,347
this piece was claimed by the Peruvian authorities.
829
00:47:04,347 --> 00:47:06,690
But as far as the British police were concerned,
830
00:47:06,690 --> 00:47:09,290
this was a piece that had to be
831
00:47:09,290 --> 00:47:11,110
handed over and restored.
832
00:47:11,110 --> 00:47:13,080
I think they knew they had the object.
833
00:47:13,080 --> 00:47:16,250
They knew it originated from Peru.
834
00:47:16,250 --> 00:47:18,010
But it's the element of surprise of actually
835
00:47:18,010 --> 00:47:20,360
having a police officer walk into your premises
836
00:47:20,360 --> 00:47:22,590
and tell you that they know it's from Peru.
837
00:47:22,590 --> 00:47:25,310
But that they also believe that it's been stolen.
838
00:47:25,310 --> 00:47:28,560
It did surprise me that the British police
839
00:47:28,560 --> 00:47:29,710
were taking an interest in it,
840
00:47:29,710 --> 00:47:32,480
but of course once they did then I had no option
841
00:47:32,480 --> 00:47:34,133
but to hand it over to them.
842
00:47:38,580 --> 00:47:41,640
Roycroft was clearly taken aback when the object
843
00:47:41,640 --> 00:47:43,970
was produced, but just the sheer beauty of the object
844
00:47:43,970 --> 00:47:45,330
when it's opened in the office,
845
00:47:45,330 --> 00:47:46,900
I mean it's a stunning object.
846
00:47:46,900 --> 00:47:49,850
And then she was clearly very much impressed by it
847
00:47:49,850 --> 00:47:52,800
and the delicate patterns on the gold
848
00:47:52,800 --> 00:47:54,950
and just the fact this thing is so beautiful
849
00:47:54,950 --> 00:47:57,457
could have been produced so many years ago.
850
00:47:58,908 --> 00:48:01,658
(peaceful music)
851
00:48:09,660 --> 00:48:11,460
Martin Bale called his client,
852
00:48:11,460 --> 00:48:14,413
Leonardo Patterson, to tell him what had happened.
853
00:48:18,746 --> 00:48:22,190
(peaceful music)
854
00:48:22,190 --> 00:48:24,293
I think he was surprised.
855
00:48:26,600 --> 00:48:29,680
But I obviously spoke to him and I made the point
856
00:48:30,914 --> 00:48:31,747
that if in fact it was stolen,
857
00:48:31,747 --> 00:48:32,760
it would have to be handed over.
858
00:48:32,760 --> 00:48:35,270
There's nothing that anyone could do about that.
859
00:48:40,600 --> 00:48:42,080
So the bitter feud between
860
00:48:42,080 --> 00:48:45,060
Michel Van Rijn and Leonardo Patterson
861
00:48:45,060 --> 00:48:47,593
finally delivered up the Moche treasure.
862
00:48:53,660 --> 00:48:56,230
But there were still questions about the headdress
863
00:48:56,230 --> 00:48:58,600
that were left unresolved by the apparently fake
864
00:48:58,600 --> 00:49:01,230
document produced by Patterson at the July meeting
865
00:49:01,230 --> 00:49:02,560
with Van Rijn.
866
00:49:02,560 --> 00:49:03,900
Who had owned it?
867
00:49:03,900 --> 00:49:05,193
And where had it been?
868
00:49:06,350 --> 00:49:09,010
Things became clearer when we arrived to interview
869
00:49:09,010 --> 00:49:12,423
lawyer Martin Bale on behalf of Leonardo Patterson.
870
00:49:13,400 --> 00:49:16,670
Martin Bale produced a second different document
871
00:49:16,670 --> 00:49:18,620
that had been provided by Mr. Patterson
872
00:49:18,620 --> 00:49:21,350
explaining the providence of the headdress.
873
00:49:21,350 --> 00:49:25,740
Mr. Patterson procured it from a person,
874
00:49:25,740 --> 00:49:29,870
fellow collector, in Munich by the name of Mr. Roeckl.
875
00:49:29,870 --> 00:49:34,670
And he obtained it from him for the sole purpose
876
00:49:34,670 --> 00:49:39,070
of bringing it to London to hand to Mr. Van Rijn
877
00:49:39,070 --> 00:49:41,320
in pursuance of the deal that they'd reached.
878
00:49:42,187 --> 00:49:43,640
As far as Mr. Roeckl is concerned,
879
00:49:43,640 --> 00:49:46,760
he's given me a declaration confirming
880
00:49:46,760 --> 00:49:49,930
that he's been very active in purchasing
881
00:49:51,070 --> 00:49:54,600
Peruvian artifacts since the mid 1970s.
882
00:49:54,600 --> 00:49:59,330
He's described how he purchased the Moche gold mask
883
00:49:59,330 --> 00:50:01,000
from a Mr. Raul Apesteguia.
884
00:50:02,156 --> 00:50:05,420
And since that date, the gold mask was in his possession
885
00:50:05,420 --> 00:50:07,330
until the arrangement with Mr. Patterson
886
00:50:07,330 --> 00:50:10,523
to hand it over to Mr. Van Rijn.
887
00:50:14,664 --> 00:50:17,510
Anton Roeckl is indeed a well known collector
888
00:50:17,510 --> 00:50:18,930
of antiquities.
889
00:50:18,930 --> 00:50:22,120
Based in Germany, his name appears in the acknowledgements
890
00:50:22,120 --> 00:50:24,660
of several books on Peruvian antiquities,
891
00:50:24,660 --> 00:50:26,500
including the lavish addition published
892
00:50:26,500 --> 00:50:28,710
by Leonardo Patterson in the wake of
893
00:50:28,710 --> 00:50:30,223
the exhibition in Spain.
894
00:50:32,051 --> 00:50:34,801
(peaceful music)
895
00:50:38,730 --> 00:50:41,083
So this is what seems to have happened.
896
00:50:46,680 --> 00:50:49,550
Very soon after the looting of the Moche tomb,
897
00:50:49,550 --> 00:50:52,890
the headdress was acquired by Raul Apesteguia.
898
00:50:52,890 --> 00:50:56,890
And within weeks it had been sold to Anton Roeckl.
899
00:50:56,890 --> 00:51:00,317
He took it to experts at the University of Munich.
900
00:51:01,477 --> 00:51:04,227
(peaceful music)
901
00:51:12,250 --> 00:51:17,250
He first saw it in December 1987 in the apartment
902
00:51:17,270 --> 00:51:20,083
in Lima belonging to Mr. Apesteguia.
903
00:51:21,933 --> 00:51:23,290
And he then subsequently arranged for it to be
904
00:51:23,290 --> 00:51:26,150
brought over to Germany where it was authenticated
905
00:51:26,150 --> 00:51:28,700
by the University of Munich.
906
00:51:28,700 --> 00:51:31,360
There are lots of fakes in antiquities,
907
00:51:31,360 --> 00:51:32,573
as you can imagine.
908
00:51:33,580 --> 00:51:36,080
The question was, was this an original piece?
909
00:51:36,080 --> 00:51:38,500
And the answer that came firmly back
910
00:51:38,500 --> 00:51:41,643
from the University was yes it was entirely original.
911
00:51:42,830 --> 00:51:45,820
When he was satisfied as to its origin and bonafide,
912
00:51:45,820 --> 00:51:48,783
he actually purchased it in January of 1988.
913
00:51:52,680 --> 00:51:54,710
Mr. Roeckl was not available to film
914
00:51:54,710 --> 00:51:56,640
an interview for this program,
915
00:51:56,640 --> 00:51:59,550
but he told us that he supplied Leonardo Patterson
916
00:51:59,550 --> 00:52:02,263
with Peruvian pieces for the Spanish exhibition.
917
00:52:09,680 --> 00:52:12,910
Despite the retrieval of the headdress in London,
918
00:52:12,910 --> 00:52:15,550
INTERPOL in Peru still have a warrant out
919
00:52:15,550 --> 00:52:17,590
to question Leonardo Patterson
920
00:52:17,590 --> 00:52:19,563
about other ancient artifacts.
921
00:52:25,602 --> 00:52:28,352
(peaceful music)
922
00:52:36,640 --> 00:52:40,590
In September 2006, the gold octopus headdress
923
00:52:40,590 --> 00:52:42,940
of the Moche King made the long journey
924
00:52:42,940 --> 00:52:45,110
back from London to Lima.
925
00:52:45,110 --> 00:52:48,290
The National Museum is the oldest in all of Peru.
926
00:52:48,290 --> 00:52:51,410
Besides its beauty, I see the most important value
927
00:52:51,410 --> 00:52:54,380
for this piece in the social point of view
928
00:52:54,380 --> 00:52:57,650
is this national identity.
929
00:52:57,650 --> 00:52:58,740
It's very important,
930
00:52:58,740 --> 00:53:00,546
and the other reason why you can find
931
00:53:00,546 --> 00:53:04,813
long queues of people waiting to see this piece.
932
00:53:07,191 --> 00:53:09,941
(peaceful music)
933
00:53:11,630 --> 00:53:14,040
The museum is taking extra precautions
934
00:53:14,040 --> 00:53:16,890
to ensure the headdress remains safe from robbers
935
00:53:16,890 --> 00:53:17,943
in the future.
936
00:53:21,630 --> 00:53:23,713
We have made a special vault.
937
00:53:24,730 --> 00:53:28,093
It is a concrete room with steel reinforcement.
938
00:53:29,080 --> 00:53:33,333
A steel door and armed guard 24 hours.
939
00:53:34,700 --> 00:53:37,040
Night vision cameras.
940
00:53:37,040 --> 00:53:38,113
Movement detectors.
941
00:53:40,180 --> 00:53:44,060
Actually it's not that we think that this jewel
942
00:53:44,060 --> 00:53:47,790
can be stolen again, but it's to discourage
943
00:53:47,790 --> 00:53:51,930
the thief and to give an example how this kind
944
00:53:51,930 --> 00:53:54,593
of treasure has to be handled.
945
00:53:55,947 --> 00:53:58,697
(peaceful music)
946
00:54:00,650 --> 00:54:02,570
The gold headdress may be back
947
00:54:02,570 --> 00:54:04,850
where it should be, but the story
948
00:54:04,850 --> 00:54:07,760
of the Moche Lords and their looted tombs
949
00:54:07,760 --> 00:54:10,810
shows how vulnerable ancient and sacred sites are
950
00:54:10,810 --> 00:54:13,053
to the greed of the 21st century.
951
00:54:14,172 --> 00:54:18,350
(man speaking a foreign language)
952
00:54:18,350 --> 00:54:19,270
I believe that there is
953
00:54:19,270 --> 00:54:21,340
no such thing as a curse.
954
00:54:21,340 --> 00:54:23,450
As there is not one single individual that
955
00:54:23,450 --> 00:54:25,690
has been captured or put in jail.
956
00:54:25,690 --> 00:54:28,160
What we have here in this loot is a group
957
00:54:28,160 --> 00:54:30,480
of individuals who probably possessed the objects
958
00:54:30,480 --> 00:54:32,340
of a looted tomb.
959
00:54:32,340 --> 00:54:35,020
Traffickers who probably have made a lot of money
960
00:54:35,020 --> 00:54:37,690
by exchanging the objects from the hands of the looters
961
00:54:37,690 --> 00:54:39,433
to the hands of the collectors.
962
00:54:46,213 --> 00:54:49,160
Perhaps one day the other gold items
963
00:54:49,160 --> 00:54:51,870
that Doctor Alva believes were looted from La Mina
964
00:54:51,870 --> 00:54:55,880
will be returned and sit beside the golden octopus headdress
965
00:54:55,880 --> 00:54:58,642
that is now a national icon.
966
00:54:58,642 --> 00:55:01,392
(peaceful music)
967
00:55:04,490 --> 00:55:07,907
(suspenseful jazz music)
74721
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