A Paris judge is due to rule on whether to allow a controversial auction of masks originating from a native American tribe in Arizona, BBC News reports.
The Hopi tribe and its supporters, including the actor Robert Redford, say the sale would amount to sacrilege. The tribe says the 70 masks are blessed with divine spirits and have been stolen from them.
Auctioneers, however, say the masks had been bought and sold in the past and were legally acquired.
Redford, who describes himself as a "close friend" of Hopi culture, wrote that the masks "belong to the Hopi and the Hopi alone".
"To auction these would be, in my opinion, a sacrilege – a criminal gesture that contains grave moral repercussions," he said. "I would hope that these sacred items can be returned to the Hopi tribe where they belong. They are not for auction."
The legal proceedings have been brought by the organization Survival International, which defends the rights of tribal peoples.
The U.S. ambassador to France, Charles Rivkin, has also said he is "very concerned" about the sale. "Hopi representatives have requested a delay in the sale in order to better identify and determine the provenance of the objects," he said. "A delay would allow the creators of these sacred objects the chance to determine their possible rights."
However, auctioneer Gilles Neret-Minet of auction house Neret-Minet Tessier & Sarrou said a ruling to stop the sale could potentially force French museums to empty out their collections.
"If we lose this case, there will be no more sales of objects of indigenous art in France," he said. "I guess that museums will be obliged to give back their collections. It's major. It would be terrible for the art market in general."
