Four Australian Aboriginal spears taken by James Cook to be repatriated by Cambridge University. Really!

Another elite university doing weird, probably ideology driven things! Where do these repatriations of cultural artifacts end? What and how much should be repatriated?

This appears to be a case of naive altruism! Echoes of the Western myth of the noble savage come to mind.

The article does not exactly explain how Cook has "taken" these 40 spears. Was it by force? Was he first attacked by the aboriginals? Was perhaps even a gift by the aboriginals?

Have aboriginals never taken trophies etc. from defeated other aboriginals? Were these 40 spears perhaps even taken from other aboriginals?

Would these spears have been preserved without Cook? Probably not! Most likely, these 40 spears would have long disappeared.

"The spears were taken by Lieutenant James Cook in 1770 from Kamay (Botany Bay) at the time of the first contact between the crew of the HMB Endeavour and the Aboriginal people of eastern Australia.

Trinity College has agreed to permanently return the four spears to the La Perouse Aboriginal community. The College is now approaching the UK’s Charity Commission to obtain approval for this transfer of legal title.

Cook recorded that 40 spears were taken from the camps of Aboriginal people living at Botany Bay in April 1770. ..."

Australian Aboriginal spears taken by James Cook to be repatriated | University of Cambridge Four Australian Aboriginal spears – cared for by Cambridge’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology – are to be repatriated after Trinity College agreed to permanently return them to the country.