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New Zealand's national museum is hopeful a preserved Maori head will still be returned home from France despite a court decision quashing plans to do so.
The city of Rouen decided to return the head, donated by a French collector in 1875, as an "ethical gesture of respect" for the Maori people.
But the French culture ministry stepped in to block the transfer, arguing the head was now part of France's cultural heritage.
On December 27, a French administrative court ruled that city authorities had failed to consult a scientific committee before withdrawing the head from a national museum collection, definitively blocking the transfer.
Te Papa repatriation manager Te Herekiekie Herewini told NZPA the museum had not been surprised by the court's decision, because a preliminary decision on December 11 had indicated that would happen.
"What we're hoping for is the Rouen museum and the French government will discuss this matter further.
"I don't think it's been finally finished with in respect to the return."
Te Papa believed it was an internal matter between the French government and the Rouen museum, Mr Herewini said.
"We're leaving it up to the French government and we want to have further discussion about it in the near future.
"We will be delighted if they come to a decision that the toi moko - the ancestor - is returned."
Te Papa had been actively seeking the return of preserved heads and other human remains kept in overseas collections for several years.
In November last year it brought back 46 ancestors located in British museums, Mr Herewini said.
The preserved heads of warriors with facial tattoos were popular with European collectors in the 19th century before their trade was outlawed.
- NZPA
