Three toi moko have been brought onto a marae during a ceremony at the national museum, Te Papa, in Wellington.
A repatriation programme led by Te Papa has been working for years to ensure the safe return of the tattooed preserved heads, along with five sets of skeletal remains (ko iwi tangata), from museums in Europe.
The remains, including one toi moko from Rouen Museum in France, were brought onto the marae by a delegation of about 100 people on Thursday.
In May last year, the French government passed a law making the repatriation possible and Te Papa says the return of other remains still held by museums in that country may follow.
