Twenty-two historic artifacts looted after the Battle of Okinawa have been recovered by the FBI Boston Division to be returned to Japan, the organization announced Friday.Some of the artifacts, which have been missing for nearly 80 years, date back to the 18th and 19th centuries. They include portraits, a 19th-century hand-drawn map of Okinawa, and various pieces of pottery and ceramic, according to a release.Some of the artifacts were registered with the FBI’s National Stolen Art File in 2001 by the Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education. In 2023, an anonymous family was going through their late father’s personal items and came across what they believed to be valuable Asian art. After checking the National Stolen Art File, they were able to determine at least four of the items were those from the database. The artifacts also had an unsigned, typewritten letter stating they were collected in Okinawa at the end of World War II, FBI Boston said.“It’s incredibly gratifying when the FBI is able to recover precious cultural property that has been missing for almost 80 years,” said Jodi Cohen, special agent in charge of the FBI Boston Division. “We’d like to thank the family from Massachusetts who did the right thing in reaching out to us and relinquishing these treasures so we could return them to the people of Okinawa.”With the assistance of the National Museum of Asian Art at the Smithsonian Institute, the artifacts were properly packaged for transport back to Japan. Denny Tamaki, Governor of Okinawa Prefecture, announced on Friday the return of the artifacts to the people of Okinawa, Japan.“It is very meaningful that the FBI, along with others in the U.S. Government, have cooperated to realize this return,” Tamaki said.