From the bits I’ve come into contact to the natives always want relics because they know whitey wants them, ergo they have value. Usually it’s a bartering chip for their government, the smarter ones know how to do that.
I drank w/ a dude who was privy to a museum in SA trying to needle the US into giving them money for a new building because they said their old shithole was dangerous to their collections. They needed 50 million for a new one with climate control and beautiful edifices in order to show off their beautiful mate cups and knitted loincloths