Leonardo Patterson (born c. 1942) is a controversial antiquities dealer who specialises in Pre-Columbian artefacts.
[1] Patterson began to deal on a large scale in New York in the 1960s and 1970s when restrictions on the trade in antiquities were loose.
In 1980 Patterson was involved in a multi-million dollar Australian tax avoidance scheme concerning a collection of unprovenanced Mesoamerican antiquities that were donated to the National Gallery of Victoria.
[1] In 1995 he was appointed a cultural attaché to the United Nations, before questions about his past caused him to resign and he began to spend more time in Europe, particularly in Germany.
[1] A number of legal cases have followed including the return of items to Mexico and Peru, notably a gold Moche headdress in the form of an octopus recovered with the help of Michel van Rijn.