The ceremony was held in Wellington after the remains were returned to the Aboriginal community.

Local elder Uncle Barry Smith said the return of the ancestors is a massive thing for the town.

"This is the greatest thing that's ever happened to Wellington. Our ancestors should not have been taken, but we can now finally lay them to rest," he said.

Australian Museum Director of First Nations Laura McBride believes returning the ancestors back to their community is vital.

"This work is part of the Museum's ongoing efforts to establish resting places for ancestors and promote healing, justice and reconciliation," she said.

Minister for Heritage James Griffin admitted returning the remains to their communities is the right thing to do.

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"The burial ceremony on Friday completed the repatriation process for 13 Aboriginal ancestral remains that were taken from the area from the late 1800s to the 1970s," he said.

"The Wiradjuri people have finally been able to lay their ancestors to rest on Country at the Wellington Caves, and I hope this provides some comfort in what has been a long process.

"For many years, Aboriginal ancestral remains and objects were removed from their communities without consent and are held in a range of public and private collections within Australia and internationally. Returning these remains to their communities is the right thing to do."

Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Ben Franklin said there were other sets of remains which were buried by the community between 2015 and 2017 in Yeoval, Wellington Caves, Black Rock and Blacks Camp.

"This marks the end of a process that began in 2015 when the Wellington Aboriginal Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC) and Heritage NSW requested the return of several sets of remains from the Australian Museum," he said.

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