Peru rejected Yale University's proposal to share thousands of artifacts taken nearly a century ago from the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu and intends to sue, the country's U.S. ambassador said Wednesday.

Peru demanded this fall that Yale return the artifacts, which include mummies, ceramics and human bones excavated by explorer Hiram Bingham in the early 1900s.

The university offered to send some artifacts for display at a new museum in Peru, while the rest would remain at Yale. Many are on display at Yale's Peabody Museum.

Peru's U.S. ambassador, Eduardo Ferrero, dismissed the university's deal, saying Yale's offer was inequitable.

``Yale refused to acknowledge Peru's ownership of the artifacts,'' said Ferrero, adding that Yale ``proposes that these artifacts belong to humanity, and at the same time pretends to keep part of the collection.''