The Netherlands has agreed to return 119 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria according to the country’s request, as a result of which the greatest return of Benin Antiquities has been looted by the British army as part of the punitive expedition from 1897, As announced Wednesday, February 19. Stolen from the Kingdom of Benin (now part of the contemporary Nigeria) by British soldiers and eventually acquired by the Dutch state collection, 113 of the objects that are returned are held in the World Museum Leiden and the remaining six at the municipality of Rotterdam.
Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) raised the repatriation request in September 2022, about a year after receiving a 2021 Origin research report of the World Museum About collections related to the Kingdom Benin, and two years after the colonial collection committee is in the Netherlands 2020 Advisory report Recommend that the Netherlands’ takes into account requests for the return of cultural objects in possession of the Dutch state from Bronlanden colonized by others [European] Powers. “
The committee has assessed Nigeria’s request, as well as the origin investigation of the World Museum and certain Last October, the Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science should continue Eppo Bruins with the unconditional refund of the objects.
Bruins co-signed the repatriation agreement with NCMM director-general Olugible Holloway in Leiden on 19 February.
Consisting of plaques, personal ornaments and figures, the collection of objects is sent back to the Nigerian government, which will then decide how and where they are displayed. The six objects of the municipality of Rotterdam, also associated with the British expedition of 1897, include a bell, three relief plaques, a coconut housing and a staff.
“This refund contributes to restoring a historical injustice that is still being felt,” Bruins said in a press statement about the agreement in Leiden. “Cultural heritage is essential for telling and life of the history of a country and a community. The Benin Bronzen are indispensable for Nigeria. It’s good that they go back. ‘
“We thank the Netherlands for their cooperation and hope that this will give a good example for other countries of the world in terms of repatriation of lost or plundered antiques,” said Holloway.
