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LONDON. – A Cambridge University college and Paris museum yesterday handed back cultural artefacts that were looted from West Africa during the colonial era, setting a precedent that will pressure other institutions to return stolen works.
Jesus College, Cambridge, returned a sculpture of a cockerel taken by British troops in 1897, one of hundreds of Benin Bronzes that were pillaged from the once mighty Kingdom of Benin, located in what is now Nigeria. They are among Africa’s most culturally significant artefacts.
“This is the right thing to do out of respect for the unique heritage and history of this artefact,” said Sonita Alleyne, Master of Jesus College, ahead of a ceremony to hand over the cockerel to a Nigerian delegation.
After being looted, the cockerel was given to Jesus College in 1905 by the father of a student. The college announced in 2019 it would return it to Nigeria.
The handover marks a milestone in the years-long fight by African countries to recover works pillaged by Western explorers and colonisers, at a time when numerous European institutions are grappling with the cultural legacies of colonialism.
Around 90 percent of Africa’s cultural heritage is believed to be in Europe, French art historians estimate. The Quai Branly Museum in Paris alone holds some 70 000 African objects while London’s British Museum possesses tens of thousands more.
Germany has agreed to start returning Benin Bronzes held in its museums next year. Britain’s University of Aberdeen said it would return a Benin Bronze that depicts the head of an Oba (king) today. It had purchased the sculpture at an auction in 1957, it said.
At an official ceremony in the Quai Branly museum yesterday, President Emmanuel Macron said the handing over of the art pieces represented an opportunity for “the people of Africa to be able to speak their truth through their artefacts”.
“We have fought for these items to return home,” said Macron, referring to the challenges of the restitution process, which include training curatorial teams in Benin. The effort was both worthwhile and historic, he added. “The journey that now awaits us is a just journey. It’s the right path forward that opens up so many other paths ahead.”
France’s restitution of the Benin artefacts has had ramifications across Europe and its former colonies, opening up debates on looted artefacts that are currently housed in museums and institutions in several West European nations.
Nigeria’s government thanked Jesus College for being a “trailblazer” and said it looked forward the return of other artefacts by other institutions.
The British Museum has spoken about “opportunities for sharing and displaying” items from its collection in Nigeria, but has never said it would transfer ownership. – Reuters/France24.com
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