A London museum on Sunday agreed to return a collection of Benin Bronzes to Nigeria that colonial forces looted back in 1897, reported The Reuters.
The Horniman Museum and Gardens said 72 items would be handed over to the Nigerian government. The items include 12 brass plaques, known as Benin Bronzes, a brass cockerel altarpiece, ivory and brass ceremonial objects, brass bells and a key to the king’s palace.
The decision comes amid recent pressure on European institutions to repatriate artifacts taken by force and stolen during the era of colonisation. Earlier this year, the London museum had received a formal request from Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) asking for the artfacts to be returned.
“The evidence is very clear that these objects were acquired through force, and external consultation supported our view that it is both moral and appropriate to return their ownership to Nigeria,” Eve Salomon, chair of the museum’s board of trustees, said in a statement.
Salomon said that Horniman is pleased to be able to take the step, and that it looks forward to working with the NCMM to secure longer-term care for these precious artefacts.
The NCMM welcomed the decision and said it looked forward to a productive discussion on loan agreements and collaborations.
The Horniman Museum in London possesses a relatively small share of the Benin Bronzes that once decorated the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin, in what is now southwestern Nigeria.
Thousands of treasures, sculptures and other artworks dating from the 16th to the 18th centuries were looted by British colonists who attacked and occupied Benin City at the end of the 19th century.
In recent years, the Nigerian government has begun demanding for European countries to hand back the Benin Bronzes. The government plans to build a museum in Benin City, in the southern Edo state, to house the recovered treasures.
In July, Nigeria signed a deal with Germany to begin the return of hundreds of Benin Bronzes. Last year, France handed over 26 pieces, known as the Abomey Treasures, that French forces looted from the 19th century Dahomey kingdom in present-day Benin.
