Oba of Benin receives 18 looted artefacts after 125 years

The Oba of Benin, Omo N’ Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo Ewuare II, has formally received 18 cultural artefacts that were repatriated from Switzerland. These objects, taken during colonial incursions 125 years ago, have now returned to their ancestral home. The ceremony marked a significant moment for the Edo people, as the royal objects are viewed not merely as curiosities but as essential records of their governance, spirituality, and artistic heritage.

Among the returned treasures is an ancestral head of a Benin Oba, which was looted during the 1897 British punitive expedition against the Benin Royal Court. The Swiss delegation, led by the Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Olugbile Holloway, presented the artefacts. Oba Ewuare II expressed his deep gratitude to the Swiss government, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Governor Monday Okpebholo, and all stakeholders involved in facilitating the restitution.

"The Benin bronzes are not curiosities. They are records of governance and spirituality of the Edo people taken by force," the monarch stated. He emphasized that delaying their return perpetuates a form of dispossession. Since ascending the throne, the Benin Royal Court has welcomed over 150 looted artefacts, continuing a restitution process that began under previous Obas. The Oba took the opportunity to specifically call on Germany to honor its 2022 agreement to return over 1,000 Benin artworks and urged other global museums to address colonial injustices by releasing looted artefacts.

In a symbolic display of reverence and joy, Oba Ewuare II danced around the returned objects. Swiss Consul-General in Nigeria, Conny Camenzind, described the event as historic, while Professor Alice Hertzog of a Swiss museum acknowledged the Oba’s guidance. Edo State officials present at the ceremony, including Speaker Blessing Agbebaku and SSG Musa Ikhilor, celebrated the return as a "homecoming."

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The Benin bronzes are not curiosities. They are records of governance and spirituality of the Edo people taken by force. To delay their return is to continue dispossession by other means.