Once plundered art treasures
Germany returns Benin bronzes
12/19/2022, 8:22 p.m
With the return of 20 Benin bronzes, Claudia Roth and Annalena Baerbock want to set an example for coming to terms with the colonial past. This is giving Nigeria back “a piece of its cultural identity,” says Roth.
Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth described the return of valuable Benin bronzes from five German museums to Nigeria as “historic”. “It’s a historic day when we’re bringing back what never belonged to us,” said the Green politician after a visit to Benin City. Roth also visited the guild alley of sculptors who still cast bronze and brass works there today.
Roth and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock are presenting 20 of the precious art treasures in the Nigerian capital Abuja this Tuesday, which were previously in the collections of museums in Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Dresden/Leipzig and Stuttgart. More than 1,100 of the works from the palace of the former Kingdom of Benin, which today belongs to Nigeria, have so far been found in around 20 German museums.
The objects, which are made of ivory and other materials in addition to bronze, mostly come from British looting in 1897. With the restitution, “a piece of their cultural identity that was stolen and denied to them for 125 years” is brought back to the people .
“We are showing that we are serious about dealing with our colonial history,” said Roth. This return is only the beginning of a new relationship of cooperation between the museums, but also in fields such as contemporary art or archeology. “It is the beginning of a new relationship between Germany and Nigeria and between Europe and Africa,” said Roth. For an encounter at eye level with respect and credibility, “returns as a sign of acknowledgment of horrible injustice” are needed.
The art treasures that Roth and Baerbock are returning previously belonged to museums in Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Dresden/Leipzig and Stuttgart. The politicians are accompanied by the heads of several museums. The museums involved and their sponsors had already transferred ownership of all the Benin bronzes before they were returned. Loan agreements were also concluded so that some of the art treasures can continue to be shown in Germany.