An agreement on the transfer of ownership and loans for the so-called Benin bronzes in the collection of the Ethnological Museum of the National Museums in Berlin is to be concluded with the responsible authorities in Nigeria in the second half of the year
A belt mask with the image of an Oba in the depot of the Museum für Völkerkunde of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. Photo: © Robert Michael/dpa
A belt mask with the image of an Oba in the depot of the Museum für Völkerkunde of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. Photo: © Robert Michael/dpa
"The return of the Benin bronzes underpins our commitment to coming to terms with our colonial history"
This was decided this Monday by the SPK Board of Trustees, chaired by Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth. The repatriations had been negotiated under the leadership of the BKM since March 2021. On the German side, Hermann Parzinger and Barbara Plankensteiner, spokesperson for the Benin Dialogue Group and Director of Hamburg’s MARKK, Museum am Rothenbaum Kulturen und Künste der Welt, were also involved in the talks.
“The restitution of cultural assets cannot heal the wounds of brutal colonial rule, but it is a first step towards a new way of dealing with the past that has been largely ignored until now,” explains Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth. “People all over the world have a right to have access to their own cultural heritage. They should be able to decide for themselves how this is preserved and passed on to future generations. The return of the Benin bronzes underpins our commitment to coming to terms with our colonial history. It should be the beginning of a new, different cultural cooperation.”
All objects in Berlin that were looted in Benin in 1897 are to be transferred to Nigeria
“The negotiations with the Nigerian side are nearing a good conclusion. We have agreed that the ownership of all objects located in Berlin that were looted in Benin during the so-called British Punitive Expedition of 1897 should be transferred to Nigeria. There is agreement with the Nigerian partners that some of these objects should remain in Germany on long-term loan. A specific selection has not yet been made. The objects that are not on loan are to be transferred to Nigeria as quickly as possible in consultation with the Nigerian side,” says Hermann Parzinger.
A completely new dimension of cooperation with our partners in Nigeria
The SPK President spoke of a “completely new dimension of cooperation with our partners in Nigeria”. There was agreement that the repatriation was not the end point, but the beginning of a new form and new quality of cooperation: “The fact that Nigeria is prepared to give Germany high-quality loans shows that we have built up trust. We are proud to be able to show these treasures of world culture in the Humboldt Forum.”