Restitution row: how Nigeria's new home for the Benin bronzes ended up with clay replicas

"In a corner of the new Museum of West African Art, visitors can marvel at a sample display of the cultural treasures that adorned the royal palace that once stood in its place: a proud cockerel, a plaque with three mighty warriors, a bust of a king with a glorious beaded collar. The artefacts, collectively known as the Benin bronzes, were looted by British colonial forces who went on to burn down the palace in a punitive expedition in 1897."

"Their return and public display inside the $25m (19m) state-of-the-art museum in the city of Benin in Nigeria's Edo state, co-funded by European governments and western enterprises, was to be the crowning moment of an almost century-long effort to reclaim Africa's stolen art. Yet when MOWAA opens its doors on 11 November, the only Benin bronzes on display will be clay replicas."

"About 150 original bronzes have been returned to Nigeria over the last five years, some on the initiative of private collections and some as acts of state by Germany and the Netherlands. For now, none are on public display. If the looting of the original bronzes took place in the context of what has been called the scramble for Africa, as European nations raced to claim overseas territories in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, restitution has in part resembled a scramble in reverse."

A new $25m Museum of West African Art in Benin city displays clay replicas rather than original Benin bronzes. The Benin bronzes were looted by British colonial forces in a punitive expedition in 1897 and were subsequently dispersed across collections in Europe and America. About 150 original bronzes have been returned to Nigeria over the last five years through private initiatives and state repatriations by Germany and the Netherlands. For now, none of the originals are on public display at the museum. Restitution efforts have prompted Western actors to outbid one another while Nigerian authorities work to resolve rival claims over ownership and terms of return.

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