Over a century after they were looted during the 1897 British invasion of Benin, 119 Benin bronzes are finally making their way back home.
The Dutch embassy in Nigeria confirmed to TheCable on Thursday that the artefacts will arrive in the country in the week of 16 June.
A formal handover ceremony has been scheduled for 21 June at the National Museum in Lagos. From there, the artefacts will eventually be moved to their rightful home—the National Museum in Benin City, Edo State.
This batch is believed to be the largest single return of Benin bronzes to Nigeria so far.
Earlier this year, in February, the Dutch embassy acknowledged that the artefacts never should have ended up in the Netherlands.
Bengt van Loosdrech, who was then the ambassador-designate, said: “Nigeria had been clamouring for the return of the bronzes for over 50 years.”
At that time, the embassy had only hinted that the bronzes would be returned sometime this year, without giving any specific dates.
Now, with a confirmed timeline, this return marks a significant victory in Nigeria’s long-standing push to reclaim looted heritage.
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