The National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) has announced that Nigeria will receive 119 looted Benin Bronzes from the Netherlands in June.
These bronzes were taken during the British attack on the Benin Kingdom in 1897 and eventually ended up in the Netherlands. Of the 119 objects being returned, 113 were part of the Dutch State Collection, while the remaining six were returned by the Municipality of Rotterdam. The repatriation agreement between the two countries was signed on Wednesday.
The signing ceremony took place at the Wereldmuseum in Leiden, the Netherlands, where the Benin bronzes were previously displayed.
Olugbile Holloway, Director-General of NCMM, stated in a Monday release that the 119 Benin bronzes would be returned to Nigeria in multiple batches. He emphasized that the return was the result of years of joint efforts and a long-standing friendship between the two nations.
“NCMM formally requested the unconditional return of the Benin Bronzes in the Netherlands in September 2022,” Holloway noted. “The discussion was revived in July 2024 at the European Union and African Union conference in Ethiopia, and after further talks in November 2024, the independent Colonial Collections Committee recommended the return of the bronzes.”
The repatriation of these 119 objects will mark the largest return of Benin antiquities linked to the 1897 British punitive expedition, with the first batch scheduled to arrive in Nigeria by June.
Holloway praised the collaboration between the Netherlands and Nigeria, noting that the return was built on years of diplomatic engagement and mutual support. He also expressed gratitude for the significant contributions made by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Nigeria and acknowledged the support of the Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy, particularly from Honorable Minister Hannatu Musawa, in making this development possible.
