Originally cast in what’s now southwest Nigeria, the Benin Bronzes have been languishing in around 150 museums in Europe and the US for almost 125 years.
Increasingly, however, heritage experts are calling for them to be returned. With London’s Horniman Museum having announced in August that it will return its 72 bronzes to Nigeria, calls for further repatriations are set to grow.
Come 2026, these treasures will have a permanent home in Benin City’s new Edo Museum of West African Art (EMOWAA). It will house the most comprehensive display of Benin Bronzes ever assembled. In the meantime, some of the Horniman bronzes will be transferred to Benin City National Museum, allowing local people to see them for the first time.
What are the Benin Bronzes and why are they in London?
The 5,000 or so artefacts known as the Benin Bronzes, which were mostly created between the 13th and 16th centuries, didn’t originate from present-day Benin but the former Kingdom of Benin, nearby. They were looted by British troops during an invasion of Benin City, the kingdom’s capital, in 1897. They stripped Benin City of thousands of antiquities, with many ending up in museums around the world, including the Horniman.
This story is from the November 2022 edition of National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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This story is from the November 2022 edition of National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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