After 120 years, Nigeria’s stolen art could be returning home from Britain—but only on loan

Title: After 120 years, Nigeria’s stolen art could be returning home from Britain—but only on loan
Author: Asiedu, Kwasi Gyamfi
Media Outlet: Quartz Africa
Publish Date: June 21, 2018

Nigeria’s looted art could be returning home from cultural institutions such as the British Museum after officials said they were open to the idea of it being a loan. Some of the most prized items stolen by British forces are the Benin kingdom’s bronze statues.

The statues were pillaged in 1897 as British forces sought to wipe out the kingdom in what is known as the ‘punitive expedition’ for acts deemed an upfront to the colonial-occupier government. Despite repeated attempts by Nigerian authorities and traditional elders for them returned home, the statues remain unmoved in the British Museum in London or shipped across to other western museums.