On June 21, 2025, the Netherlands officially returned 119 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria, marking the largest single repatriation of these artefacts looted during the 1897 British invasion of the Benin Kingdom. The ceremony occurred at the National Museum in Lagos, attended by Nigerian and Dutch officials, including Olugbile Holloway, director-general of Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments, and Dutch Ambassador Dewi van de Weerd. These metal and ivory sculptures, created between the 16th and 18th centuries, represent the cultural identity of the Benin people. Four artefacts are now displayed at the museum’s courtyard. At the same time, the remaining pieces will be handed over to Oba Ewuare II, the traditional ruler of the Benin Kingdom, who called the return a “divine intervention” and praised the advocacy of the Benin Royal Court and Nigerian government. The repatriation follows Nigeria’s 2022 request for the return of cultural objects held globally. In 2022, 72 bronzes were returned from a London museum and 31 from Rhode Island, USA, while Germany pledged to return over 1,000 artefacts. The bronzes were originally taken during a British expedition led by Sir Henry Rawson, which also exiled King Ovonramwen Nogbaisi. In February 2025, the Dutch government acknowledged the artefacts were wrongfully acquired and committed to their return. This event is a milestone in restoring Nigeria’s cultural heritage and strengthens cultural ties between Nigeria and the Netherlands, urging other nations to repatriate looted artefacts from colonial times.
