The university said the sculpture of an Oba, or ruler, from the Kingdom of Benin, left Nigeria in an “extremely immoral” way, prompting her to contact the authorities in 2019 to negotiate her return.
The pressure increased to return to their places of origin, the Benin bronzes – in fact, relief sculptures made of copper alloy – and other artifacts taken by colonial powers.
Neil Curtis, head of museums and special collections in Aberdeen, said the Bronze, purchased in 1957, was “flagrantly looted”.
“It was clear that we had to do something,” said Curtis.
Professor Abba Isa Tijani, director general of Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments, said the importance of displaying Bronze within Nigeria for the first time in more than 120 years was inexpressible.
“It is part of our identity, part of our heritage … that has been taken from us for many years,” said Tijani.
British soldiers seized thousands of castings and metal sculptures from the Kingdom of Benin, then separated from Nigeria under British rule, in 1897.
The British Museum, which houses hundreds of sculptures, along with several other museums, has formed a Benin Dialogue Group to discuss their exhibition in the city of Benin, some of which have been officially borrowed. He said the discussions are ongoing.
Germany is negotiating to return 440 bronzes from Benin as early as the fall, according to newspaper reports, while Cambridge University’s Jesus College said it finalized approvals in December to return another bronze. Tijani said that US museums have also agreed to return two more Bronzes.
The governor of the state of Edo, of which Benin is the capital, plans to build a center to store and study the artifacts returned by the end of 2021, and a permanent museum until 2025.
The artist and native of Edo state, Victor Ehikhamenor, said he hoped the decision would lead others to follow suit.
“As some of these things are lacking in our environment, people are unable to contextualize where we came from,” said Ehikhamenor.