Netherlands hands Benin artefact back to Oba Ewuare II, 129 years after looting
- The Dutch consul general presented the artefact to the Oba of Benin at his palace in Benin City on Tuesday.
- The return came during events marking the monarch's 10th coronation anniversary.
- Palace officials say more objects taken in the 1897 invasion are expected back.
The Netherlands has handed a Benin artefact back to the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, 129 years after British forces took it from the kingdom.
The Dutch Consul General, Frank Keurnorst, presented the object at the Oba's palace in Benin City on Tuesday, 20 October. He was joined by Beatrice van Bormann, executive director of Museum De Fundatie in the Netherlands.
The handover fell on the tenth anniversary of Ewuare II's coronation, and the palace used the celebration to receive the piece.
Why the palace says it matters
Lucky Imasue, who chairs the coronation anniversary committee and is a former deputy governor of Edo State, said the Netherlands began moves to return objects taken from Benin after the 1897 invasion. He said more are on the way.
According to Imasue, the artefacts were kept in the palace before the invasion and served as records of the Oba's authority and of daily life in the kingdom. He said every Benin artefact belongs to the Oba, however many are returned.
He said past Obas pushed for the objects to come home, but the campaign picked up speed under Ewuare II, whose years as an ambassador helped open doors abroad. The National Commission for Museums and Monuments, he said, accepts that the pieces were taken from the palace and should go back there.
Imasue thanked the Dutch government for the return and for timing it to the anniversary.
Ewuare II also thanked the Netherlands and welcomed the Portuguese Ambassador to Nigeria, Paulo Santos, who attended the ceremony. The monarch said he wants closer cultural and historical ties with Portugal, pointing to the Holy Aruosa Church in Benin, which he said was founded in the Portuguese era and blends Catholic practice with traditional worship.
He also recalled his time as Nigeria's ambassador in Rome, where he learnt that the Vatican had started recognising African traditional religions.
Part of a wider push
Nigeria has spent years pressing European institutions to return objects looted from Benin in 1897.
- In February 2025, the Netherlands said it would return 113 Benin Bronzes, most of them held at the Wereldmuseum in Rotterdam.
- In July 2022, Nigeria and Germany signed an agreement covering 1,130 Benin Bronzes.
- London's Horniman Museum began sending back 72 objects later that year.
- In October 2022, United States institutions, including the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, returned 23 Benin artefacts.
Officials see the returns as a chance to grow museums and cultural tourism, though it is not yet clear how much money that could bring.
What happens next: The palace expects further objects from the Netherlands, following the 113 Bronzes announced in 2025. The Oba has also said he will build on the Portuguese connection.
