Zurich Transfers Ownership of Looted Benin Bronzes to Nigeria
Zurich has transferred ownership of 11 Benin Bronzes held by Switzerland’s Museum Rietberg to Nigeria, following a restitution claim submitted two years earlier by Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) on behalf of the Nigerian government and the Kingdom of Benin. The objects were among thousands looted in 1897 when British forces raided Edo (in present-day Edo State, Nigeria), and they date from the 16th to 19th centuries in materials including wood, ivory, brass, and bronze. Two key works—a commemorative bronze head from around 1850 and an ivory tusk narrating an oba’s story from the 17th or 18th century—will be sent to Nigeria, while the other nine will remain at Museum Rietberg on loan. Zurich mayor Corine Mauch said the city aims to rectify past injustices; about 150 Benin works have been physically returned to Nigeria in the last five years, and display plans have shifted since 2023, when ownership was granted to Oba Ewuare II, who has proposed a royal museum.
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This story was covered in Restitution Shockwaves and Museums Under Pressure