SNA (Bangkok) — The Horniman Museum and Gardens, based in London, has recently agreed to return all 72 of its artifacts that were forcibly taken from Benin City, now part of Nigeria, during a British military operation in 1897.

This decision is in response to an official request sent to the museum in January by the National Commission for Museum and Monuments (NCMM), a Nigerian governmental organization.

Upwards of 3,000 specially-crafted treasures were looted from Benin City, the central area of a historic West African kingdom. This looted artwork now resides in museums and private collections which are primarily in Europe and the United States.

Various groups within Nigeria have been campaigning for their return for decades.

“Those things are like our own diaries. Whatever was significant, the Oba [King] would tell the guild of bronze casters to cast it into bronze to keep a record. So, taking them away was like yanking off pages of our history,” stated the late Prince Edun Akenzua last year.

Among the cultural objects the Horniman plans to give back are twelve brass plaques which are classified as “Benin Bronzes”–sculptures created as far back as the 16th century which once decorated the royal palace of the mighty Kingdom of Benin (1180-1897).

Other items soon to be in Nigerian possession include an altarpiece, brass bells, fans, baskets, and a key to the king’s palace.

Horniman Museum Trustees Board Chair Eve Salomon told the Museums Journal, “the evidence is very clear that these objects were acquired through force… It is both moral and appropriate to return their ownership to Nigeria.”

In appreciation for this stance, the Nigerian side has indicted that it will be willing to loan some of these objects for research and display at the Horniman.

There has been a recent trend within the developed world of returning African artifacts stolen during the colonial period. Last year, 26 pieces collected in a brutal raid by the French army were given a celebratory homecoming at the presidential palace in Cotonou, Benin.

“Today’s gesture is the possibility for the youth of Benin, of Africa, to see again the works of its history and heritage, to be able to admire them at home,” declared French President Emmanuel Macron at that time.

In July, the German government signed a restitution agreement that authorized the return of over a thousand artifacts, two of which are confirmed to be Benin Bronzes.

Jesus College at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and The Smithsonian Institution in the United States have also pledged to take similar actions.

“We are really elated… We feel this is the right thing to do. They are trying to right what was done wrong,” exulted Abba Tijani, director-general of the NCMM.

Despite this progress, some present-day owners are less willing than others to send the artifacts back to their places of origin. A prominent case of this is The British Museum, which has a staggering 900 Benin Bronzes in its custody.

The British Museum’s representatives have been adamant about maintaining ownership, arguing that current British law prevents them from acceding to the Nigerian requests. Two separate National Heritage Acts would have to be repealed, they contend.

The British Museum has stated that it is willing to loan artifacts back to the societies from which they were stolen, but it will not transfer ownership. On the other hand, the Nigerian side insists that the principle of ownership is non-negotiable.

“We want the real thing. We are entitled to it because they belong to us,” declared Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed last year.

At the present time, the Horniman Museum is the only known government-funded British institution to restore ownership of historical artwork to Nigeria.

For breaking news, follow on Twitter @ShingetsuNews