In part 1 of A Day At The Museum we experienced the World Of Stonehenge exhibition at the British Museum, which concluded on Sunday 17th July 2022. On display were many wonderful artefacts which demonstrated the creative imagination and craftsmanship of ancient hands.
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| Gold Gorget (collar), Bronze age 800-700BC Gleninsheen, Rep of Ireland |
There were on-loan exhibits showing that modern archaeology can achieve amazing feats of conservation. Such as the sacrificial oxen, dated around 3300-3000 BC. Archaeologists in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, had lifted these skeletons of two full grown oxen and the impression of the Bronze Age cart to which they were harnessed, in one enormous unbroken piece of substrate.
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| Photo: Stu Westfield |
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| Benin bronze plaques, 16th Century Photo: Stu Westfield |
The Benin Bronzes
Not to be confused with the modern country of Benin. The Benin Bronzes originate from Edo State, in Nigeria. Created in the 16th Century onwards, the elaborate plaques, commemorative heads, animal and human figures were used in rituals and ceremonies which represent Nigerian social history. They show the exemplary skill and high art of a specialist guild of craftsmen working in the royal court of Benin City. These bronzes are some of the finest casting ever seen.
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| Brass heads were cast only for the altars of dead kings and Queen Mothers. Photo: Stu Westfield |
In the 19th Century, the Nigerian coast and trade were dominated by the British under an aggressive expansion of colonial power. Under military occupation, Benin palaces and shrines were looted and destroyed. Items with a perceived ceremonial or anthropological value were taken to the United Kingdom as spoils of war. Some of them were destined for museums, others found their way through dealers into private collections.
The Benin Bronzes can also be found in many of the West’s other great museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. They’re in smaller museums, too. The Lehman, Rockefeller, Ford and de Rothschild families have owned some. As did Pablo Picasso. There are currently at least 3,000 items scattered worldwide, maybe thousands more. No one’s entirely sure (1).
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| Altar of a hand for an Oba Brass, Benin, 18th Century Photo: Stu Westfield |
The beginnings of restitution
With so many artefacts absent, it's no surprise that Nigerian institutions such as the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) have long campaigned for a return of the bronzes on behalf of the country's people.
“The descendants of the people who cast those bronzes; they’ve never seen that work because most of them can’t afford to fly to London to come to the British Museum,”
- Osarobo Zeickner-Okoro (founding member) Ahiamwen Guild of artists and bronze casters. (2)
In 2021, Jesus College Cambridge became the first UK institution to restore a looted Benin Bronze to Nigeria (3). Other institutions have subsequently begun the process of repatriation of their bronzes.
On 9th March 2022, the New York Times reported: 'the Smithsonian Institution is planning to return most of the 39 bonzes in its possession to Nigeria, as part of its review into collection practices and ethics behind them'.
And on 1st July 2022, the Guardian reported that: 'Germany has physically handed over two Benin bronzes and put more than 1,000 other items from its museums’ collections into Nigeria’s ownership'.
Meanwhile, the British Museum's position is: The Museum is committed to active engagement with Nigerian institutions concerning the Benin Bronzes, including pursuing and supporting new initiatives developed in collaboration with Nigerian partners and colleagues.
However, under the 1963 Museums Act and 1983 Heritage Act, the British Museum is currently bound by law, preventing the return of 900 Benin objects (4). Essentially due to the artefacts being deemed the property of the British people and not the British Museum itself.
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| A page at the royal court. Cast brass, Benin, circa 16th-17th Century Photo: Stu Westfield |
A herd of elephants
Similarly, Greece has long contested the legitimacy of ownership of the Elgin Marbles and Egypt the many Pharaonic artefacts which are now residing in, generally northern hemisphere, museums around the world.
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| Nebamun hunting in the marshes. Photo: Stu Westfield |
Conservancy is an expensive business. Historical research and archaeology comes at a price. The British Museum collection comprises at least 8 million objects, of which around 80,000 are on public display, attracting 6 million visitors each year. Many of whom come to see iconic exhibits such as the Benin Bronzes and the Egyptology rooms. The Egypt And Sudan department itself holds tens of thousands of artefacts.
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| Image: Stu Westfield |
The Louvre holds 50,000 pieces in their Egypt section, spanning ancient times to the Byzantine periods. The New York Metropolitan Museum Of Art's collection of ancient Egyptian art consists of approximately 26000 objects of artistic, historical, and cultural importance.
Artefacts which are significant tourism, donation and research grant revenue generators.
Legitimate ownership or plunder?
No doubt a significant portion of artefacts in European and American institutions are there through ill gotten gain.
Most of these items were acquired during the colonial era. The route of artefacts is, in many cases, far from direct. Being sold and handled by several intermediaries, some as gifts, others with permissions and varying degrees of legality. It is a process which continues today with artefacts being smuggled out of their indigenous countries to foreign collections.
Minister of Antiquities for Egypt, Dr Zahawi Hawass claims that 60% of objects taken out of the country has been done so illegally, but also acknowledges many items were legally exported too.
Is there a case for wholescale repatriation?
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| Leopard in ivory, copper and coral. Made from five separate tusks. The copper spots tapped into undercut depressions were probably percussion caps used to fire 19th Century rifles. Benin, Nigeria, 19th Century Photo: Stu Westfield |
Restitution of ownership does not necessarily need to equate into return of all items. Most museums are open to lending objects and the British Museum lends around five thousand items each year. Some of which are on a long term basis.
Indeed there is both a practical and judicious case for, at any one time, decentralising a proportion of items of a typographically important collection. Having pieces on loan, is a form of insurance against complete catastrophic loss.
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| A living culture: The Oba Of Benin & Princess (Oloi) Iyayota Ewuare II |
To see and experience is to love
Items such as the Benin Bronzes are uncontrovertibly of huge cultural importance to the people of Nigeria. Osarobo Zeickner-Okoro of the modern casting guild is at pains to emphasise that the Bronzes are not just attractive items from the past:
"Part of the crime that's been committed is that Benin has been portrayed as this dead civilization. The reparation is not just returning the Bronzes. It's also acknowledging us, that we're a living civilization." (5)
It's not unreasonable that people who's heritage is less accessible to them, either through legitimate means or historical mis-appropriation, should have the right to experience their history first hand. Just looking at the numbers there is a gross imbalance between the quantity of artefacts held in industrialised northern hemisphere institutions compared with indigenous countries, roughly south of thirty degrees latitude.
About 90% of Africa’s cultural heritage is believed to be in Europe. French art historians estimate. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in Paris alone holds about 70,000 African objects and London’s British Museum tens of thousands more (6)
Not everyone has the capability to travel to distant countries or exotic locations to view pieces in-situ. So, is the question more about accessibility rather than ownership? The answer still, no doubt, depends on which end of the colonial legacy your country has ended up.
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| Cast plaque, Benin, 16th Century Image: Stu Westfield |
We learn to love what we see, experience and cherish. The first time I saw the Benin Bronzes, I was speechless with wonder. And each time I am fortunate to return to the British Museum, I make a course straight for the Sainsbury rooms. Happy to sit and awe at the creativity and symbolism. The quandary is that had the bronzes not been there, I could not have appreciated them, spent time learning about their history. And would not be writing this blog.
Whether you care or not for the blog is to miss the point. Although having got this far, I may assume that you're at least a little engaged or interested.
What is important is the sense of creativity that spanned the centuries and made a connection. It is these moments which bring a deeper understanding to humanity and help bridge nations and identities. And so, there is also a sadness that the people of modern Benin City, more than anyone else, should have the same opportunity for wonder and connection to their heritage.
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| Cast plaque, Benin, 16th Century Photo: Stu Westfield |
A World Heritage Solution?
We have seen that important and iconic historical items bring in tourist revenue. But concentrating these items in just a few public places and in private collections is blocking access to cultural heritage. So, while I would like to see the return of a good number of the Benin Bronzes return to their indigenous home, I would also advocate that some examples remain on public display around the world.
Instead of ownership, should artefacts be considered as portable versions of World Heritage Sites, for the curiosity, education and enjoyment of all humanity?
Stu Westfield
Ranger Expeditions
Sources
(1) This Art Was Looted 123 Years Ago - New York Times, Alex Marshall, 23 Jan 2020
(2) Return The Benin Bronzes And We'll Give You New Ones In Exchange - Taylor Dafoe, Artnet News, 23 Sept 2021
(3) The Benin Bronzes, Silence Is Not Golden - The Guardian Editorial, 29 Oct 2021
(4) Berlin Hands Over Two Benin Bronzes To Nigeria - Philip Oltermann, The Guardian, 1 July 2022
(5) British Museum accepts Nigerian artist's gift but keeps looted bronzes - Reuters, 30 Sept 2021
(6) Reuters in Benin City, The Guardian, 19 Feb 2022.
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