Sculptures, faces, heads, delicately detailed, sometimes adorned and capped in brass, stone or reddish terracotta. On the continent, the art of Ifé enjoys a special status between the XIe and the XVe century, when this kingdom was at the height of its power, enriched by agriculture, the trade in kola nuts and locally made glass beads.
Very committed to the return of its works of art looted or illegally held in other countries, Nigeria has just recovered a terracotta head probably dating at least 600 years old which had been smuggled into the Netherlands , the authorities announced on Friday. This antique, taken in the city of Ilé-Ifé, in Yoruba country in the southwest, and arrived in the Netherlands, via Ghana, was delivered to Nigeria this Thursday, November 26. The news has been in the media for several days as Nigeria is on the front line for the restitution of its cultural works.
A long-term quest
The Netherlands Ambassador to Nigeria Harry Van Dijk handed the object to the Minister during a ceremony in the Nigerian capital in the presence of Culture and Information Minister Lai Mohammed. “The trafficker had obtained forged documents” to transport the terracotta head, he said. But at Schipol airport in Amsterdam, customs intercepted the object and alerted the antiques protection office in the Netherlands.
That office then asked Nigeria to provide proof of their ownership, which the country did.
With the repatriation of this “priceless and eternal” object, Nigeria’s efforts to recover stolen antiques have started to bear fruit, the minister said.
Hundreds of Nigerian objects, including bronzes from the ancient kingdom of Benin – the territory now corresponding to southwestern Nigeria -, stolen during the pre-colonial and colonial period, can still be found in museums in Europe and United States.
The minister said Nigeria would continue to demand the return of the works of art.
“In particular, we will be able to generate income for the country if our cultural goods are exhibited around the world to a public who pays to see them, on the basis of an agreement which recognizes us as owners and gives us the benefit”, a- he added.
Nigeria this month announced plans to build a new museum to display the precious bronzes stolen by British troops at the end of the 19th century.e in the south of the country and held by European and American museums.
The restitution of works looted during colonization in Africa is debated in Europe. Museums, such as the British Museum, have declared themselves in favor of a return of certain works, but in the form of a loan.
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