Nigeria has received 23 looted Benin Kingdom artefacts from Switzerland in a significant step toward reclaiming the country's stolen cultural heritage.
The collection comprises 18 Benin artefacts voluntarily returned by three Swiss museums and five additional cultural objects that were previously confiscated by Swiss authorities.
The artefacts, widely known as the Benin Bronzes, were looted during the British invasion of the Benin Kingdom in 1897. They include a range of historic metal and ivory works created in the royal court of Benin.
The official handover ceremony took place at the National Museum in Lagos, where the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) formally received the artefacts on behalf of the Federal Government.
During the ceremony, Switzerland's Federal Councillor, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, and Nigeria's Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, signed a bilateral agreement on the transfer of cultural property.
The agreement is expected to strengthen cooperation between both countries in preventing the illegal trafficking of cultural artefacts and facilitating the return of stolen heritage items.
According to officials, the agreement also provides a legal framework for the import, export, restitution, and protection of cultural property.
Of the 18 Benin artefacts returned by museums, 14 came from the Ethnographic Museum at the University of Zurich, while Museum Rietberg Zurich returned two items and the Musée d'Ethnographie de Genève (MEG) returned another two.
The restitution followed years of provenance research conducted under the Benin Initiative Switzerland, which confirmed that the objects had been looted during the 1897 British military expedition against the Benin Kingdom.
In addition to the Benin Bronzes, Switzerland also returned a bronze bracelet and four archaeological monoliths originating from Nigeria's Niger Delta. The items had earlier been seized during criminal investigations in Switzerland.
Nigerian authorities described the returned artefacts as invaluable symbols of the nation's history, identity, and cultural heritage.
While some of the objects will remain on display at the National Museum in Lagos, officials disclosed that most of the artefacts will eventually be returned to their place of origin in Edo State.
The restitution ceremony was attended by the Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Olugbile Holloway, representatives of the Swiss Federal Office of Culture, and directors of the three Swiss museums that participated in the return process.
The latest repatriation marks another milestone in Nigeria's ongoing campaign to recover cultural treasures taken from the country during the colonial era.