Nigeria To Retrieve 1,030 Benin Bronzes From Germany – Commission

Nigeria will receive no fewer than 1,030 Benin artefacts from Germany in 2022, the Director-General, National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Abba Tijani, has said.

Tijani, a professor, told newsmen in Ibadan on Tuesday that many artefacts had been received from Germany but the commission would receive at least an additional 1, 030 in 2022.

The objects were taken from the country during the punitive expedition of Benin in 1897.

According to him, when the artefacts are received, it will give the commission the opportunity to build new museums and attract more tourists across the world.

Tijani said this would also give them opportunities to view the cultural objects from the Nigerian context.

“It will make the foreigners to understand the significance of the artefacts better and give them an added advantage which they might not get when they visit museums in Europe,’’ he said.

Tijani said the commission had called for the expansion of the National Museum in Abuja and that of Benin so that the objects could be displayed.

He said the commission had partnered with corporate organisations to fund museum activities, adding it had renovated many museums across the country.

“The Federal Government is ready to take possession of many of these Benin bronzes being repatriated to the country.

“Nigerians should also support us by appreciating these heritages being cherished globally. We should respect them and visit museums to understand them better.