Negotiations are on to ensure the return of cultural treasures looted during colonialism.
Importantly are the Benin Bronzes – thousands of brass, bronze and ivory sculptures and carvings – that have become highly charged symbols of injustice. They are originally from what is now Edo State, in southern Nigeria.
The British Museum, which has some 950 Benin Bronzes, has come under particular criticism for its refusal to give them back, but is only one of many museums struggling to justify the legitimacy of its collection.
The Edo kings – the obas- campaigned for decades in vain for the Benin Bronzes to be returned.
But few in the West took seriously African demands for restitution. Western curators argued that Africa lacked the resources to look after its treasures, but also that Western museums had no moral obligation to repair any damage inflicted during decades of colonialism.
That has now changed, and behind the scenes, things have been moving.
They have agreed that Benin City, the capital of Edo state, will host a new Benin Royal Museum.
European museums will take turns to lend (although some may donate) a few hundred Benin Bronzes.
The effect, says the Oba’s Palace, will be a “permanent collection in rotation” in Benin City.
At long last, the Edo people will be reunited with a significant part of their cultural patrimony.
