The Fight to Bring Africa’s Art Home

Edited By : Widad WAHBI

For over a century, thousands of African artifacts, including masks, statues, and royal thrones, were taken during colonization and have since remained in European museums. However, the tide is shifting as some of these treasures are now being returned. In 2022, France returned 26 royal treasures to Germany, and Nigeria received its stolen bronzes. In 2025, France approved the return of a secret talking drum to Côte d’Ivoire, a 430-kilogram relic taken in 1916 from the Ebra people. While these symbolic gestures are a step forward, they aren’t enough. These objects carry profound cultural, spiritual, and historical significance, and many still remain abroad. Critical questions remain: who decides what is returned? Are African museums prepared to house these treasures? Is this true justice, or just a form of image rehabilitation for the former colonizers? One thing is clear: the return of Africa’s heritage is no longer a gesture of goodwill; it is a demand. And with every artifact reclaimed, history itself is revived.