The Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), Boston, has officially returned two looted artefacts from the historic Benin Kingdom to His Royal Majesty, Omo N’Oba Ewuare II, the Oba of Benin.
This was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by Karen Frascona, Director of Marketing and Communications for the MFA.
The handover ceremony took place at the Nigeria House in New York City, home to Nigeria’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations and the Consulate General of Nigeria. The artefacts were handed over to representatives of the Benin Royal Family and Nigeria’s diplomatic corps.
“The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA), today returned two works of art from the Benin Kingdom to His Royal Majesty, Omo N’Oba Ewuare II, Oba of Benin,” Frascona said.
The objects were presented to His Royal Highness Prince Aghatise Erediauwa and H.E. Ambassador Samson Itegboje of the Embassy of Nigeria. The National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), working alongside the Nigerian Embassy in Washington, D.C., will oversee the care, handling, and return of the artefacts to the palace in Benin City.
The handover was facilitated by Dr. Arese Carrington, a member of the MFA’s Board of Advisors, and witnessed by several prominent figures including H.E. Ambassador Abubakar Jidda, Consul General of Nigeria in New York; Matthew Teitelbaum, the MFA’s Ann and Graham Gund Director; Pierre Terjanian, Chief of Curatorial Affairs and Conservation; and Victoria Reed, MFA’s Senior Curator for Provenance. Members of the Benin community in New York were also in attendance.
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In his remarks, MFA Director Teitelbaum expressed honour and gratitude for the opportunity to return the artefacts.
“I am pleased to deliver these two works of art to Prince Aghatise Erediauwa on behalf of HM Oba Ewuare II,” he said. “As custodians of these exceptional objects for the past 12 years, it is deeply gratifying to see them returned to their rightful owner.”
The two returned items include a terracotta and iron Commemorative Head from the 16th or 17th century and a bronze Relief Plaque Showing Two Officials with Raised Swords from the 16th century. Both were among thousands of works looted during the British military raid on Benin City in 1897.
According to Teitelbaum, the Commemorative Head was sold in 1899 through the London art market, while the Relief Plaque was sold in 1898 by the Crown Agent of the former Niger Coast Protectorate. Both eventually entered the private collection of Augustus Pitt-Rivers and were later acquired by Robert Owen Lehman before being donated to the MFA in 2013 and 2018 respectively.
Teitelbaum also revealed that while three additional Benin artefacts remain in the museum’s collection, their provenance is still under investigation due to inconclusive histories.