Great Britain is sending some of Ghana’s “crown jewels” back home, 150 years after looting them from the court of the Asante king.
The Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) is lending 17 pieces and 15 are from the British Museum.
The objects to go on show at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi as part of Asante king’s silver jubilee celebrations.
Nana Oforiatta Ayim, a special adviser to Ghana’s culture minister, welcomed the deal as a “good starting point” in righting the wrongs of the UK’s violent colonial past: “They’re not just objects, they have spiritual importance as well. They are part of the soul of the nation. It’s pieces of ourselves returning.” Ayim described the deal as a “sign of some kind of healing and commemoration for the violence that happened”.
The three-year loan agreements, with an option to extend for a further three years, are not with the Ghanaian government but with Otumfo Osei Tutu II – the current Asante king known as the Asantehene – who attended the Coronation of King Charles last year.
The Asantehene still holds an influential ceremonial role, although his kingdom is now part of Ghana’s modern democracy.
The items will go on display at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the capital of the Asante region, to celebrate the Asantehene’s silver jubilee.
