Cyriacus Chijioke Oji, Ijeoma Joy Ogbu, Henrietta Uchenna Obieluem, and Akintunde John Oloidi write:
Beginning with a historical overview of the colonial-era looting, the discussion emphasizes the ongoing significance of these artifacts in shaping local identities, cultural narratives, and spiritual practices.
Heritages are memories of the past that allow present and future generations to relive and experience events from the past. Each piece provides valuable insights about the previous generation’s daily lives, beliefs, and social systems.
Other than preserving memories, heritage properties contribute to a nation’s cultural legacy, establishing a feeling of identity and continuity that is much valued by the individuals they represent.
Over the years, heritage properties have also been properly utilized by various countries in their moneygeneration schemes through heritage tourism. It is therefore no gainsaying that heritage properties have numerous beneficial potentials for host communities.
These benefits, however, are severely compromised when heritage properties are illegally acquired from the custodians of the heritage. In Nigeria, it is estimated that hundreds of thousands of heritage properties have been illegally taken from the country through various means.
This large-scale loss impacts not only Nigeria’s cultural legacy but also the nation as a whole. It is therefore the aim of this paper to identify the looted Nigerian heritage and examine its impact on Nigeria’s cultural legacy. To achieve this aim, this paper adopts a qualitative approach relying solely on literature sources for data collection.
