Return of Benin Bronzes delayed after Nigerian president’s decree
A British university has postponed the return of more than 100 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria after a presidential decree named a royal ruler as the owner and custodian of all returned artefacts, the head of museums and monuments said. Nigeria is on a quest to get thousands of intricate bronze sculptures and castings that were looted by British soldiers during a raid on the then-separate Kingdom of Benin, located in what is now southwestern Nigeria, in 1897. But an official gazette signed by President Muhammadu Buhari on March 28 said the Oba of Benin was the rightful owner of all…
