After over a century and a half, the United Kingdom has agreed to return 32 looted Ghanaian artefacts to their rightful home on a renewable three-year loan arrangement. The artefacts, which were stolen from the court of the Asante king during the 19th-Century wars, include a gold peace pipe, a sword of state, and gold badges worn by officials charged with cleansing the soul of the king.

The return of these artefacts marks a significant cultural collaboration between the UK and Ghana. This loan agreement, while not an outright restitution, signifies a step towards acknowledging the historical and spiritual significance of these treasures. The artefacts hold great cultural importance, being described as the ultimate symbols of the Asante royal government, invested with the spirits of former Asante kings.

Tristram Hunt, director of the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A), affirmed that these items of court regalia are equivalent to “our Crown Jewels” and emphasized the responsibility of museums to consider fair and respectful ways to share such artefacts with their countries of origin. The V&A is lending 17 pieces while the British Museum is lending 15, as part of this landmark loan arrangement.

The loan agreement is not with the Ghanaian government but with Otumfo Osei Tutu II, the current Asante king known as the Asantehene. This gesture of returning the artefacts to the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the capital of the Asante region, stands as a tribute to the Asantehene’s silver jubilee and a symbol of healing and commemoration for the violence that occurred during the looting.

The significance of this return is not lost on Nana Oforiatta-Ayim, special adviser to Ghana’s culture minister, who expressed that the artefacts are not just objects but pieces with spiritual and national importance; their return, even on loan, signals a positive beginning in acknowledging the traumas of the past.

However, despite this momentous move, there are concerns about the temporary nature of the loan and the reluctance of some UK museums to permanently return contested items to their countries of origin. The UK’s “retain and explain” stance for contested objects, while providing context, falls short of full restitution.

Nonetheless, as these treasured artefacts journey back to Ghana, they carry with them the weight of history and the promise of a new chapter in cultural cooperation. This reunion after 150 years serves as a beacon of hope for further reconciliation and collaboration between nations, bridging the gap between the legacies of colonialism and the healing of old wounds.