Following the promulgation of the Act of 24 December 2020 concerning the restitution of cultural property to the Republic of Benin and the Republic of Senegal, 26 works have left the museum to return to their country of origin. The aim of this FAQ list is to answer questions from the public on the restitutions of African cultural heritage conserved at the musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac.

 WHAT IS RESTITUTION?

Although the term can have several meanings, restitution in this context means returning an object that was acquired in an illicit manner (stolen, looted or seized) to its original owner.

WHO CAN RETURN WORKS OF ART CONSERVED IN A MUSEUM?

The French State, as owner of the national collections, may grant the restitution of a work of art in agreement with the countries of origin after submission of an official request by the latter. A bill, enabling the works to be taken out of the public domain and transferred to the requesting State, based on prior historical research into their provenance and acquisition, is then submitted to Parliament by the government. Indeed, an act authorising an exception to the principle of inalienability of national collections has to be passed for each transfer of ownership of a work to the requesting State.

TO WHOM CAN FRANCE RETURN A WORK?

The State can return a work of art to the requesting country if research into its provenance shows that the work was stolen, looted or seized.

HOW IS IT DETERMINED WHETHER A WORK IS OF ILLICIT ORIGIN?

Rigorous and in-depth research is conducted on each object to determine its provenance and history: origin of the work, means and context of its acquisition. This requires the systematic examination of numerous archives and scientific analysis of the objects. This research is conducted by researchers and museum professionals from the countries of origin and France in a reciprocal manner. The results of this research make it possible to determine whether the work was acquired in a licit or illicit manner, or under conditions that remain uncertain if the research is unable to reach a precise result.

FRANCE WILL RETURN 26 WORKS TO THE REPUBLIC OF BENIN: WHY THESE PARTICULAR PIECES AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THEM?

The 26 works of art returned were taken as spoils of war by General Dodds during the French colonial conquest of the Kingdom of Dahomey (present-day Benin). The works were looted during the capture of Abomey in 1892 from the royal palaces, in particular that of King Béhanzin, the ruler at that time. These pieces have a very important historical, symbolic and protective value for the Beninese population. The exhibition of the works in Cotonou in 2006-2007 gave rise to the desire to see them permanently returned to Benin. The Beninese authorities submitted an official request to the French State on 26 August 2016. The historical and scientific study of this collection, sometimes referred to as forming part of “Béhanzin’s Treasure”, indisputably proved that the pieces came from these spoils of war. At the Museum’s proposal, the President of the Republic announced their restitution in November 2018, one year after his speech in Ouagadougou, in which he announced his desire for restitutions in order to enable African youth to be able have access to them on their own continent.

Act no. 2020-1673 of 24 December 2020 concerning the restitution of cultural property to the Republic of Benin and the Republic of Senegal ratified transfer of ownership of the 26 works to the Republic of Benin before the end of 2021. These works will return to the Ouidah Museum of History and will then be exhibited in Abomey at the Museum of the Epic of the Amazons and Kings of Dahomey (Musée de l’épopée des amazones et des rois du Danhomè) when its construction is completed.

WILL ALL OF THE AFRICAN WORKS CONSERVED AT THE MUSÉE DU QUAI BRANLY - JACQUES CHIRAC BE RETURNED?

The majority of the 70,000 sub-Saharan African objects conserved at the musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac were acquired in a lawful manner through purchases and donations. It is not a question of returning the collection as a whole, since the objects were not all pillaged or appropriated without consent/by force during the colonial period. However, careful examination and research into the context of the acquisition of these objects is necessary in cases where doubt exists. For this reason, the museum has launched a vast “provenance project” in order to conduct more in-depth research and attempt to retrace the works’ itineraries with the scientific teams of the museums in the conserved objects’ countries of origin.

WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE NOW SUBMITTED OFFICIAL REQUESTS FOR THE RESTITUTION OF WORKS CONSERVED AT THE MUSEUM?

In addition to Benin and Senegal, five other African countries (Madagascar, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Mali and Chad) have submitted official restitution requests. Each request is studied on a case-by-case basis by the competent French authorities, in association with the cultural and scientific actors concerned, and in consultation with the requesting State. Ambitious cultural cooperation programmes are put in place with each of these countries[1] and the museum pursues and develops scientific and cultural partnerships with African museums, indigenous communities and local populations.

ARE OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES RESTITUTING WORKS?

Several European countries have defined a policy aimed at the restitution of part of the heritage looted during the colonial period.