Culture/ Ghana welcomes home historic Ashanti artefacts in major repatriation
In a significant act of cultural restitution, more than 130 gold and bronze artefacts have been officially returned to Ghana. The items were received by the King of the Asante people, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, in a ceremony at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the traditional Asante capital.
The repatriated collection includes royal regalia, ceremonial drums, and gold weights.
This latest return comprises two major donations: 110 artefacts from the Barbier-Mueller Museum in Geneva a collection originally assembled in 1904; and 25 objects from British art historian Hermione Waterfield.
According to Manhyia Palace Museum director Ivor Agyeman-Duah, one of the returned items is a wooden drum believed to have been taken by British colonial forces during the 1900 siege of Kumasi.
This event continues a recent trend of restitution to Ghana. In 2024, the palace received 67 objects on loan or permanently returned from institutions including the British Museum and the Fowler Museum in Los Angeles.
The King also acknowledged the South African mining company AngloGold Ashanti for returning several works it had purchased on the open market last year.
