Massive theft at British Museum; Asante artifacts safe

A massive theft at the British Museum in London did not affect Asante cultural artifacts at the museum. This will come as a blessing in disguise for Asanteman, as the Asantehene, His Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has been pushing for the return of Asante artifacts ahead of some important events that will take place in 2024 including the Silver Jubilee of his coronation, the 150th anniversary of the 1874 Anglo-Asante war, and the centenary celebrations of the return of Asantehene Prempeh I from exile in the Seychelles.

The British Museum holds a huge collection of about eight million items that were seized or looted by the British forces during the colonial era. Others were also bought. Among the collection in the museum are works taken from the Asantehene’s palace in Kumasi during the war of 1874.

The theft
About 2,000 objects from the British institution’s collection, which include gold jewelry and semi-precious stones, were stolen and sold on eBay.

The UK press mentioned Peter Higgs, a senior curator of Greek and Roman art who was employed at the British Museum for 30 years, as the person allegedly responsible for stealing the priceless artifacts from the museum’s collection. But, Higs’s family has denied the allegations against him.

Asante treasures safe
The Thunder is reliably informed that none of the Asante treasures in the museum was affected. “Asante treasure items were not affected by the theft and there is nothing to be fear,” a source stated.

Restitution
The development has also led to calls for the state to fully support Asanteman in its call for restitution. A number of Ghanaians The Thunder spoke to said such support was necessary as the return of the items will not only benefit Asanteman but the nation as a whole.

The theft has also increased calls for the restitution of cultural artifacts from a number of countries including Nigeria, Benin, Ethiopia, Greece, India and China.

Ethiopia is seeking the return of ceremonial crosses, weapons, jewellery, sacred altar tablets and other items taken from Maqdala in the north of the country during the British military action in 1868. In Nigeria, the government has formally asked the museum to return 900 Benin Bronzes.

China published its formal request in the state-run Global Times, listing some of the museum’s roughly 23,000 Chinese artifacts, including ritual bronzes from the Shang and Zhou dynasties, stone buddhist sutra scrolls of the Wei and Jin dynasties, and other extremely valuable national treasures.

India has sought the return of the Amaravati Stupa, one its largest known friezes, which the British dismantled and sent to the UK beginning in 1879.

Otumfuo’s push
The formal request for the return of the regalia and other items taken by British forces, was made in 1974 by the then Asantehene Otumfuo Opoku Ware II .

His successor, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has been pushing the British Museum to return gold items in its collection and currently negotiations are ongoing with the museum’s management in that respect. When he was in London to participate in the coronation of King Charles, the Asantehene met the museum director Dr Hartwig Fischer for discussions.

The British Museum says it has worked to establish a positive and ongoing collaboration with the Asantehene and the Manhyia Palace Museum, which chronicles Asante culture.

Progress
The Thunder can confirm that progress is being made in the negotiations for the return of the Asante treasures. This is the closest that the Asante Kingdom has come with negotiations for the return of Asante artifacts.