Book Review
Why Won’t Britain Return Looted Gold to Ghana?
In “The African Kingdom of Gold,” Barnaby Phillips explores how British colonial forces plundered the Asante people and expertly traces the stolen artifacts’ afterlives in museum storage.
Restitution
Feature
Why Do So Many Museums Hold a Convicted Antiquity Dealer’s Treasures?
After The Met returned a Roman bust connected to Phoenix Ancient Art, the question of what will happen to other works sold by the gallery to dozens of US institutions remains open.
News
Value of Looted Objects at Met Museum Tops $95M After New Seizures
Several ancient sculptures and vessels acquired between 1971 and 2001 were among the objects extracted from The Met's collection this June.
Film
Plunderer Shows How Art Looting Continues to Pay Off
The two-part documentary asks us to rethink what we know about looting, art restitution, the art market, and who the war’s heroes and villains really were.
News
New UK Law Allows Museums to Return Objects For "Moral" Reasons
The law will apply only in "rare cases," one expert says, but nevertheless signals a shift from past legal restrictions.
News
Questions Remain Around Return of 50+ Ancient Artifacts to Mexico
Mexican officials said the objects were “voluntarily returned” by citizens from Austria, Canada, Switzerland, and the US, but have not provided further details.
Opinion
When Will Museums Tell the Whole Truth About Their Antiquities?
Some US museums will overlook the dubious origins of acquisitions if it suits their purposes.
Opinion
Cambodia's Stolen Treasures Must Be Returned to Where They Belong
And no, Cambodia doesn't need the Metropolitan Museum's help in preserving its cultural heritage.
Opinion
UK Welcomes Restitution, Just not Anti-Colonialism
“The work of cultural restitution must be about what we give up, not just what or how we give back,” writes Dan Hicks in response to Arts Council England’s new restitution guidelines for museums.
News
UK's Horniman Museum to Return 72 Benin Artifacts to Nigeria
It is the first national museum in England to agree to restitute looted Benin items, increasing pressure on the British Museum to do the same.
Opinion
The Risks That Lurk in Europe's “Scramble for Decolonization”
As the global consensus on restitution passes the tipping point, some skepticism towards these sudden, improbable Damascene conversions towards restitution is probably justified.
News
Smithsonian Adopts Landmark Policy on Ethical Restitution
Previously, the Smithsonian held that its museums were entitled to retain an artifact so long as its provenance rested on solid legal ground.