The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) is offering to return Ethiopian treasures that were looted by British troops at the battle of Maqdala on long-term loan, so ownership would remain with the museum. This offer may put pressure on other UK institutions that hold seized Ethiopian material such as the British Museum. It is also a reflection of more radical restitution proposals that were recently put forward by the French president, Emmanuel Macron.
Speaking to The Art Newspaper, the V&A director, Tristram Hunt, revealed that he made “a clear statement to the ambassador, saying that if Ethiopia is interested in pursuing the long-term loan of the Maqdala items we would stand ready to assist… It behoves an institution like the V&A to reflect on this imperial past, to be open about this history and to interpret that history,” he said. “We should not to be afraid of history, even if it is complicated and challenging. As an institution, we should have the bravery to deal with it.”
On 5 April, the V&A opened a Maqdala display, marking the 150th anniversary of the battle on 13 April 1868 in which British forces in Ethiopia attacked the troops of Emperor Tewodros, who was holding a British missionary and an emissary. Seven hundred Ethiopian soldiers were killed and the Emperor committed suicide. British troops then looted the imperial possessions, much of it ending up in museums.