Recent Posts
“Would be nice to have a more frank discussion about how objects are collected for the Museum. Saying ‘Donated’ is not enough”
Latest Restitution News
Recent articles added to our comprehensive resource list of restitution news from around the world
JULY 2025
United Kingdom
Hard right campaign group Great British PAC sends a letter criticising the "accelerating" campaign to return the Parthenon Marbles to Greece
JULY 2025
United States
An extension of the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery (Hear) Act introduced in the US Senate would deny owners of Nazi-looted art unnecessary legal defences against restitution
JULY 2025
Germany
Cameroon's official Restitution Committee agrees its "first restitution wave" with state governments in Munich, Stuttgart, Bremen and Berlin
JULY 2025
United States
The Museum of Fine Arts Boston has returned a Commemorative Head and a Relief Plaque, looted from Benin City, to the Oba of Benin
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From the Editor
The latest analysis and reports on cultural restitution news
“Would be nice to have a more frank discussion about how objects are collected for the Museum. Saying ‘Donated’ is not enough”
Last week, a delegation of Naga people signed a declaration that will lead to the return of 41 Naga ancestral remains currently held in the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford
Village leaders at San Benito Poité in southern Belize, formerly British Honduras, are claiming that an important collection of artefacts removed from the ancient city of Pusilha is not the lawful property of the British Museum
About Cultural Restitution
Cultural restitution is the process by which a moveable object of historic or cultural value is returned to its country of origin after being seized, looted or acquired against the will of its owners. But it's more than just an act of return. It represents a growing recognition of the need to correct injustices committed in the past.
Today, as society’s values and the role of museums change, the legitimacy and ownership of these objects – as well as those thought to be procured legally – are coming under a spotlight. As complicated and sensitive as this debate may be, there’s no halting the growing debate between museums and communities of origin to find solutions that build new bridges of friendship and cooperation. This involves a new approach to restitution built on transparency and fairness - engaging with source communities and ensuring their voice is heard.
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Mapping the location of cultural restitutions
Our extensive Global Archive provides invaluable links to many other restitutions and other restitution news taking place around the world - organised by country.
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A Museum Perspective
"While the motivation behind the acquisition of ethnological material can appear strange today, it reflected curiosity about the wider world and a desire to represent diverse cultures. However, the European bias and power imbalances that often characterised this collecting have left a complex and sensitive legacy for us to address today."
Kathryn Thomson, Chief Executive National Museums NI (April 2025)
