This lavishly illustrated 17th-century manuscript contains the first eight books of the Old Testament (the Octateuch), the four Gospels, and several canons of church councils. It is written in a small elegant script with decorative borders and devices and has many lively illustrations in bold colours. The Ethiopian church was one of five Oriental Orthodox […]
The V&A is to stage an exhibition of looted treasures from Ethiopia, reviving a diplomatic row over a controversial episode in British military history. The royal and religious artefacts were plundered during the Battle of Maqdala in 1868, when a British expeditionary force laid siege to the mountain fortress of Emperor Tewodros II in what […]
The National Army Museum has quietly removed from display a 19th-century looted braid of hair which the Ethiopian government has requested back as a national treasure. It came from the head of the Emperor Tewodros II, who killed himself at the end of the British invasion of Ethiopia in 1868 rather than being taken, prisoner. He shot […]
By Ashley Lime During colonial rule in Africa, thousands of cultural artefacts were plundered. African countries want them back and major museums across Europe have agreed to loan the famous Benin Bronzes back to Nigeria. Now France has launched a report calling for thousands of African art in its museums to be returned to the continent. […]
The Maqdella Expedition (1867-68) led by General Robert (Cornelius) Dundas Napier (1810-90) on behalf of the British government against Emperor Tewodros (Theodore) II (1818-68) of Ethiopia was the most curious of expeditions, curious in its origin, curious in its execution, and curious in its aftermath. It is, nevertheless, significant in some respects. First, it portended […]
In its on April the 3rd , The Guardian wrote an interesting article that highlights several things, most critically to me is the sense of impunity and arrogance. The article headline is ‘Looted Ethiopian treasure in U.K Could be return on loan.’ So what it saying…yes precisely the headline says that treasure looted by Britain […]
DANIEL TRILLING, The Atlantic LONDON—In a storeroom of the British Museum here sits a collection of 11 wood and stone tablets that nobody is allowed to see. They are Christian plaques, or tabots, that represent the Ark of the Covenant, and they belong—though belong in this case is a contested term—to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, which believes only […]
In early April an exhibition called “Maqdala 1868” opened at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. It’s comprised of treasures looted from Ethiopia, and so contributes to the ongoing controversy and debate about treasure ownership. In the case of Ethiopia, what is important in this controversy is the fact that the question of ownership is linked to […]
Two locks of hair belonging to widely revered Ethiopian Emperor Tewodros II will be repatriated after a request from Addis Ababa, the National Army Museum in the UK announced Monday, as more African countries seek to reclaim heritage they say was taken decades, even centuries, ago An outcry erupted last year among some Ethiopians over an exhibit […]
” I don’t care whether you steal one ITEM or a million, at the end of the day A THIEF IS A THIEF (ሌባ…ሌባ ነው)!!!… Just Return Ethiopian Treasure (ንብረታችንን መልሱ)!!!” Addis Herald
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