The Netherlands government has made a historic decision to return 478 stolen art and cultural artifacts to Indonesia and Sri Lanka, which were looted during the Dutch colonial era. This move comes after a government-appointed commission investigated illegal Dutch colonial acquisitions currently displayed in museums in the Netherlands. The decision to return the objects was made based on a request from Indonesia to repatriate the art pieces and natural history collections from its former colonial ruler.
The Ministry of Culture in The Hague stated that the majority of these works are highly valuable and of significant cultural importance. State Secretary Gunay Uslu described it as a historic moment, emphasizing that these objects should never have been in the Netherlands in the first place.
Among the objects to be returned is the Lombok treasure, a collection of precious stones, gold, and silver looted by the Dutch colonial army from Indonesia’s island of Lombok in 1894. A portion of this treasure was already returned to Indonesia in 1977. Additionally, the cannon of Kandy will be returned to Sri Lanka. This ceremonial weapon, made of bronze, silver, and gold and adorned with rubies, is believed to have been taken by the Dutch in 1765. It has been part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection since 1800.
A ceremony has been scheduled for this week to officially hand over the looted artifacts to Indonesia. This gesture by the Dutch government comes in the wake of other Western nations returning stolen cultural artifacts. Earlier this year, the Berlin Museum announced its intention to return hundreds of human skulls to the former German colony of East Africa. France also pledged to return statues and royal thrones taken from the West African nation of Benin. In 2020, Belgium returned a gold-capped tooth belonging to Patrice Lumumba, a prominent figure in Congolese independence.
The Netherlands’ decision to return these stolen artifacts serves as a step towards reparations and acknowledgment of the injustices committed during the colonial era. The move also aligns with the recent apology from King Willem-Alexander for the suffering endured by hundreds of thousands of people under slavery in the Netherlands. As more countries take similar steps to return stolen cultural heritage, it raises questions about the broader issue of repatriation and the importance of acknowledging historical wrongdoings.
