Provenance research on the Benin artefacts at the Reiss-Engelhorn-Museen

This project conducted research concerning the Benin artifacts at the Reiss-Engelhorn Museums. The first step was determining which artifacts could be definitively allocated to the historical Kingdom of Benin and the context of the British looting of Benin City in 1897. Following the preselection of 66 artifacts, each artifact was thoroughly examined and tested. Intensive research eventually identified 29 artifacts as belonging to this context based on their specific iconography, style, object type, material composition, time of acquisition, the affinity of the dealers and collectors, as well as the available archival and documentation evidence with written and photographic sources from the Mannheim museum and other relevant institutions. Then the provenance of these 29 artifacts was researched in detail by retracing the acquisition activities of the museum and its contacts to collectors, dealers, and auction houses. Furthermore, relevant City Council decisions, ethnographic catalogues, correspondences and scientific publications were examined, added by archival research in Mannheim and other museums. By also networking with other stakeholders in this field, we could attain broad research, knowledge, and understanding of the Benin bronzes at the Mannheim museums. The results of this provenance research may also serve as a basis for discussions about restitutions.

(c) Reiss-Engelhorn-Museen.