Restitution

European Parliament calls for restitution overhaul

Resolution includes proposals for database of looted art, support for provenance research and exemptions from statutes of limitations

Met hands over an Egyptian coffin that it says was looted

Describing itself as a victim of fraud, museum says it cooperated with district attorney's investigation

Heirs of Baron Herzog continue battle for Nazi-looted art collection despite US Supreme Court dismissal

Decades-long case to reclaim works held in Hungary’s museums will now go through US District Court

Spanish art dealer returns carved stones from a Nabatean temple to Jordan

Helped by an Oxford academic, Diego López de Aragón raised the alarm after acquiring the pieces from the estate of a Spanish diplomat and collector

Germany allocates €1.9m for museums to research colonial-era acquisitions

An eight-member panel including Bénédicte Savoy will assess grant applications

Nigeria calls for return of Lander Stool from the British Museum

Woodcarving was taken from the African country in 1830 by the UK explorer Richard Lander

Ivan the Terrible returns to Ukraine

19th-century oil painting, stolen during the Second World War, was found in the US

Looted ‘cannibal’ bowl will not travel to Quai Branly in Paris for Oceania exhibition

Royal Academy says conservation issues—not restitution fears—mean the ceremonial feast trough can not be loaned

Eurocentrism still sets the terms of restitution of African art

A selective view of African cultural heritage continues the colonialist paradigm

French antiquities dealers slam ‘shocking’ report on restituting African art

Dealers’ association seeks meeting with culture minister over fears report will open the door to numerous restitution claims for a range of artefacts

Restitutionanalysis

The repatriation debate intensifies as calls for post-colonial restitution grow—but is it legal?

Recommendations from Savoy-Sarr report into restitution by French museums may contravene the country’s laws

Dutch policy on Nazi-loot restitutions under fire

The “smallest and most chilling distinctions are being made in order to allow museums to keep their collections intact,” experts say

Britain's pillaging of the Benin Bronzes begs for a reasonable resolution

As debate grows over Europe's 19th-century cultural plunder of Africa, the key is to ensure meaningful access

Scholars call for Berlin centre on colonial-era heritage

Appeal published in Die Zeit welcomes Macron report but says debate should not be limited to restitution

Podcastspodcast

Should looted colonial art be returned?

We weigh up the arguments for and against the restitution of African art taken during the colonial period with Vicky Ngari-Wilson, Nicholas Thomas and Ugochukwu-Smooth Nzewi. Produced in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793.

Hosted by Ben Luke. Produced by Julia Michalska, David Clack and Aimee Dawson

2018 in museums: big ethics questions dominate the field

Museums are facing greater scrutiny over sponsorship and the artists they choose to display

DR Congo to request restitution of works from former coloniser Belgium

Country's president Joseph Kabila made the announcement ahead of opening of revamped Africa Museum outside Brussels

Lawnews

Italian court says Getty Museum must surrender prized bronze Statue of a Victorious Youth

The Los Angeles institution counters that it will keep on fighting to maintain the linchpin of its collection

Should we relinquish our insistence on privileging original works of art?

Technological wizardry in replication is improving, alongside claims to relocate far-flung treasures

Podcastspodcast

Exclusive interview with Edmund de Waal, plus Roma persecution

How artists fight persecution is explored with the artist and author of the Hare with Amber Eyes and Krzysztof Gil, who describes the chilling history of "Roma hunting". Produced in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793.

Hosted by Ben Luke. Produced by Julia Michalska, David Clack and Aimee Dawson

Senegal and Ivory Coast will ask for return of objects in French museums

Statements come just days after the release of a controversial French report on the restitution of African artefacts

Legal challenges remain for restituting African artefacts from French museums

Getting around the inalienability of public collections is dealt with in the report—but it might not work legally and practically

Restitution Report: museum directors respond

The French academics Bénédicte Savoy and Felwine Sarr urge President Macron to return African artefacts. But does the report go too far, or not far enough?

TRISTRAM HUNT, HARTMUT DORGERLOH and NICHOLAS THOMAS

French President Emmanuel Macron calls for international conference on the return of African artefacts

Announcement comes after controversial report urged the president to return works taken “without consent” in the colonial period

'Give Africa its art back', Macron's report says

A new report on the status of African objects in French museums will urge the president to return works taken “without consent” in the colonial period

Dusseldorf auction house returns Dutch seascape to heirs of Jewish art dealer Max Stern

Auctioneer Frank Hargesheimer compensates consignor, sees “moral duty” to restitute art lost due to Nazi persecution

Austria returns wrong Klimt to wrong family

Painting of apple trees is pulled from exhibition after admission that its restitution was a mistake

Sotheby’s to auction Kirchner and Kokoschka paintings returned to Jewish dealer’s heirs

The paintings restituted to family of Alfred Flechtheim carry top estimates of $20m each

President Rouhani personally takes looted ancient relief back from New York to Tehran

Piece depicting a Persian soldier was seized last year at Tefaf New York