Britain returns Ethiopian Emperor’s hair as other European countries remain adamant

Ethiopian treasures among them Emperor’s hair has been handed over to Ethiopia by Britain.

The British National Army Museum has returned to the Ethiopian government the hair locks of Emperor Tewodros II – more than 150 years after they were taken during the invasion of the African state.

Ethiopians sang and danced as the two pieces of hair were handed over to Culture and Tourism Minister Hirut Weldemariam at a ceremony in London, BBC reports.

“It a source of a good fortune and pride to stand here today to receive the remains of one of Ethiopia’s most beloved and admired emperors,” Hirut said.

And she applauded the museum’s “brave and principled decision to bring the emperor’s hair to its rightful home”.

Museum director Justin Maciejewski said the governing body of the museum took into account the “unique” nature of the pieces of hair.

The museum had always considered the hair as an “object” and had to reclassify them as “human remains” in order to hand them over, Mr Maciejewski said.

France president Emmanuel Macron commissioned on the restitution of African treasures and announced that the Qual Branly Museum in Paris would return 26 objects, looted by French colonial forces in 1892, to Benin.

On the other side, some European countries think that Africans are not ‘ready’ to receive the artifacts.

Didier Rykner who is the Director of LA Tribune De l ‘Art believes that the arts were meant to disappear and Africans were not making work of arts.

Are Africans ready for the arts or Europeans just don’t want to give it back?