How did Berlin Museums get the Benin Bronzes? Part One What role do the self-dubbed, ‘great’ museums of the Western world play in colonialism? Hari Kumar 19/01/2022 Earliest known photograph of Oba’s compound, Benin City, May 1891. Photo by Cyril Punch. Public Domain After much bluster, the Berlin Humboldt Forum finally agreed to return its collection of the ‘Benin Bronzes’ to its native Nigeria. What are these Bronzes, how did many end up in Berlin? First of a two part article. 1. World museums gloss over brutal acquisitions Walking through museums we are often awed by their beautiful artifacts. The most famous museums dub themselves a venue of “the world’s civilizations!” Some believe this and do not see any of the blood of former owners or makers dripping over the art. But an important image that should come to mind is the violent, physical robbery of the colonies. This was fused into a core racism around ‘enslavement’, as Marx put it : “The discovery of gold ...