Traditional chiefs gathered at Ivory Coast’s main airport on Friday to welcome a “talking drum” looted over a century ago.
This marks the first artefact returned to the West African nation by its former colonial power, France.
Known as “Djidji Ayokwè” (Panther-Lion in Atchan), the drum is over three metres long and weighs nearly 400kg, according to Ivory Coast’s culture ministry.
The Atchan people, native to the southern Ivory Coast, used it to alert locals to forced labour operations by colonisers and to mobilise fighters.
The Ivorian culture ministry is seeking the restitution of 148 artefacts from France. This “talking drum”, previously displayed at the Quai Branly Museum in Paris, is the first to make the return journey.
The talking drum was confiscated in 1916. It was initially kept at the governor’s palace in Abidjan before being sent to France in 1930, according to the culture ministry.
“This is a historic day, and I am deeply moved,” Françoise Remarck, Ivory Coast’s minister of culture and Francophonie, said during Friday’s ceremony, which was punctuated by traditional songs and war dances.
Pressure has grown in recent years for former colonial powers such as France and Britain to return artefacts taken from Africa and Asia.