Date of document publication: 2020-12-15
We are looking primarily for objects created for or used within the Benin kingdom up until 1897, including plaques, commemorative heads, carved ivory tusks, figures, shrine objects like bells, pendants, staffs, etc. As this is not always a clearly defined corpus, we are also considering any objects related to Benin that were created and/or circulated from the African continent to Europe or America before the 1930s
Indeed, we would like to consider for inclusion any artworks or objects that tell relevant stories, that add crucial or insightful information to the above core object set, or that reveal a broader picture, such as artworks and information that represent the colonial period of present-day Nigeria, the Raid on the Benin kingdom, and its aftermath:
Digital Benin collates digital material from institutions, and some of this material is inherently colonial and contains words, terms and phrases that are inaccurate, derogatory and harmful towards African and African diasporic communities. Catalogue transcriptions, book titles, exhibition titles and museum titles may contain harmful terms. We recognise the potential for the material to cause physical and mental distress as well as evoke strong emotions. Owing to the scale of the collection’s data, a process to implement sensitive-content warnings in the displayed data is still incomplete. The material within the catalogue does not represent Digital Benin’s views. Digital Benin maintains a strong anti-colonial, anti-racist position and affirms its support for centring the humanity of historically marginalised and disenfranchised communities. Read more about the background of this statement here