New Study Identifies Source of Brass Used to Make Benin Bronzes

New research shows that many of the famous Benin Bronzes pillaged by British colonial officers in 1897 are made of brass manillas from the German Rhineland, reports Clare Roth for Deutsche Welle.

The vast majority of the Benin Bronzes were pillaged during that initial raid before the UK took over the brass trade in West Africa. Most of the over 3,000 Benin Bronzes are exhibited in institutions in Europe and North America, such as the Ethnological Museum of Berlin and the British Museum in London, while only a small number of them are currently housed in Nigerian museums.

Researchers have long suspected that the brass used to create the impressive sculptures was transported to Benin via Portuguese trade routes in the 15th century, but they haven't been able to pinpoint where the metals originated in Europe.

Researchers analysed around 70 "tacoais" manillas from shipwrecks in African, American, and European waters between the 16th and 19th centuries. They found that the composition of the tacoais manillas was very similar to the composition of Benin Bronzes, both containing ores from Germany's Rhineland.