Restitution And Repatriation
Introduction
The following resources examine restitution and repatriation in practice.
The Collections Trust define restitution as ‘the process by which cultural objects are returned to an individual or a community. Repatriation is the process by which cultural objects are returned to a nation or state at the request of a government.’
Resources
The Collections Trust restitution and repatriation section includes examples of procedures some museums use and resources for researching and processing a claim.
CARICOM Ten Point Plan For Reparatory Justice from the CARICOM Reparations Commission outlines a path to reconciliation, truth, and justice for victims and their descendants.
The Open Restitution Project is an Africa-led project seeking to open up access to information on restitution of African material culture and human ancestors, to empower all stakeholders involved to make knowledge-based decisions.
The ICOM International Committee for University Museums and Collections has published Guidance for Restitution and Return of items from university museums and collections.
The Pitt Rivers Museum current research on African restitution involves three programmes each focused on supporting efforts to return African cultural heritage currently held in European museums and collections to the continent of Africa, on a case-by-case basis.