The Netherlands will return works of art to Indonesia and Sri Lanka

At least 478 items currently on display in museums in the Netherlands will return to their countries of origin. This decision follows the recommendations of the “colonial collection commission”. Appointed last year, its purpose was to investigate the illegal fishing of the Dutch during the colonial era.

According to Gunu Uslai, the Dutch secretary of state for culture, this is an important event: “This is the first time that, on the recommendation of the Commission for Colonial Collections, objects are returned that should never have been in the Netherlands,” she said. This commission was created after Indonesia, a former Dutch colony, expressed its desire to restore eight works of art and natural history collections. A government statement on Thursday said “the restitution process is well underway.”

Precious and historical objects

The claimed artworks are historical gems for their respective countries. Claimed by the archipelago as the “treasure of Lombok”, plundered in 1894 by the colonial army of the Dutch East Indies during the Lombok War, is on the list of works that the Dutch government declares its desire to return.

The commission’s report also sheds some light on some gray areas regarding the presence of Indonesian and Sri Lankan art in some Dutch museums. This is the case of the 18th century “Levke cannon”, which must have been a gift from the Sri Lankan aristocrat Levke Disawa to the King of Kandy around 1745-1746. According to the commission, the cannon “in all likelihood” became a war trophy in 1765 after the Dutch siege and destruction of the Kandy temple in central Sri Lanka.

In recent years, the colonial heritage of the Netherlands has been at the center of many discussions. On Saturday, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands issued his official apology for his country and dynasty’s involvement in slavery, saying he was “personally and extremely” touched.