“Dahomey” documents the return to Benin of looted treasures

Colonial powers around the globe seized thousands of artifacts from the countries they conquered and then exploited. Most museums have been slow to repatriate their holdings, though each return brings joy. This is the case for the twenty-six art works recently returned by France's Musée du Quai Branly's to the country now known as Benin, then Dahomey.  

French Senegalese filmmaker Mati Diop's documentary "Dahomey" follows the packing and delivery of these valuable treasures from the Musée du Quai Branly to their glorious reception in Cotonou, Benin's largest city. An exhibition at the Presidential palace celebrates the homecoming of these priceless masterpieces appropriated, among hundreds of other works, by the French in the 1890s. An artist herself, Diop goes far beyond a mere chronicling of the restitution. She creatively and powerfully brings the past and present to life, complemented by the haunting score of French Beninese keyboardist Wally Badarou.

The film begins with the imagined, rumbling voice of the imposing statue of Dahomean King Béhanzin expressing anxiety, saying, "I'm torn between the fear of not being recognized by anyone and not recognizing anyone." From centuries ago (he died in 1906), this royal personage views the distorted, changed world. The second half of "Dahomey" resides in the present as local students from the University of Abomey-Calavi outside Cotonou passionately debate their emotional and philosophical reactions to viewing and considering the twenty-six artifacts. Some cried, others regretted speaking in the colonizers' French language about their history, critiquing Benin's contemporary geopolitics, religion, and privilege.

Diop has said she wanted to "create a space where lost lives can find second breath." Sadly, the 2022 exhibition of these artworks has closed, all the pieces now in storage, and a promised exhibition space repeatedly delayed. Here's hoping the politics at play lead to everyone soon able to view and cherish these cultural, historical jewels. Winner of this year's Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival, in English, French, and Fon with English subtitles, "Dahomey" screens at Webster University’s Winifred Moore auditorium Friday, November 29, through Sunday, December 1, at 7:00 each of those evenings. For more information, you may visit the film series website at: Webster.edu/filmseries.