Ngonnso - The Stolen Mother – Cameroon | Germany
Life stories
Marc Sebastian Eils and Sylvie Vernyuy Njobati, 2024
Ngonnso represents the identity, culture, and history of the Nso people in Cameroon and in the diaspora: She is the foundress of the Nso dynasty; a wooden statue was carved in her memory after her death. When German colonial troops invaded the Nso Fondom, they looted the wooden statue of Ngonnso from the palace in Kumbo along with other royal regalia and took her to the Ethnological Museum in Berlin.
Since the Nso gained information about her whereabouts, they have been trying to bring her back home. After decades of diplomatic and activist work, Ngonnso is now finally set for restitution. However, the long-awaited return to Cameroon is yet to come because negotiations between Germany and Cameroon at government level are dragging on.
The story of Ngonnso bears witness to the theft and abduction of cultural belongings during the German colonial era. It also shows how communities affected by colonial robbery fight for the return of their spiritual und cultural goods—and how lengthy restitution processes can be.
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References:
Assilkinga, Mikaél et al.: Atlas der Abwesenheit: Kameruns Kulturerbe in Deutschland. Berlin, 2023, URL: https://doi.org/10.11588/arthi...
Bulami, Edward Fonyuy: Colonial Disruptions on African Cultural Heritage: Documenting the Ngonnso Restitution Saga from 1902-2024, 2024.
Fanso, Verkijika G. / Chilver, Elizabeth. M.: Nso’ and the Germans: The First Encounters in Contemporary Documents and in Oral Tradition, in: Chem-Langhëë, Bongfen / Fanso, Verkijika G. (Ed.): Nso’ and its Neighbours. Readings in the Social History of the Western Grassfields of Cameroon, 2011, pp. 119-151.
Splettstößer, Anne: Umstrittene Sammlungen. Vom Umgang mit kolonialem Erbe aus Kamerun in ethnologischen Museen. Die Fälle Tange/Schiffschnabel und Ngonnso‘/Schalenträgerfigur in Deutschland und Kamerun, 2019, URL: https://doi.org/10.17875/gup20....
Tangwa, Godfrey B. / Refem, Fogha MC Cornilius alias Wan wo Layir: In Defence of Theft? On the Theft and Restitution of Ngonnso’ and Punitive Exhibitions, in: Adjei, Sela K./ LeGall, Yann (Ed.): Fifteen Colonial Thefts. A Guide to Looted African Heritage in Museums, 2014, pp. 124-135.
Stationen
Foundress of the Nso dynasty
Memory and Identity
Looting of the royal palace
Theft and Displacement
Ngonnso in Berlin
Visit to the Museum’s Storage
Protest against the Humboldt Forum
Decision to return home
Fon of Nso in Berlin