More than a century after it was taken as a colonial war trophy, the skull of King Toera of Madagascar has been formally returned to his homeland. The handover, which also included the remains of two of his court members, took place Thursday at a ceremony at the French Culture Ministry in Paris.
The skulls, taken to France in the late 19th century and kept in the archives of the Museum of Natural History in Paris, were returned under a new French law designed to expedite the restitution of human remains obtained during the colonial era.
French Culture Minister Rachida Dati acknowledged the grim history tied to the remains, saying:
“These skulls entered the national collections in circumstances that clearly violated human dignity and in a context of colonial violence.”
King Toera, ruler of the Menabé kingdom of the Sakalava people in western Madagascar, was killed in August 1897 when French troops massacred his army in a campaign to expand colonial control. After his death, his body was decapitated, and his head was shipped to Paris as a war relic.
Efforts to reclaim King Toera’s skull have been ongoing for decades, led by his descendants and the government of Madagascar. Although DNA testing was inconclusive in confirming the skull’s identity, a traditional Sakalava spirit medium ultimately verified it as belonging to the slain monarch.
At the Paris ceremony, Madagascar’s Culture Minister Volamiranty Donna Mara called the return of the skulls a moment of healing:
“Their absence has been, for more than a century, an open wound in the heart of our island. This return is a significant gesture.”
France has previously returned human remains taken during the colonial era, most notably in 2012, when the body of Sarah Baartman, a South African woman cruelly exploited as the “Hottentot Venus,” was repatriated.
However, this is the first restitution under a new French law that accelerates the return of such remains. Experts estimate that the Museum of Natural History alone holds more than 20,000 human remains collected from across the globe, many obtained during colonial conquests and pseudo-scientific expeditions.
For Madagascar, the repatriation of King Toera’s skull is more than a symbolic act; it represents a step toward reclaiming dignity and addressing the painful legacies of colonialism. Ceremonies are expected in Madagascar upon the remains’ arrival, where they will be laid to rest in accordance with Sakalava traditions.
Credit: BBC
