Documentary chronicles return of artworks looted by 19th-century French soldiers to West Africa

"Dahomey," the latest film by French-Senegalese Mati Diop, arrived in theaters on October 26, 2024, buoyed by its critical success in Europe. The film premiered in Benin and Senegal before its release in France and has been praised for its thought-provoking exploration of colonialism and restitution.

Born in France to a Senegalese family, Diop began her relationship with cinema as an actress in Claire Denis's film "35 Shots of Rum" (2008), where she played the daughter of a Black man, while also directing her first short films. She gained international recognition with her debut feature "Atlantics," which won the Grand Prix at Cannes in 2019 and was picked up by Netflix.

"Dahomey" chronicles the return of 26 artworks looted from the West African Kingdom of Dahomey by French colonizers during the invasion in November 1892. During this invasion, French troops took over 7,000 artifacts.

In November 2021, French President Emmanuel Macron approved the return of these 26 treasures—sculptures, fetishes, ornaments, and cult objects—to Benin. The film documents the technical aspects of the restitution and the labor involved in preserving and transferring the artworks.

Mati Diop uses a blend of documentary and cinematic formats to create a poignant meeting point between past and present. The film includes fantastical touches, such as giving a literal voice to object number 26—a human-sized wooden statue that is an allegorical portrait of King Ghezo. This statue, dubbed "Number 26" by the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris, is voiced by Haitian author Makenzy Orcel and rendered otherworldly by sound designers. King Béhanzin's voice is one of the few fantastical elements added to the otherwise nonfiction film.

Through the voice of Artifact No. 26, the film expresses the thoughts and feelings of the artifacts themselves regarding their return. At one point, the off-screen voice in "Dahomey" expresses, "I am torn between the fear that no one will recognize me and that I do not recognize anything," echoing the anxieties of the artwork itself about recognition.

The film shows conservators and curators carefully packing the artifacts in Paris, with the camera remaining coolly observant as relics are prepared for their journey. Upon arrival in Benin, the artifacts were celebrated with a popular festival, and over 200,000 visitors admired the returned treasures at Benin's presidential palace over just a few months.

Diop gathers Beninese college students for a debate on the significance of the treasures' return. One student states, "Barely 26 pieces returned is an infinitesimal number, an insult."

This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq