In a powerful act of cultural restoration, three sacred artefacts, looted from South Africa over a century ago, have been formally returned to the Nkuna royal family of Limpopo during a ceremony in the Swiss city of Neuchâtel.
The handover, which coincided with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state visit to Switzerland, marks the culmination of years of delicate negotiations between the Ethnographic Museum of Neuchâtel (MEN), the Nkuna family, and South African authorities. The returned items—a carved wooden stick, a divination basket, and a bovine astragalus amulet—date back to the 19th century and were once central to the spiritual and ritual life of the Nkuna community.
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter presided over the event, describing it as “a gesture of friendship and respect” and underscoring Switzerland’s commitment to confronting historical wrongs. The artefacts were originally collected by Swiss missionary Henri-Alexandre Junod between 1889 and 1921. While historical records indicate Junod obtained them directly from the family and documented their significance with admiration, their removal represented a profound loss of cultural heritage.
For the Nkuna community and South Africa at large, the return is more than a symbolic gesture; it is a restoration of ancestral dignity and a critical step in healing the wounds of the colonial era. Valued collectively at over $120,000, the artefacts are now destined for a homecoming display in Limpopo, where they will be ceremonially reintegrated into the living culture from which they were taken, reconnecting a community with a vital piece of its stolen soul.
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