Items include the bones of ‘Java Man’, the first known fossil of Homo erectus, unearthed in the 19th century by Dutch paleontologist Eugène Dubois.
Indonesia has asked the Netherlands – who used to be a colony of the country – to return eight collection of historical artefacts from its museumsincludes the bones of “Java Man”, the first known fossil of the species Homo erectus into which humans are thought to have evolved.
Artifacts, okay classified as “robbery” of Jakarta, including statues from the ancient Hindu kingdom of Singhasari of Java, personal items of an Indonesian national hero, and unearthed bones in Java in the 19th century by the Dutch paleontologist Eugène Dubois, who became known as the Javanese.
Bonnie Triyana, a historian and member of the Indonesian team working on repatriation, told Reuters on Friday: “The main purpose is to return the items and produce knowledge.
Bonnie said the group’s main focus is on state-owned collections in national museums, including the Netherlands’ Naturalis Center for Biodiversity, which houses the Man’s femur and skull Java. Bonnie said the request was filed in July.
“These artifacts are indicative of a much larger event,” he said.
A Dutch colony from 1800 to 1949, Indonesia is known as the Dutch East Indies and was an important source of wealth for the Dutch thanks to the exploitation of natural resources and the trade in spices and metals. precious and mineral species.
Dutch media covered the Indonesian request this week.
The Trouw daily reported on Tuesday that the list of artefacts Indonesia has requested is extensive and includes the completed Dubois collection located at Naturalis, which includes about 40,000 fossils unearthed in Indonesia from around 40,000 years ago. 1887 to 1900.
“The absolute masterpiece from the Dubois collection, the remains of the so-called Java Man, is even explicitly mentioned,” Trouw reported.
A Naturalis spokesman told the newspaper that such a request from Indonesia was expected and the museum would cooperate. the question of the safety of the artifact needs to be addressed.
“We understand Indonesia’s claim. But the question is: Where can the Collection be safely stored, accessed and studied? I think I know the answer,” Trouw quoted the spokesperson as saying.
The NRC news agency reported that Bonnie – a member of the Indonesian repatriation group – said the list of eight collections and artefacts is just the beginning, and that the Dubois and Java Man collections have been the focus of discussions. debate between Indonesia and the Netherlands since 1954. Indonesia declared its independence in 1945.
“It is not known when Indonesia will draw the remaining list. According to the researchers, an estimated 300,000 objects in Dutch collections may be colonial looted artworks.” NRC reported on Tuesday.
The Netherlands previously returned museum pieces to Indonesia, including a dagger owned by Javanese prince Diponegoro, which was donated in 2020.
The Ministry of Education and Science in the Netherlands, which coordinates the repatriation process, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
