Germany returns Samoan artifacts looted during civil war

“The taking of the head is part of a global looting of cultural heritage and is an unacceptable colonial practice.” said Katja Keul, Minister of State at the German Federal Foreign Office.

Written by Raj Keresoma

Apia, Samoa – July 12, 2024 – The only remaining Samoan hull at the bow spouse The warship, captured during the Samoan Civil War in 1888, returned to the motherland after 134 years.

The artifact was handed over to the Samoan government by German Federal Foreign Minister Katja Keul at a ceremony at the National University of Samoa on Wednesday evening.

The handover ceremony also marked the end of a four-year collaborative project between the Bremen Overseas Museum and the National University of Singapore to study the ethnographic history of the artifact and its significance to Samoan culture.

Katja Keul, a minister of state in the German government, was speaking in front of a screen showing a picture of the Taumualua warship, with the original bow in the foreground.

history spouse and the bow
The civil war took place between the Tamasese camp in Mulinu and the Matafa camp in Mata-Utu.

this spouse The warship belonged to the Mataafa camp and one night it rowed through the harbor looking for a cannon believed to have fallen from a ship near the Tamasese camp.

They searched secretly and found the cannon, and as they rowed back to camp singing due to the success of their mission, they were heard by nearby German troops.

Someone ordered them to stop, but they jumped out of their canoes and pushed through. They reached the camp, but the German troops followed closely behind and captured spouse.

The artillery fire killed some campers and destroyed the homes of some American and British residents along the coast.

“spouse It was attacked and destroyed by the military, and the bow was taken to Germany as a trophy,” Kuhl said.

In 1932, a naval officer donated the bow to the Ubersee Museum in Bremen, Germany, where it remained for many years.

A copy of the MoU was signed by Dr. Wiebke Arhndt, Director of the Overseas Museum Bremen, Professor Tuifuisa’a Patila Amosa, President and Rector of the National University of Samoa and Ms. Katja Keul, Minister of State of Germany.

Signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National University of Singapore
“Today we witness the return to the motherland of Samoa of this historic bow, a symbol of the many relationships between Samoa and Germany, past and present,” the Minister said.

The minister said that despite the distance between the two countries, they share a common history, common values ​​and the goal of working together for a better future.

The Minister was pleased to be in Samoa, particularly to participate in the handover activities during her tenure as Minister of State, which included cultural heritage and addressing the issue of German colonial history, particularly through open and frank discussions and raising awareness.

“History is important because we all need to understand where we came from in order to know where we are going and bring artifacts back to Samoa.
It will help make cultural heritage visible and accessible in the here and now,” she said.

In 2021, the Lake Ueber Museum proposed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish a cooperative project with the National University of Samoa.

The aim is to conduct a comprehensive study of Bremen’s renowned collection of Samoan artifacts and to create a digital record of the entire collection.

Desmond Lee Hang, Professor Lealaimanua Emma Kruse Vaai, Vice-President of the National University of Singapore, Dr. Wiebke Arhndt, Director of the Bremen Maritime Museum, Ms. Katja Keul, German Minister of State, Ms. Si’alei Van Toor, High Commissioner of New Zealand, and Professor Tuifuisa’a Patila Amosa, Vice-President of the National University of Singapore, standing at the front of the ship.

The project is called “Blue Continent-Platform” It has led to many meetings, mutual visits and new insights among scientists.

The goal is to publish the findings in a digital exhibition so that the Samoan people and the world can learn about part of Samoa’s cultural heritage.

An exhibition of all the artifacts will be held in Samoa in September, and another exhibition will be held in Bremen, Germany in March 2025.

“The Prow and Bremen collections tell us something about a history of appropriation that will now be reversed. Cultural artifacts are an important part of everyone’s identity and no one should be deprived of that,” Kuhl said.

She also noted that the German Government’s position was for the Samoan people to recover and fully enjoy items that were part of their cultural heritage.

“It will give us an opportunity to reflect on history and to exchange open, reliable information about our shared past,” she said.

Professor Tuifuisa’a Patila Malua Amosa, Vice-President of the National University of Singapore, expressed gratitude to the German Government and the Ubseee Museum on behalf of the Samoan Government.

“The collaboration between the Ubese Museum and the National University of Singapore is an important milestone in provenance research in the Pacific and Samoa,” Tuifuisa said.

She said the team from the Ubersee Museum and the National University of Singapore thoroughly investigated the ethnographic history of an object that many people consider insignificant.

“This bow holds information about a piece of Samoa’s history that is usually preserved in our oral stories, textbooks and museums.”

During the investigation, researchers used collectors’ diaries, archival records and missionary writings to piece together the history of an object stolen from Samoa in 1888, she said.

“The return of the head not only connects to Samoa’s history, but also allows students, community members, visitors and Samoan leaders to engage in deeper conversations about Samoa’s history in the classroom and in the community.”

The handover ceremony ended with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Germany, the Lake Ueber Museum and the National University of Samoa.