Royal Artillery under fire after denying access to looted Asante treasure

The Guardian - World NewsEN 4 min read 100% complete by Dalya AlbergeFebruary 24, 2026 at 02:45 PM

AI Summary

medium article 4 min

The Royal Artillery is facing criticism for denying public access to a golden ram's head looted from the Asante people of Ghana in 1874. The artifact, taken during the Anglo-Asante wars, is held in the regiment's mess at Larkhill in Wiltshire. The regiment cites security and insurance reasons for refusing access, even to researchers. This comes after the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum agreed to loan 32 pieces of Asante gold regalia to Ghana's Manhyia Palace Museum. A historian representing the Asante king has expressed interest in negotiating with the Royal Artillery for the return of the ram's head.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Wiltshire 40% Larkhill ×250% British Museum 50% Victoria and Albert Museum 50% Ivor Agyeman-Duah 60% Ghana ×260% Kumasi ×260% Manhyia Palace Museum ×260% Barnaby Phillips 60% British Army ×270% Asante ×580% Royal Artillery ×490%

Keywords

looted treasure 90% asante 80% royal artillery 80% restitution 70% ram's head 60% cultural heritage 60% museum access 50% anglo-asante wars 50% officer's mess 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.40

Source Transparency

Source

The Guardian - World News

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Asante

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis.

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looted treasure asante royal artillery restitution ram's head cultural heritage museum access anglo-asante wars officer's mess

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