Art lessons: Why France is giving countries back their cultural treasures

In the face of a swelling chorus of demands from Africa and elsewhere, French President Emmanuel Macron has challenged museums around the world to return cultural treasures to the places from which they were taken without consent in colonial times.

Last Friday he lent his backing to an expert report calling for the repatriation of such African artifacts from French collections, and ordered the immediate return of 26 ancient royal items that Benin has requested. His move has shaken up an international debate about what museums should do today with items acquired in dubious circumstances more than 100 years ago – even as some high-profile repatriations by institutions such