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Cote d'Ivoire: Ivorian Drum, Looted By France, Goes On Display for First Time At Home
RFI, 8 August 2026
The Djidji Ayokwe, a sacred "talking drum" which was looted by French colonial troops in 1916 and taken to France, arrived in its home village in Côte d'Ivoire on Friday,… Read more »
Ivorian Drum Looted by France Goes on Display at Home
Côte d'Ivoire has welcomed home the Djidji Ayokwe, a sacred "talking drum" looted by French colonial troops in 1916. It was returned to the country earlier this year.
The drum, which measured over three metres in length and weighed 430 kilograms, was used by the Ebrie community to send messages, warn of danger, and summon its members. It was paraded through Abidjan before being taken to its home village of Adjame, where traditional leaders and residents held ceremonies to mark its return.
The drum is expected to go on display at the Museum of Civilisations in Abidjan as France faces growing pressure to return African artefacts taken during the colonial era.
InFocus
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French lawmakers have unanimously passed legislation to return the Djidji Ayôkwé talking drum to Côte d'Ivoire, more than a century after colonial troops seized it from the Ebrié people in 1916. The three-metre-long, 430-kilogram drum, once used by the Atchan to send messages across villages, was taken after locals refused to join forced road construction.
Exhibited in Paris since 1922, it remained in the
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Restoration works on the Djidji Ayôkwé, or "talking drum", have now been completed in Paris. The artifact, stored at the Quai Branly museum, is ready to be returned to Côte d'Ivoire under a restitution plan promised by President Emmanuel Macron, writes Ollia Horton for RFI.
The legendary drum, which once belonged to the Ebrié people, (previously known as the Tchamans), was seized by French colonial settlers in 1916. It had been used to warn of
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France has handed over the Djidji Ayokwe "talking drum" to Côte d'Ivoire after it was looted by colonial troops in 1916. This marks another step in the country's wider repatriation of stolen artefacts.
The three-metre-long drum was once used by the Ebrie tribe to send messages. It is one of hundreds of objects looted by France during the reign of its colonial empire, from the 16th century to the
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The Djidji ayôkwé, or talking drum has been restored in a workshop in Paris by experts from Musée du Quai Branly.
