Indonesia to reclaim 30,210 historical objects from the Netherlands

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2 hours ago

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia is set to receive 30,190 items from the Eugène Dubois Collection and 20 historical cultural objects from the Netherlands under two transfer agreements signed with the Dutch minister of education, culture and science.

Indonesian Culture Minister Fadli Zon said the repatriation marked an important step toward restoring historical justice and cultural sovereignty, as well as recognizing Indonesia’s cultural identity through the return of the objects.

“The repatriation agreement between Indonesia and the Netherlands reaffirms historical justice, the restoration of cultural sovereignty, and recognition of the dignity and cultural identity of the Indonesian nation,” Zon said in a statement in Jakarta.

The return of the Dubois Collection, which includes discoveries of Homo erectus, also known as Java Man, would mark the largest repatriation in Indonesia’s history in terms of both the number of items and their scientific value, he said.

“The Dubois Collection holds immense scientific and historical significance, while reaffirming Indonesia’s place in the history of human evolution and global paleoanthropological research,” he added.

The latest agreement follows an initial transfer on December 17, 2025, when four major items from the Dubois Collection were returned to Indonesia.

The items included a Homo erectus skullcap, a molar, a femur, and an engraved shell, which are now on display at the National Museum of Indonesia.

Under the next phase of the repatriation, 29,763 objects and 427 ancestral skeletal remains will be returned from the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden, the Netherlands.

The second agreement also covers the return of 20 cultural objects from seven collection groups that were taken during the colonial period.

Zon added that the repatriation was part of the constitutional mandate under Article 32 of Indonesia’s 1945 Constitution to advance national culture.

Upon their return, the objects will be managed by the Ministry of Culture according to three main principles: care and conservation, collaborative scientific research, and expanded public access through education.