On Friday, August 8th, 2026, Ivory Coast celebrated the return of the Djidji Ayokwe, a sacred "talking drum" looted by French colonial troops in 1916. The drum, which was taken to France and exhibited in Paris for decades, arrived back in its home village in Ivory Coast during a ceremony held on the nation's independence day.

The imposing wooden drum, over three metres (10 feet) long and weighing 430 kilograms, was traditionally used by the Ebrie tribe to transmit messages. Although officially handed over in February and arriving in Ivory Coast in March aboard a specially chartered plane, it had remained in its crate until the public ceremony.

The homecoming parade carried the drum through the Yopougon district of Abidjan before it continued to Adjame, the village where it was originally made. Adjame mayor Farikou Soumahoro emphasized the importance of cultural heritage, stating, "A nation cannot develop if it doesn't preserve its memory and promote its heritage."

Traditional leader Cyriaque Ahoure, 63, expressed his emotions at the event, saying he had come to share a moment of "great joy, when we remembering our ancestors."

Ivory Coast had requested the return of the Djidji Ayokwe among 148 works of art taken during the colonial period in late 2018. The drum is among hundreds of stolen artifacts that France is preparing to send back to Africa, following a new French law approved in May 2026.

The drum was seized by French colonial authorities in 1916 and shipped to Europe in 1929, where it was displayed in Paris for many years.

Sources

Africanews