The Djidji Ayokwe, a sacred "talking drum" looted by French colonial troops in 1916, was returned to its home village in Ivory Coast on Friday, August 8th, 2026. The drum, over three meters long and weighing 430 kilograms, was used by the Ebrie tribe to transmit messages.

The return ceremony coincided with Ivory Coast's national independence day holiday and marked the first time contemporary Ivorians were able to see the drum. It was carried in a military parade through the Yopougon district of Abidjan before continuing to Adjame, the village where it was originally made.

Ivory Coast had requested the drum's return in late 2018 as part of a broader effort to reclaim 148 works of art taken during the colonial period. The drum was officially handed over in February 2026 and arrived in Ivory Coast in March aboard a specially chartered plane, though it remained in its crate until the ceremony.

The drum had been seized by French colonial authorities in 1916, shipped to Europe in 1929, and exhibited in Paris for decades. It is among hundreds of stolen artifacts that France is preparing to return to Africa following a new French law approved in May 2026.

Adjame mayor Farikou Soumahoro emphasized the importance of heritage preservation, stating, "A nation cannot develop if it doesn't preserve its memory and promote its heritage." Traditional leader Cyriaque Ahoure, 63, expressed his emotions, saying he had come to share a moment of "great joy, when we remembering our ancestors."

Ivorians expressed a desire to see the drum with their own eyes to truly believe it belongs to them.

Sources