Benin Bronzes

The Ethnological Museum and the Rathgen Research Laboratory of the National Museums in Berlin - Prussian Cultural Heritage created digital images and 3D scans of over 500 objects from the historical Kingdom of Benin using photogrammetric methods. Ownership rights to all these objects from the Ethnological Museum's collection were transferred by the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation to the Federal Republic of Nigeria in August 2022.

The Benin Bronzes, which are actually made of brass rather than bronze, pose a special challenge for X-ray technology: the copper alloy from which the sculptures and reliefs are made is highly absorbent to X-rays in the conventional energy range. Additionally, the Benin objects are significantly larger and more massive than typical other objects subjected to X-ray examination, such as aluminum wheels or engine pistons. To still produce very good, noise-free tomography images with high spatial resolution, researchers at the X-ray Technology Development Center in Fürth use one of the largest CT systems available worldwide.

Throughout the project, new insights into art technology and manufacturing techniques were gained in close coordination with the owners, which ultimately also provide a basis for the potential creation of detailed replicas.