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Stolen by British forces from the Kingdom of Benin in what is modern-day Nigeria, the Benin Bronzes are a collection of plaques made between the 13th and 18th centuries. After their theft in 1897, and though roughly half of them became the property of the British Museum, many were purchased by museums in Germany, Austria, and the United States. Some even ended up in private collections; renowned Spanish painter Pablo Picasso supposedly even owned one. Though they were clearly and admittedly stolen by Great Britain in several then-sanctioned acts of looting, acts that would today defy international law regulating such property, the British Museum has remained wholly unrepentant in their ownership of about 700 of the bronzes.