The return took place at a ceremony at the French Ministry of Culture on Tuesday, and is seen as part of the former colonial power France's settlement with the country's dark history. The return is made possible through a law from 2023 that facilitates the repatriation of remains.
These skulls ended up in the nation's collections under circumstances that clearly violate human dignity and in a context of colonial violence, said French Culture Minister Rachida Dati at the handover to colleague Volamiranty Donna Mara from Madagascar.
French forces executed King Toera in 1897, along with two more from the Sakalava people group. The remains were then put on display at a museum in Paris.
Their absence, for 128 years, has been an open wound in our island nation's heart, said Mara.
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