During the British expeditionto Benin City (Edo) in 1897 objects made of brass, bronze, ivory, coral, and wood were looted by British soldiers from the royal palace, its storerooms, and compounds. Some of these objects were sold or exchanged in West Africa. However, many were brought to the UK where they were retained by soldiers of the expeditionand subsequently inherited by thier families; put up for auction; or donated, lent, or sold to museums. See Collection File: Af1897,-.498-563.
Read & Dalton 1899: This armlet, though not apparently less old than the two preceding ones (Af.-519 &518), is in a much better state of preservation. The designs upon it are in bold relief, and represent two Europeans on horseback and two on foot. Each horseman guides his horse by a chain, and holds a dagger in his right hand and another in his belt ; the men on foot are similarly dressed, and each holds with both hands what appears to be a barbed spear or a club. Over the head of each man is a leopard; those over the horsemen hold an animal in their paws. There are also two birds and the conventional figure of an elephant's trunk.