© National Army MuseumLondon’s National Army Museum is to restitute locks of hair of emperor Tewodros, which will now be buried on Ethiopian soil. An artist cut the hair from the emperor’s body a few hours after Tewodros committed suicide following his defeat at the battle of Maqdala in 1868. Unlike some major UK museums, the National Army Museum is able to deaccession. Although the National Army Museum is not releasing details of the provenance, the emperor’s hair was acquired by Lieutenant Frank James, who was also an artist. James’s descendants gave the hair to the museum in 1959, along with some watercolours of the battle.

Source: Ethiopian News March 04, 2019 11:37 UTC