Gabon asked the French court on Monday to return a Fang mask, in legal action initiated after a French couple sold it for 150 euros to a merchant who later auctioned it for 4.2 million euros.
The second-hand goods dealer resold the typically Gabonese mask at auction on March 26, 2022, for an almost record price for an object of this type, despite protests in the room, from Gabonese people who asked for its return to the country of origin.
In the process, which began in Alès (South of France), two lawyers representing the transitional government of Gabon asked for voluntary intervention in order to “achieve the successive annulment of the sales of this mask, its repatriation and the consignment of funds “, according to lawyer Olivia Betoe, cited by AFP.