120 Years of Silence: The Vatican’s Hidden Igbo Staff Revealed

In 2018, a former Vatican archivist made a deathbed confession in Enugu. He said the Vatican forged a 1905 treaty and removed IKENGANMOAGI, the Sacred Ancestral Staff of Ahiara, to Ireland in 1907. Church officials witnessed and recorded his words before they were buried by the diocese. Key evidence is outlined: no original Igbo copy of the 1905 treaty, a 1907 ship manifest listing a “ceremonial staff,” a 1923 museum log at the National Museum of Ireland, and the 2018 confession. The timeline traces the staff’s removal from the Aro expedition, through Nigeria’s amalgamation, the Biafra War, and 120 years of silence. This post breaks that silence and calls for repatriation under heritage law. It establishes a public record and warns against reclassifying IKENGANMOAGI as an anonymous artifact. The return process begins now, with further legal details in the next chapter.

Use The App To Win ₦1m

Stories are shared by community members. This article does not represent the official view of NaijaWorld — the author is solely responsible for its content.