British museum to return royal hair seized in Ethiopia 150 years ago

FILE PHOTO: A traditionally-dressed Ethiopian woman walks past a mural depicting Ethiopia's Emperor Tewodros II in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, June 1, 2007. REUTERS/Andrew Heavens/File Photo

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - A museum in Britain has agreed to return a ruler's locks of hair cut from his corpse by a British soldier more than 150 years ago, Ethiopia said on Monday.

Emperor Tewodros II took his own life after his defeat by British troops at the Battle of Magdala in northern Ethiopia in 1868. His son, Prince Alemayehu, was subsequently taken to Britain, where he died in 1879 aged 18.