The Empty Grave: The violent legacy of Germany’s colonial rule in Africa

John Mbano, an attorney, has a mission. In 1906, Songea Mbano, a leader of the Ngoni people in southern Tanzania, was executed by the German colonial army. His head was then transported to Germany for racist scientific analysis.

This trauma has remained a constant throughout generations of the family. In search of their ancestor’s skull, John and his wife Cesilia, a history teacher, hope to have it buried with dignity in their native country of Berlin.