The UK's Victoria and Albert Museum has offered to return on loan treasures to Ethiopia seized by British troops 150 years ago, including an ornate crown, a royal wedding dress and a gold chalice.

The offer came as some of the objects go on display until June 2019 at the museum in London to mark the anniversary of the Maqdala battle in 1868.

Historians say 15 elephants and 200 mules were needed to cart away all the loot from Maqdala.

Ethiopian artifacts looted by the British colonialists in the 19th century are on a display in London, but a top Ethiopian official says the treasures belong to Addis Ababa and needs to be returned to its rightful owner.

Ethiopia hopes the display at the London's Victoria and Albert museum open until June 2019 will help in the eventual return of the lost treasures.

The items, which include a gold crown, a gold chalice and a royal wedding dress, were stolen after the capture of Meqdela - the mountain capital of the then Ethiopian ruler, Emperor Tewodross II, in 1868.