Australia’s national gallery will repatriate three bronze sculptures from the 9th and 10th Centuries back to Cambodia, having determined that they were stolen artifacts.
This decision follows a decade-long joint investigation between the two countries to establish the provenance of these artworks.
The move has been warmly received by Cambodia’s government, which sees it as a significant step towards addressing historical injustices.
This development comes in the midst of a global movement to return unlawfully acquired cultural items.
Originating from the Champa Kingdom, which was once present in parts of Cambodia and Vietnam, the three sculptures were purchased by the National Gallery of Australia (NGA) in 2011 for A$2.3 million from British art smuggler Douglas Latchford, who passed away in 2020.
The NGA revealed that Latchford had been linked to illegal antiquities trade since 2016 and was charged in 2019 in connection to trafficking stolen and looted Cambodian artifacts.
Reportedly, the statues were unearthed in a Cambodian field in 1994 and then smuggled across the border to Thailand, where they were eventually acquired by Latchford’s collection.
Working alongside researchers from the NGA and Cambodia’s Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, Latchford’s daughter, Nawapan Kriangsak, played a role in facilitating the return of the artifacts.
For a period of three years, the sculptures will be exhibited at the NGA in Canberra, allowing Cambodia time to prepare a suitable location for their display in Phnom Penh.
Australia’s Special Envoy for the Arts, Susan Templeman, commented during a handover ceremony that this action not only corrects a historical wrong but also strengthens ties and deepens mutual understanding.
Cambodia has consistently called upon the international community to help recover thousands of antiquities, including pieces allegedly held at institutions such as the Victoria and Albert Museum and the British Museum.
This marks the second instance where the NGA has repatriated stolen artworks. In 2021, the gallery returned several artifacts, dating as far back as the 11th Century, to India. These items were linked to alleged antiquities smuggler Subhash Kapoor and the late New York art dealer William Wolff.
Globally, efforts persist in restoring culturally significant antiquities to their rightful origins. For instance, in March, it was announced that four Aboriginal spears taken by British explorer Captain James Cook in 1770 would be returned to their Indigenous owners after a two-decade campaign by First Nations communities. The spears had been held at Cambridge University.
Source – bbc.com
