Cambodia Welcomes Return of Historical Artefacts from US Museum

Phnom Penh - Cambodia has welcomed the return of two looted Khmer antiquities from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) in New York, following their seizure by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office from the MET, according to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts on Thursday. A formal ceremony marking the handover of the two works was held at the Manhattan District Attorney’s office in New York on Wednesday. The repatriation follows a significant milestone in December 2023, when the MET returned 14 Khmer artefacts to Cambodia after years of negotiations, a press statement said. The two returned artefacts are a sandstone lintel depicting a kala motif from the pre-Angkor period, dating from the seventh or eighth century, and a 10th-century Angkor-era sandstone sculpture identified as the demon Hiranyakasipu from Prasat Chen temple at the Koh Ker archaeological site. The Antiquities Trafficking Unit at the Manhattan District Attorney’s office presented evidence to the MET linking the two works to an illegal trafficking network, the press release stated, adding that after reviewing the evidence, the MET agreed to the repatriation of both artefacts to Cambodia by the District Attorney’s office. Many cultural objects were looted from Cambodia over the years due to war, theft, and illegal trade abroad.