Big news out of the US yesterday when 30 looted antiquities associated with Douglas Latchford were officially returned to Cambodia. The antiquities include two monumental sculptures of Skanda on a Peacock and Ganesha from Koh Ker.
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Ricky J. Patel, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) in New York, announced today the return to the Kingdom of Cambodia of 30 antiquities which were stolen from Cambodia as part of an organized looting network and sold by antiquities dealer Douglas Latchford. Among the antiquities returned today was a 10th Century sculpture of Skanda on a Peacock and a monumental 10th Century sculpture of Ganesha, both looted from the ancient Khmer capital Koh Ker. Cambodian Ambassador to the United States Keo Chhea received the antiquities today during a ceremony at the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Today, we celebrate the return of Cambodia’s cultural heritage to the Cambodian people, and reaffirm our commitment to reducing the illicit trafficking of art and antiquities. It is with great pleasure that we send the Skanda on a Peacock and the rest of these artworks on the final leg of their journey home.”
HSI Acting Special-Agent-in-Charge Ricky J. Patel said: “These antiquities we return today were ripped from their country. Beyond their extraordinary beauty and craftsmanship, many are sacred artifacts pried from temples and palaces to be smuggled across borders and peddled by those seeking profit, without any regard to the intangible value they have to the people of their homeland. For over five years, the agents and experts in HSI New York’s specialized dedicated Cultural Property, Arts and Antiquities Unit, alongside our government partners, hunted down leads, examined origin, reviewed financial records, and conducted dozens of interviews to find and recover these pieces we are returning today. These artifacts belong to the people of Cambodia, and we are proud to participate in their recovery and their return home.”
Source: U.S. Attorney Announces Return Of 30 Looted Antiquities To Kingdom Of Cambodia | Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York
See also:
- Stolen artifacts sold to US collectors will be repatriated to Cambodia, officials say | Yahoo News, 08 Aug 2022
- U.S. Sends Back 30 Artifacts ‘Ripped from’ Cambodia by Antiquities Dealer Douglas Latchford | ArtNews, 08 Aug 2022
- U.S. Returns 30 Looted Antiquities to Cambodia | New York Times, 09 Aug 2022
- US returns looted relics of ‘extraordinary cultural value’ to Cambodia | CNN, 09 Aug 2022
- US returns 30 stolen antique artworks to Cambodia | AFP. Iraqi News, 09 Aug 2022
- United States returns looted Bronze Age treasures to Cambodia | Washington Post, 09 Aug 2022
- U.S. will return 30 looted antiquities to Cambodia | Reuters, Yahoo, 09 Aug 2022
- Cambodian ambassador: Looted artworks are ‘souls’ of culture | Associated Press, ABC News 09 Aug 2022
- US returns to Cambodia dozens of antiquities looted from historic sites | The Guardian, 09 Aug 2022
- ‘The souls of our culture’: US returns looted antiquities to Cambodia – video | The Guardian, 09 Aug 2022
- Repatriation ceremony marks return of 30 looted treasures to Cambodia | Phnom Penh Post, 09 Aug 2022
- U.S. returns 30 more looted cultural artifacts to Cambodia | Xinhua, 09 Aug 2022
- Feds return 30 stolen ancient artifacts to Cambodia: ‘It’s like a returning of the souls of our culture’ | New York Daily News, Yahoo, 09 Aug 2022
- Stolen artifacts sold to US collectors will be repatriated to Cambodia, officials say | ABC News, 09 Aug 2022
- US returns 30 stolen antiquities to Cambodia | AFP, Manila Times, 10 Aug 2022
- AS US RETURNS LOOTED RELICS TO CAMBODIA, OFFICIALS CALL ON MORE COLLECTORS TO COME CLEAN | ICIJ, 10 Aug 2022
- US Officials Facilitate Return of Looted Antiquities to Cambodia | The Diplomat, 10 Aug 2022
- US Returns 30 Stolen Antiquities From Cambodia’s Historic Sites | Republic World, 10 Aug 2022
- Cambodia Wants Its Stolen Treasures Back—and Will Fight in Court for Them | Newsweek, 10 Aug 2022
- A Looting Matter: Cambodia’s Stolen Antiquities | Scoop, 11 Aug 2022
- US Returns 30 Artifacts Stolen From Cambodia | Hyperallergenic, 11 Aug 2022
- 30 looted antiquities belonging to Cambodia returned by United States | Khmer Times, 11 Aug 2022
