December 19, 2023
BANGKOK – The museum initiated the move by writing to Phanombut Chantarachot, director-general of the Fine Arts Department, specifically addressing the repatriation of two bronze statues – the “Golden Boy” statue of the Hindu deity Shiva and a kneeling female figure with arms raised above the head.
“The Foreign Ministry and the Fine Arts Department are cooperating to bring those artefacts back,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Kanchana Patarachoke said.
She added that the Foreign Ministry, the Fine Arts Department and related agencies were part of a committee formed in 2017 dedicated to the repatriation of Thai artefacts.
The committee has, so far, successfully overseen the return of several artefacts, including the lintel of Nong Hong Castle in Buri Ram, 13 wooden Buddha figures and antiquities from the Ban Chiang Archaeological Site, she added.
Reuters reported last Friday that the Metropolitan Museum of Art has pledged to return more than a dozen pieces of ancient artwork to Cambodia and Thailand. This decision follows their connection to art dealer Douglas Latchford, accused of running an antiquities trafficking network in Southeast Asia. Latchford was indicted in 2019 for allegedly orchestrating a multiyear scheme to sell looted Cambodian antiquities on the international art market. He consistently denied involvement in the smuggling and died the following year.
As part of this recent repatriation effort, the museum will return 14 Khmer sculptures to Cambodia and two to Thailand. The ongoing effort to repatriate artefacts reflects a collective acknowledgement of the importance of restoring cultural heritage to its rightful origins.