Antique bronze statue of Goddess Durga returned home

Statue of Goddess Durga

The artifact arrived in Hanoi on June 18 in complete condition. The statue is 191 cm tall and weighs 101 kg, cast of the Hindu Goddess Durga, with an oval face, half-closed eyes, a high nose, pursed mouth, and a round chin. The goddess has four arms, her lower body wrapped in a sarong that reaches her ankles, and her waist is tied with a flower-shaped string.

According to the Department of Cultural Heritage, this is a rare artifact, dating from the 17th century, reflecting the cultural, religious and spiritual life of the Champa people - an important part, constituting the diversity and unity of the Vietnamese ethnic community.

Authorities received the statue in September 2023 in London but have only now completed the procedures to bring the artifact back to the country.

In August 2023, the US Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security coordinated with the London Metropolitan Police (UK) to confiscate a bronze statue of the four-armed Goddess Durga from an investigation into illegal antiquities trafficking, proposing to return the antiquities to Vietnam.

After receiving the information, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism directed functional units to research, cross-check documents and determine that the bronze statue of Goddess Durga has typical characteristics of early Champa plastic arts and sculpture (seventh century), with exchanges and influences from the sculpture art of the late Oc Eo Culture.

In January this year, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism sent a working group to assess the current situation, prepare procedures for handing over and packaging the antiques. In February, the UK Arts Council granted permission to the Vietnam National Museum of History (a unit designated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) to receive, store and preserve the statue.

The UK Arts Council also conducted an appraisal, suggesting the statue's symbolic value to be £14,184,397 (about VND459 billion). The appraisal is to complete export procedures. Vietnam does not have to pay any additional costs, except for shipping costs.

The bronze statue was seized during the investigation of British smuggling kingpin Douglas Latchford. In 2008 and 2009, Douglas Latchford used proceeds from the sale of stolen and smuggled antiques to buy a seventh-century bronze statue of a four-armed Goddess Durga.

In bank records and emails exchanged with bankers, Douglas Latchford traveled to Vietnam in November 2008 to buy a work of art. He then deposited about $2 million into the bank account of someone with a Vietnamese email address. In January 2009, Latchford emailed a dealer a photo of a Durga statue lying on its back, covered in dirt and minerals. His daughter, who inherited the art from her father, agreed to return the artifact after an investigation.

In recent years, many lost Vietnamese antiques have been returned to the country through negotiations. Last year, the repatriation of the Emperor's seal of Minh Mang became a prominent event.

TB (according to VnExpress)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/co-vat-tuong-dong-nu-than-durga-hoi-huong-385126.html