US Returns 30 Recovered Antiquities to Cambodia and Indonesia
US Officials Return 30 Artefacts Valued at $3 Million to Cambodia and Indonesia
Officials in the US recently repatriated 27 artefacts to Cambodia and three antiquities to Indonesia in a ceremony attended by respective country ambassadors. The objects, collectively valued at $3 million, were recovered as part of investigations into international trafficking networks known to trade in antiquities from Southeast Asia. Among the works being returned are pieces linked to well-known smugglers Subhash Kapoor and Nancy Wiener. One notable object, a bronze Shiva Triad, was smuggled out of Cambodia in the early 2000s and later donated to the Denver Art Museum. Another artefact, a stone relief sculpture from the Majapahit Empire, was recovered from a storage unit owned by Kapoor. Since 2011, authorities have recovered more than 2,500 objects linked to Kapoor and his former gallery in Manhattan. Kapoor was sentenced to ten years in prison for his trafficking activities in India, while Wiener pled guilty for her role in trafficking looted artefacts. Major institutions around the world acquired works through Wiener and her mother, Doris Wiener, who passed away in 2011.
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Elara Voss, graduated from the Royal College of Art in London with a Master’s in Fine Art. She specializes in contemporary sculpture and installation art, exploring themes of nature and human interaction. Elara’s works have been featured in several group exhibitions across Europe, and she is currently working on her first solo show.