India requests Ashmolean museum in UK for Ancient idol stolen from TN TempleTop Stories

February 25, 2020 13:10
India requests Ashmolean museum in UK for Ancient idol stolen from TN Temple

(Image source from: en.wikipedia.org)

A formal request has been made by India for the return of a 15th century bronze idol of a Tamil saint which was believed to be stolen from a temple in the state of Tamil Nadu and that the idol has found its way to the museum at Oxford University through auction, in the United Kingdom.

The idol is said to be of a Tamil Saint named Tirumankai Alvar which was acquired by the Ashmolean Museum on the University of Oxford from the Sotheby’s public sale home in the year 1967 which was made from a gathering or a collection of a collector who was named JR Belmont (1886-1981).

It has been said by the museum that the origins of the ancient statue has been alerted by an independent researcher in the month of November during the last year following which the Indian High Commission has also been alerted.

The Ashmolean Museum has made a statement on Monday where in it was said that it has been appeared in the research in the photo archives of the Institut Francais de Pondichery and the Ecole francaise d’ Extreme- Orient (IFP-EFEO), which showed the same bronze in the temple of Shri Soundarrajaperumal Kovil in Tamil Nadu in the year 1957.

According to the statement, it has been informed to the Ashmolean museum that the bronze is one among the various number of bronzes in collections in Europe and the United States which had been identified by the researcher through the archive of Institut Francais de Pondichery and the Ecole francaise d’ Extreme- Orient.

However, there had been no claim against the object but the matter was officially brought by the museum, to the attention of the Indian High Commission on 16th of December in the last year where in, it had requested for further information which includes the possible police records which would in turn be helpful for them in order to establish the provenance of the work.

A ‘proactive’ move of the museum has been acknowledged by the Indian High Commissioner in the Ruchi Ganashyam of the United Kingdom, soon later and the matter had been forwarded to the authorities of India in order to follow up with a formal request regarding the restitution of the idol which has been sent to the museum earlier this month.

Rahul Nangare who is the First Secretary (Trade) at the Indian High Commission in London has said that the quest that has been made to the United Kingdom talks about the police report that has been furnished by the idol wing is said to be unambiguously showing that the original idol found in the archives of the Institut Francais de Pondichery and the Ecole francaise d’ Extreme- Orient as being present in the Ashmolean museum is the original idol that was stolen from the temple of Shri Soundarrajaperumal Kovil in Tamil Nadu which was replaced with a fake one.

"After we provided them the police report along with the formal request for restitution, Ashmolean have informed that they are now carrying out further due diligence with an official from Ashmolean also scheduled to visit India shortly. We have requested them to expedite the same so that the final decision is taken at the earliest," said the First Secretary (Trade) at the Indian High Commission in London.

The Ashmolean museum has said that it had no idea of how the idol has entered the museum and the investigations regarding this is under process which is being done with the support of Indian High Commission, but the statue has been acquired in the Ashmolean museum with ‘good faith’ in the year 1967.

By Shrithika Kushangi

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United Kingdom  ancient idol