The Metropolitan Museum of Art recently announced that it has begun the return of 14 sculptures to Cambodia and two to Thailand that were associated with art dealer Douglas Latchford.
The returns were the result of an agreement between the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the museum.
The returned items are Khmer artifacts “made between the 9th and 14th centuries in the Angkorian period and reflect the Hindu and Buddhist religious systems prevailing at that time,” according to a museum press release. The group also includes statutes from the archaeological site of Koh Ker, including a sandstone goddess from the 10th century.
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Several of the sculptures, including a bronze sculpture The Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara Seated at Royal Ease (late 10th-early 11th century) and a large 7th-century Buddha head will remain on view in the museum’s Southeast Asian art galleries while repatriation arrangements are made.
The Met also said it will “continue to review its collection of Khmer art and exchange information on sculptures with officials from Cambodia and Thailand as part of that ongoing research.”
Phnombootra Chandrajoti, director general of Thailand’s Department of Fine Arts, called the return of the two items from the Met a “significant milestone” in the country’s ongoing efforts to return cultural treasures.
“In Thailand, the repatriation committee, chaired by the Minister of Culture, is actively involved in research initiatives to identify and track additional objects that may have been illegally removed from the country in the past, further paving the way for a future where culture and heritage it is preserved and valued in its rightful place,” he said in a press release.
Latchford was charged with antiquities trafficking in 2019, a conviction that the Met said led the institution to “proactively” contact the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, as well as Cambodian officials. Latchford died shortly after his conviction in 2020, prompting the indictment to be dismissed.
Last year, the Cambodian government alleged that the Met had stolen artefacts that were sold by Latchford. In May, museum director and CEO Max Hollein announced he was hiring a provenance research manager as part of his efforts to review all of its collections and policies, as well as return objects the Met determined had questionable histories. . Hollein cited “increasing scrutiny” of the “almost daily news.”
The Met’s 14 sculptures from Cambodia join dozens of other items that have been returned to the country this year, many of them also connected to Latchford. Those other objects include a 7th-century Vishnu statue, 33 antiquities worth $20 million, three bronze statues from the National Gallery of Australia, more than 70 gold relics previously stored in London and an 11th-century carved lintel. Latchford’s estate also agreed to forfeit $12.1 million in a settlement with U.S. officials in June. Officials from Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam have also contacted the Denver Art Museum about allegedly stolen items from its collection that were also sold by Latchford.
This is also not the first repatriation between the Met and Cambodia in relation to items associated with Latchford. Ten years ago, The Met voluntarily returned two 10th-century objects known as “Kneeling Attendants.” Art in America previously reported that “the decision was made after new research revealed that artworks had been looted in the late 1970s from the Koh Ker temple complex, an archaeological site in northern Cambodia.”
US Attorney Damian Williams urged other museums and private collectors to also contact his office about concerns about stolen or looted objects.
“And if you work at one of these institutions or a private collection and you are concerned that certain pieces may be linked to illicit trafficking, do the right thing: come forward and work with us on a voluntary basis to facilitate the return to their rightful owners,” he said in a press release “That’s a much better outcome for you and your institution than if our investigation leads to a knock on your door. In other words, come see us before we see you.”
