SMUGGLED Chinese cultural objects, some dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), have been returned to China from the United Kingdom following years of cooperation from the two nations.

A total of 68 recovered Chinese relics, which include works of art such as porcelains, pottery and bronzes dating from the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 B.C.) to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), returned to their homeland in October, according to China’s National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA).

“The recovered 68 smuggled cultural relics lost in the U.K. have reached an ideal end due to the Chinese government’s efforts in transnational cultural relic repatriation over the past 25 years. This is a significant landmark for the spirit of international conventions,” said Guan Qiang, deputy director of the NCHA.

During the handover ceremony for the objects in October, China’s ambassador to the U.K. Liu Xiaoming gave his thanks to the U.K. government and Metropolitan Police for their support.

“China and the U.K. have engaged in sound cooperation in the protection and preservation of cultural objects and archaeology. By taking care of cultural objects, we are contributing to the long-term, greater good of both our countries,” Liu said.

He said the repatriation is an example of China-U.K. cooperating in cracking down on the smuggling of cultural artifacts.

Emiline Smith, a lecturer in art crime and criminology at the University of Glasgow, said: “China has taken great steps in the past few years to tighten their national protective framework for cultural heritage, while also actively facilitating repatriation of foreign-held objects.

“Their recently-launched online database and other campaigns to raise public awareness will hopefully augment these efforts even further. International collaboration is hereby essential, as this successful repatriation case has proven,” Smith added.

“Many illicitly-obtained objects remain in public and private collections in the U.K., and although awareness around the ethics of public and private collections is increasing, much work still has to be done to return looted objects to their rightful owners.”

According to the NCHA, the stolen relics were discovered in the U.K. in 1995 during an investigation into an international crime ring.

The objects were seized by British authorities for 25 years when the buyer of these relics refused to participate in negotiations for their return.

In January, London’s Metropolitan Police contacted the Chinese Embassy and offered the return of the relics since the whereabouts of the buyer were unknown and the deadline for prosecution had passed, showing an intention to transfer ownership back to China. (China Daily)