The Metropolitan Museum of Art will return more than a dozen Southeast Asian sculptures after they were linked to a late art dealer accused of trafficking artifacts looted from the region, according to the museum and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York.

New York City’s Metropolitan Museum said in a statement it has initiated the return of 14 artworks to Cambodia and two to Thailand that were tied to Douglas Latchford, a British antiquities dealer and leading scholar on Khmer art.

Latchford was indicted in 2019 for “orchestrating a multi-year scheme to sell looted Cambodian antiquities on the international art market,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in a statement. The indictment was dismissed following Latchford’s death in 2020.

“The Met has been diligently working with Cambodia and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for years to resolve questions regarding these works of art, and new information that arose from this process made it clear that we should initiate the return of this group of sculptures,” said Max Hollein, the museum’s director and CEO.

The sculptures to be returned depict the Hindu and Buddhist religious systems from the ninth and 14th centuries in the Angkorian period, according to the Met.

Some of the artworks being returned to Cambodia are from the Koh Ker archaeological site, including a sandstone goddess statue from the 10th century, the U.S. attorney’s office said. Another is the “Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara Seated in Royal Ease” from the late 10th to early 11th century, which depicts a sitting Buddha with his legs crossed.

Other statues date from as far back as the seventh century, including a statue head of Buddha, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.

In a press statement, Cambodia’s Minister of Culture and Fine Arts, Phoeurng Sackona, described the objects’ repatriation as “an act of healing for our nation.”

“The enormous importance to the Cambodian people, of these returns is difficult to overstate,” she said, expressing hope that other items of Cambodian origin — in the Met and elsewhere — will also be sent back. “We ask for other museums and private collectors to contact us to discuss their collections of Cambodian antiquities.”

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams meanwhile said that his office “will continue to vigorously investigate the illegal trade in stolen antiquities.”

“We look forward to our continued dialogue with the Met on these important issues,” Williams said, adding: “We urge those in this space, including cultural institutions, to be vigilant. And If you work at one of these institutions or for a private collection and have concerns that certain pieces may be tied to illicit trafficking, do the right thing. Come forward and work with us on a voluntary basis to facilitate the return to the rightful owners.”

Last August, as part of the ongoing investigation into artifacts bought and sold by Latchford, New York officials announced the return of 30 cultural artifacts to Cambodia after the items were illegally sold to private collectors and a U.S. museum.

(SD-Agencies)

Words to Learn

相关词汇

【洗劫】

xǐjié

loot

(usually of large numbers of people during a violent event) to steal from shops and houses

【违法的】

wéifǎ de

illicit

illegal or disapproved of by society

纽约大都会博物馆和纽约南区美国检察官办公室称，该博物馆将归还十多件东南亚雕塑。这些雕塑牵涉到一个已故艺术品商人，他被指控贩卖掠夺的东南亚文物。

大都会博物馆在一份声明中说，该馆已开始归还柬埔寨的14件艺术品和泰国的2件艺术品，这些艺术品与英国古董商、从事高棉艺术研究的著名学者道格拉斯•拉奇福德有关。

美国检察官办公室在一份声明中说，拉奇福德2019年被起诉，罪名是 “幕后主使，多年来在国际艺术品市场上出售被掠夺的柬埔寨文物”。拉奇福德2020 年去世后，起诉被撤回。

博物馆馆长兼首席执行官马克斯•霍莱因说：“多年来，大都会博物馆一直努力与柬埔寨和美国检察官办公室合作，解决与盗窃艺术品相关的问题。”

大都会博物馆称，即将归还的雕塑描绘了9世纪至14世纪吴哥时期印度教和佛教的宗教体系。

美国检察官办公室表示，将归还柬埔寨的部分艺术品来自吴哥考古遗址，其中包括一座10世纪的砂岩女神像。另一尊是10世纪末至11世纪初的观音菩萨坐像，描绘了一尊盘腿而坐的佛。

美国检察官办公室称，其他雕像最早可追溯到七世纪，包括一尊佛头像。

在一份新闻声明中，柬埔寨文化和艺术部部长普恩•萨科纳将这些文物的归还描述为“治愈我们民族创伤的行动”。

她说：“这些文物的归还对柬埔寨人民意义重大，无论怎么强调都不为过。”她还表示，希望大都会博物馆和流落别处的其他柬埔寨文物也能回归。“我们希望其他博物馆和私人藏家与我们联系，讨论他们收藏的柬埔寨文物。”

美国检察官达米安•威廉姆斯也表示，他的办公室“将继续大力调查被盗文物的非法交易”。

威廉姆斯说：“我们期待继续与大都会博物馆讨论这些重要问题。我们敦促包括文化机构在内的相关人员提高警惕。如果您在这些机构或私人收藏机构工作，怀疑某些藏品可能与非法贩运有关，请做出合乎道义的选择，站出来主动和我们合作，为完璧归赵提供便利。”

去年8月，对拉奇福德非法盗卖文物的调查持续期间，纽约官员宣布将30件文物归还柬埔寨，此前这批文物被非法出售给私人收藏家和一家美国博物馆。

(Translated by Debra)