NMAA: Repatriation to India

[Frank Feltens]

Dear colleagues,

Please allow me to share some news that is unrelated to Japan but might still be interesting to some of you.

I am writing with news from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art (NMAA). Today, the museum announced the repatriation to India of three bronze sculptures from our collections. The objects are:

 

• Shiva Nataraja (F2003.2) from the Sri Bhava Aushadesvara temple in Tirutturaippundi, Tirutturaippundi taluk, Tanjavur district, Tamil Nadu;
• Saint Sundarar and Paravai (S1987.902) from the Shiva Temple in Veeracholapuram, Kallakurichi district, Tamil Nadu; and
• Shiva and Uma (Somaskanda) (S1987.907) from the Vishwanatha Swamy Temple in Alathur, Tiruvarur district, Tamil Nadu.

 

While researching NMAA’s permanent collection's provenance, we found that the provenance of the three bronzes was in question and actively sought guidance from India to better understand the circumstances of their exit from the country. We collaborated with local colleagues in India and determined, based on photographs taken in temples within Tamil Nadu in the 1950s and preserved in the EFEO/IFP Archives in Pondicherry, that the objects could only have been wrongfully removed from their temples. The guidance from India confirms that NMAA’s three bronzes were unlawfully exported from India.

 

With advice from the Smithsonian Institution's Office of General Counsel, NMAA determined it did not hold legal title to the bronzes and proactively arranged to repatriate them.

 

This action is part of the museum’s ongoing commitment to research and collaboration. More information can be found in the press release at the following link:

https://asia.si.edu/about/press/releases/indian-sculptures-return/

 

I would be happy to answer any questions you have about this repatriation or direct you to appropriate resources.

 

With best wishes,

Frank

 

Frank Feltens, PhD 

Associate Director for Curatorial Affairs

Curator of Japanese Art

felt...@si.edu | 202.633.0485

@NatAsianArt    #SmithsonianAsianArt    asia.si.edu

 

 

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