India's Stolen Heritage Comes Home: US Returns 297 Illegally Trafficked Antiquities During PM Modi's Visit

The United States on Saturday (21 September) handed over 297 stolen antiquities to India during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the US.

The illicit trafficking of cultural property is a longstanding issue that has affected many cultures and countries throughout history.

India has been particularly affected by this issue and a large number of antiquities have been smuggled out of the country.

In a symbolic handing over, a select few pieces were showcased to Prime Minister and President Biden on the sidelines of their bilateral meeting in Wilmington, Delaware on Saturday.

Prime Minister Modi thanked President Biden for his support in the return of these artefacts.

He noted that these objects were not just part of India’s historical material culture, but formed the inner core of its civilisation and consciousness.

The antiquities belong to a time period spanning almost 4000 years, from 2000 BCE – 1900 CE and have origins in different parts of India.

Majority of the antiquities are terracotta artefacts from Eastern India, while others are made in stone, metal, wood and ivory and belong to different parts of the country.

Some of the notable antiquities handed over are:

* Apsara in sandstone from Central India belonging to 10-11th century CE;

* Jain Tirthankar in bronze from Central India belonging to 15-16th century CE;

* Terracotta vase from Eastern India belonging to 3-4th century CE;

* Stone Sculpture from South India belonging to 1st century BCE-1st century CE;

* Lord Ganesh in Bronze from South India belonging to 17-18th century CE;

* Standing Lord Buddha in sandstone from North India belonging 15-16th century CE;

* Lord Vishnu in Bronze from Eastern India belonging to 17-18th century CE;

* Anthropomorphic figure in copper from North India belonging to 2000-1800 BCE;

* Lord Krishna in bronze from South India belonging to 17-18th century CE;

* Lord Karthikeya in granite from South India belonging to 13-14th century CE;

The return on these 297 artefacts takes the total number of antiquities recovered by India since 2014 to 640.

Of the total 640 antiquities, 578 have been recovered from the United States alone.

During PM Modi's visit to the US in 2021, 157 antiquities were handed over by the US government, including the exquisite bronze Nataraja statue from the 12th century CE.

Also, a few days after the PM's US visit in 2023, 105 antiquities were returned to India.

In July 2024, on the sidelines of the 46th World Heritage Committee, at New Delhi, India and the United States had signed the first ever 'Cultural Property Agreement' to prevent and curb the illicit trafficking of antiquities from India to the USA.

India's successful recoveries extend beyond the USA, with 16 artefacts being returned from UK, 40 from Australia among others.

In stark contrast, only one artefact was returned to India between 2004-2013 under the then Congress-led UPA government.

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