Washington: Museums around the world are increasingly confronting the legacy of looted cultural heritage, and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art has become the latest institution to take action.
On January 28, the museum announced it would return three sculptures to India after extensive research revealed they had been illegally removed from Mandirs in Tamil Nadu. The works Shiva Nataraja (Chola period, ca. 990), Somaskanda (Chola period, 12th century), and Saint Sundarar with Paravai (Vijayanagar period, 16th century) are celebrated examples of South India’s rich bronze-casting tradition.
The Indian government has agreed to place Shiva Nataraja on long-term loan, allowing the museum to publicly share the full story of the sculpture’s origins, removal, and repatriation. It will be displayed as part of the exhibition The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas.
As part of a systematic review of its South Asian collections, the museum conducted a detailed provenance investigation, tracing the ownership history of each sculpture. In 2023, researchers collaborated with the Photo Archives of the French Institute of Pondicherry to confirm that the bronzes had been photographed in Mandirs in Tamil Nadu between 1956 and 1959. The Archaeological Survey of India subsequently verified that the sculptures had been removed in violation of Indian law.
“The National Museum of Asian Art is committed to stewarding cultural heritage responsibly and advancing transparency in our collection,” said museum director Chase F. Robinson.
Shiva Nataraja originally belonged to the Sri Bhava Aushadesvara Mandir in Thanjavur district, where it was photographed in 1957. The bronze was later acquired by the museum from the Doris Wiener Gallery in New York in 2002. Museum researchers determined that the gallery had provided falsified documentation to facilitate the sale.
The Somaskanda and Saint Sundarar with Paravai were part of a larger donation of 1,000 objects. Research revealed that Somaskanda came from the Visvanatha Mandir in Alattur village, Mannarkudi taluk, while Saint Sundarar with Paravai originated from the Shiva Mandir in Veerasolapuram village, Kallakuruchi taluk.
