USA Returns Deities Stolen from Hindu Temples

On 17th July the Indian Consulate in New York hosted a repatriation ceremony for stolen Indian artefacts. Dating from between the 2nd and 19th century CE, the priceless items originate from across India. Of the 105 items returned, 50 are of spiritual importance, largely consisting of sacred images of Hindu devatas, with a smaller number of pieces relating to Indian Jain and Muslim history. Many of these artefacts were smuggled into the USA by Subash Kapoor, a New York art dealer with a gallery in Manhattan. Kapoor has been convicted of leading the illegal trade of stolen cultural artefacts worth $10 million. In 2012 Kapoor was extradited to Chennai (India), where he is now serving a 10-year jail sentence after being found guilty of stealing deities from Tamil Nadu’s Hindu temples. Artefacts stolen by Kapoor have ended up in museums, galleries and prestigious auction houses in western countries. One of the most high-profile cases was the theft of the 11th-century Shiva Natraja image from the Sri Brihadeeswarar Temple in Sripuranthan Village (Tamil Nadu), which was found in the National Gallery of Australia. July’s repatriation comes as part of a ‘Cultural Property Agreement’ where America will work with India to prevent the trafficking of cultural artefacts. Since 2016, the USA has returned 278 antiques to India. The same enthusiasm to return stolen Hindu Heritage has not been shown by the United Kingdom, which is currently in possession of many stolen murtis and sacred gems that were plundered from temples during the colonial period.