The Ministry of Culture, Government of India, organised a press conference on 13 May 2026 at the National Museum, Janpath, New Delhi, celebrating the historic return of three significant bronze Indian antiquities from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art in the USA. Titled “Celebrating the Return of the Lost Cultural Heritage of India”, the press meet was chaired by Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Hon’ble Minister for Culture and Tourism, in the presence of Shri Vivek Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Shri Gurmeet Chawla, Director General, National Museum, and Yadubir Singh Rawat, Director General, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
The highlight of the event was the formal acknowledgement of the return of three rare bronze antiquities, including the iconic Shiva Nataraja from the Chola period dating to around 990 CE, a 12th-century Somaskanda depicting Shiva and Uma, and a 16th-century bronze sculpture of Saint Sundarar with Paravai from the Vijayanagara period. The artefacts, originally belonging to temples in Tamil Nadu, were reportedly removed illegally during the early 1950s.
Officials informed that the repatriation followed extensive provenance research and coordinated efforts by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture, in collaboration with Indian diplomatic missions and international institutions.
Addressing the gathering, Hon’ble Minister emphasised that under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, India has intensified global efforts towards the recovery and preservation of its cultural property. He noted that the initiative reflects India’s growing leadership in promoting ethical museum practices, provenance research and international cooperation for the protection, recovery and preservation of cultural heritage. As of May 2026, the USA has intensified efforts to repatriate stolen cultural heritage and has agreed to return over 1400 antiquities valued at over USD 12 million, which includes the return of 657 artefacts from New York investigations and around 297 items following a 2024 cultural property agreement, highlighting successful bilateral diplomacy between the two countries and India’s efforts to prevent future trafficking of our valuable cultural heritage.
