A 12th century bronze Buddha statue stolen from an Indian museum 57 years ago, which resurfaced in London, has now been returned to the country, police said on Wednesday (15).
The statue with silver inlay was one of 14 stolen from the Archaeological Survey of India site museum in Nalanda in the east of the country in 1961.
It was spotted at a trade fair in Britain in March this year, prompting an investigation by the Art and Antique Unit of London's Metropolitan Police.
They alerted the owner and dealer, who are not accused of any wrongdoing, and who agreed for it to be returned to India.
Detective chief inspector Sheila Stewart, who was accompanied by officials from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), handed over the statue to the Indian high commissioner YK Sinha during a ceremony to coincide with India's Independence Day celebrations.
"This underlines how law enforcement and the London art market are working hand in hand to deliver positive cultural diplomacy to the world," said arts minister Michael Ellis in a statement.
"As we celebrate India’s Independence Day, I am proud to highlight the latest example of the UK's cultural diplomacy in action. Thanks to the work of the Metropolitan Police’s Arts and Antiques Unit, we are one of the first countries to recover one of the fourteen elusive Buddha statues stolen from Nalanda nearly sixty years ago."
Detective constable Sophie Hayes of the Art and Antique Unit added: "Particular credit must go to the eagle-eyed informants who made us aware that the missing piece had been located after so many years."
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