Smithsonian Museum To Return Three Historic Indian Sculptures To Tamil Nadu

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art has announced it will return three historic South Indian bronze sculptures to India after provenance research confirmed they were illegally removed from temple settings decades ago.

The three sculptures – a Chola-period ‘Shiva Nataraja’ (ca. 990), ‘Somaskanda’ (12th century), and ‘Saint Sundarar with Paravai’ (Vijayanagar period, 16th century) – represent important examples of South Indian bronze-casting traditions. Temples in Tamil Nadu originally used them as sacred objects carried in processions.

The museum stated that the ‘Shiva Nataraja’ will remain on a long-term loan in the United States. This arrangement is part of an agreement with the Indian government.

The museum will display it in the exhibition ‘The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas’, allowing visitors to appreciate its history while the museum documents its removal and return.

A multi-year investigation, involving researchers from the Photo Archives of the French Institute of Pondicherry and the Archaeological Survey of India, confirmed that individuals photographed the bronzes in Tamil Nadu temples between 1956 and 1959 and later removed them in violation of Indian law.

The museum discovered that the Doris Wiener Gallery had provided falsified documentation. The gallery had sold the Shiva Nataraja to the Smithsonian in 2002.

Museum director Chase F Robinson emphasised the institution’s commitment to ethical practices and transparency in cultural heritage.

The Smithsonian is coordinating with the Embassy of India to finalise the repatriation, supported by curators, researchers, and international partners.

The decision marks a significant step in India’s ongoing efforts to recover cultural artefacts removed illegally from temples and archaeological sites. It also reinforces ethical museum practices on a global scale.

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