NEW DELHI: After completing the process to retrieve 17 rare antiquities of Indian origin, which were smuggled to US around 10 years ago, the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) is ready to bring back more historic artifacts belonging to different phases or periods in history — from idols dating to the Gupta period to terracotta objects of the Harappan culture lying with different agencies in Singapore, England, Canada, and also in US.
“Many objects having high heritage value are in possession of authorities in Los Angeles, Chicago, London, New York and Singapore. They were taken out to different countries at different point of time illegally by people involved in illegal trade. The ASI has been informed about them through Indian Consulate or missions there. We will begin the process for their retrieval once we get the go ahead by agencies abroad,” Dr Urmila Sant, Additional Director General (Archaeology), said.
Sant was part of the two-member team, which was sent to New York recently to examine huge cache of antique of Indian origin on invitation of Consulate General of India. She was accompanied by PS Sriraman, Superintendent Archaeologist of Amravati Circle.
The team had found close to 100 antique objects, including idols dating back to the Gupta period (5-6th century AD) and terracotta objects of Harappan culture.
“A set of 17 objects, comprising seven made of bronze and ten made of stone, were seized by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement — Homeland Security Investigations — from the storage of art smuggler Subhash Kapoor in New York. They are of significant historical value,” Sant said.
Following its five-day visit, the ASI team prepared a report with historical references and a copy of the FIR filed on the theft of the articles, which was sent to the consulate and foreign authorities to initiate their return.
“All documentation has been completed and sent to the authorities there. It may take up to one year to receive all these objects. We found 17 artifacts of high historical importance belonging to Chandraketugarh site in West Bengal,” Sant said.
The antiques, which are in possession of US authorities, comprises bronze items from the Suttamalli and Sripurantan temples of Tamil Nadu and also an image of Mahakoka Devata. Of these, four antiquities were stolen from the protected monuments at Karitalai, district Katni in Madhya Pradesh on August 16-17 in 2006.
“Besides this, the 56 terracotta objects returned by Toledo Museum, Ohio to Indian Consulate were also declared antiques. The same were gifted to the museum by Kapoor. Majority of them belong to the Chandraketugarh, a prominent site of terracotta art in the first decade of CE. The rest comprised of terracotta objects of Harappan Culture and of Gupta period,” the ASI official said.
Another 232 objects, comprising brass and copper alloys, gold with enamel work, silver, stone and terracotta in US, were also inspected by the ASI officials. Kapoor was arrested in Germany in 2011 and was later extradited. He is lodged in a Tamil Nadu jail.
