NEW YORK — New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art announced that it has returned 16 pieces of art to Cambodia and Thailand.
Fourteen Khmer sculptures were returned to Cambodia and two were returned to Thailand, according to the museum. They were removed from its collection associated with the dealer Douglas Latchford. Latchford was indicted for selling antiquities illegally in 2019. The museum reached out to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York as well as Cambodian officials following Latchford’s indictment.
Latchford died in 2020 and denied any involvement in the smuggling of the art, according to The Associated Press.
“The Met has been diligently working with Cambodia and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for years to resolve questions regarding these works of art, and new information that arose from this process made it clear that we should initiate the return of this group of sculptures,” said Max Hollein, the Museum’s Director and Chief Executive Officer. “The Met is pleased to enter into this agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and greatly values our open dialogue with Cambodia and Thailand. We are committed to pursuing partnerships and collaborations with our colleagues there that will advance the world’s understanding and appreciation of Khmer art, and we look forward to embarking on this new chapter together.”
It isn’t the first time that the museum has returned work linked to Latchford. According to the AP, the museum returned two items to Cambodia in 2013.
The Latchford family has also been returning Cambodian jewelry to Cambodia that is centuries old. In February last year, 77 pieces of jewelry were returned. The items were made with gold and other metals. The AP reported that some of the returned items included crowns, earrings, necklaces and more.
“As demonstrated with today’s announcement, pieces linked to the investigation of Douglas Latchford continue to reveal themselves,” Homeland Security Acting Special Agent in Charge Erin Keegan said in a statement Friday obtained by the AP. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art has not only recognized the significance of these 13 Khmer artifacts, which were shamelessly stolen, but has also volunteered to return them, as part of their ongoing cooperation, to their rightful owners: the People of Cambodia.”
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