NYC’s Met to return 2 10th-century stone statues
May 4, 2013, 2:55 AM
NEW YORK (AP) – Two ancient stone statues that have been on display in a New York City museum for nearly 20 years are being returned to Cambodia.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art said Friday the 10th-century Koh Ker stone statues are being returned after researchers discovered new evidence about how they were acquired.
The statues are called “Kneeling Attendants.” The Met says the decision to return them was made after a recent meeting between museum officials and representatives of the Cambodian government in their country’s capital, Phnom Penh (puh-NAHM’ pehn).
The Met says it received the statues in pieces from different donors between 1987 and 1992.
A 1993 Cambodian law prohibited the removal of cultural artifacts without government permission.
Cambodian officials have claimed a similar statue was looted from a temple in Koh Ker, a remote region in the north.
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