Search Results for: Cambodia

UPDATED: The Met Returns Two Khmer Statues to Cambodia, Citing Clear Evidence Of Looting

UPDATE: The New York Times reported May 15 that Cambodia is also planning to ask for the return of a statue of Hanuman at the Cleveland Museum of Art. This is in addition to the Norton Simon Bhima and the … Continue reading

BREAKING: Judge rules in favor of Cambodia, Denies Sotheby’s Motion to Dismiss Claim to Khmer Statue

A New York judge has denied Sotheby’s motion to dismiss Cambodia’s claim — brought on its behalf by the US government — that a 10th century Khmer statue was looted and should be returned. District court judge George B. Daniels … Continue reading

The Battle for Koh Ker: Legal Implications of Cambodia’s Dispute with Sotheby’s

The legal dispute over an ancient Khmer statue at Sotheby’s could have lasting implications for the sale of ancient art in the United States. For those catching up on the case: Sotheby’s New York was poised to put the 10th … Continue reading

UPDATED: Latchford’s Footprints in Berlin: A Khmer Ganesh and other loans to the Asian Art Museum

Recently, someone suggested we look into the ties between Douglas Latchford and the Berlin Asian Art Museum, where he is said to have enjoyed a “special arrangement” for several years. As you’ll recall, Latchford is the Bangkok-based British collector who was the source … Continue reading

Decoding Eakin: Behind ‘Extortion’ Claim, Fear the Floodgates Have Opened

It is no coincidence that The Great Giveback, Hugh Eakin’s lengthy argument against the repatriation of looted antiquities, landed in The New York Times on Sunday, just as the directors of America’s leading art museums gathered in Kansas City for their annual meeting. … Continue reading

Chasing Aphrodite 2012: The Year in Review

Happy New Year from Chasing Aphrodite. It’s been a year and a half since our book was published, and during that time the hunt for looted antiquities at the world’s museums has gone global. Over the past 12 months we’ve … Continue reading

Latchford’s Footprints: Suspect Khmer Art at the Kimbell and the Met

We’re continuing to trace suspect Cambodian antiquities linked to Douglas Latchford, the man at the center of the on-going federal looting probe that we’ve detailed in previous posts here. Last week we wrote about suspect Khmer antiquities at the Denver Art Museum. … Continue reading

Douglas Latchford’s Footprints: Suspect Khmer Antiquities At the Denver Art Museum

Who is Douglas A. J. Latchford? That is the question many are asking since the Bangkok-based British collector who describes himself as an ”adventurer-scholar” emerged at the center of the legal fight over an allegedly looted 10th Century Khmer warrior now at Sotheby’s. … Continue reading

Inside Sotheby’s: Auction House Response Reveals Key Players in Fight Over Khmer Statue

Sotheby’s has responded to the U.S. government’s amended complaint in the legal battle for the Khmer warrior from Koh Ker, arguing that the US Attorney’s failure to cite a Cambodian national ownership law is a”fatal flaw” in their effort to seize the … Continue reading

The Guardian and the Goddess: Looted Statues Reveal Workings of Illicit Trade

What does a 10th century Khmer temple warrior have in common with a Greek cult goddess from the 5th Century B.C.? Quite a bit, it turns out. Both were objects of veneration whose remarkable craftsmanship represented the apex of their respective … Continue reading