Legal Tussle Over Hindu Statue Turns Nasty

THE NEW YORK TIMES
By Tom Mashberg

Duryodhana, the statue.

NEW YORK---The fight between Sotheby’s and federal lawyers over the fate of an ancient sandstone statue that Cambodia wants returned took a bitter turn in court on Thursday after each side filed papers accusing the other of acting unethically. The tensions in court on Thursday underscored the stakes in the case, in which the United States, acting on Cambodia’s behalf, has accused one of the world’s leading auction houses of attempting to sell a 10th-century Khmer empire statue valued at $3 million despite what the government views as evidence that it was looted. The statue portrays a hulking Hindu warrior named Duryodhana. Cambodia laid claim to it after matching it to its severed feet, which were found in the Koh Ker temple complex. The statue, which had been sent to New York by its Belgian owner for auction, was removed from sale in March 2011, when Cambodia declared it to be a looted artifact. [link]