Cambodia’s stolen art sent home

Cambodia's stolen gold discovered - 20th March 2023

Lost Cambodian treasures have reappeared in the UK recently. Gold, royal statues and other ancient objects turned up, in the possession of a British dealer.

The valuable collection left archaeologists astonished. It consisted of 77 gold and jewelled objects, dating back to the 7th and 11th centuries, with many artefacts – like a golden rice bowl – being unique. Archaeologist Sonetra Seng, who's studied temple carvings for years, said it was proof that "Cambodia was really, really rich in the past."

Many of the decorative pieces from Cambodia's Angkor empire were illegally exported during France's colonisation of the region and later, during the tragic Khmer Rouge period in the 1970s.

The art thief who stole this collection, Douglas Latchford, co-wrote a book about some of the historic artefacts in 2008. Specialist Ashley Thompson explained that by presenting the items as museum pieces, Latchford made them seem authentic and desirable to private collectors.

The publication was essentially a brochure for potential customers but it set off alarm bells among experts. On noticing some of the book's photographs were an exact match to stolen items, they contacted the US government.

Latchford passed away in 2020, before an appearance in court, but his family then declared that they would return the treasures to their homeland. They're now in the capital Phnom Penh, to be displayed publicly in the near future.

Despite this, the Cambodian authorities suspect many more stolen Angkorian riches are yet to be recovered. There's evidence to suggest that Latchford attempted to sell stolen relics as late as 2019, from a London base.

The BBC has collected detailed descriptions of various stolen art works from interviews with criminals in Cambodia.

It seems some of the missing pieces are now in respected institutions, like London's British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.