AKP Phnom Penh, June 11, 2026 --

Cambodia has welcomed the return of two additional Khmer antiquities from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) in New York, following their seizure by the Office of the Manhattan District Attorney.

A formal handover ceremony took place at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in New York on June 10 in the presence of Cambodian Ambassador to the U.S. H.E. Koy Kuong. The repatriation follows the return of 14 Khmer artifacts by the MET in December 2023 after years of negotiations.

The two returned objects include a sandstone lintel featuring a kala motif from the pre-Angkorian period, dating from the seventh or eighth century, and a tenth-century Angkorian sandstone sculpture identified as the demon Hiranyakaśipu from Prasat Chen Temple at Koh Ker.

According to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, evidence presented by the Antiquities Trafficking Unit of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office linked both objects to the trafficking network of Nancy Wiener. Following the review, the MET agreed to their return to Cambodia.

Over the past decade, investigations by the Antiquities Trafficking Unit into networks involving Nancy Wiener, Douglas Latchford, and Spink & Son have contributed to the recovery of dozens of Khmer cultural artifacts. Nancy Wiener was previously convicted of cultural property trafficking.

The Ministry expressed appreciation to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the Antiquities Trafficking Unit, especially Assistant District Attorney Matthew Bogdanos and investigators, for their continued support in combating illicit cultural property trade.

The Ministry also commended the Metropolitan Museum of Art for acknowledging the evidence and cooperating in returning the artifacts, while welcoming the museum’s continued review of other Khmer objects in its collection.

In addition, gratitude was extended to Cambodian and international experts involved in the recovery process, including Bradley J. Gordon of Edenbridge Asia, Malina Antoniadis of NOSTOS Strategies, and historian and archaeologist Éric Bourdonneau of the French School of the Far East (EFEO) for research supporting identification of the Koh Ker sculpture.

(Photo: Ministry of Culture and Royal Embassy of Cambodia, Washington DC)

By C. Nika