Memorandum of Law in Support of the Gov't's Opposition to Claimants' Sotheby's Inc.

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Prosecutors File Arguments in Effort to Return Cambodian Statue

A 2011 Sotheby’s catalog shows a thousand-year-old statue believed to be from the Koh Ker temple in Cambodia.

August 21, 2012
By TOM MASHBERG
The New York Times

Federal prosecutors seeking to repatriate a 10th century statue to Cambodia filed court papers Monday accusing Sotheby’s of knowing the sculpture “was an important piece of cultural property that had been stolen” from a remote temple complex when the auction house put the massive sandstone artifact up for sale in March 2011.

In June, Sotheby’s had asked a federal judge in Manhattan to dismiss the U.S. government’s civil action to force the return of the statue of a Hindu warrior that was originally located at a temple site in Koh Ker.

Sotheby’s has argued that Cambodia never declared ownership of the statue before the auction house sought to sell it for as much as $3 million on behalf of its Belgian owner and that no one has provided proof the item was stolen.

Antiquities Dispute Pits Cambodia Against Establishment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjAGbVRU52w

Cambodian officials say they are considering asking US museums for the return of their stolen objects.

The Cambodian government has filed suit in a US court to have a statue that was looted from this site seized from the giant auction house Sotheby’s.

Brian Calvert, VOA Khmer

21 July 2012

LOS ANGELES - Two empty pedestals at Koh Ker temple, in Siem Reap province, mark a battleground that has big implications for Western museums. They are the feet of two looted statues that ended up in America.

The Cambodian government has filed suit in a US court to have a statue that was looted from this site seized from the giant auction house Sotheby’s. And now Cambodian officials say they are considering asking US museums for the return of their stolen objects.

Jason Felch, an investigative reporter for the Los Angeles Times and an author on a book about the antiquities trade, says the case is drawing battle lines.

4 Cambodian temples that aren't Angkor Wat

The square stone walls, shiva lingmans, lion sculptures and octagonal towers of Sambor Prei Kuk are fighting a losing battle against the jungle.

Unlike the famed Siam Reap UNESCO world heritage site, you can have these ancient beauties all to yourself

2 July, 2012

By Ian Lloyd Neubauer

CNN Go

At the turn of the millennium, when Cambodia was still reeling from decades of civil war, one could spend hours walking around Angkor Wat Archaeological Park without seeing a single foreigner.

But Cambodia today -- and the 12th-century temple complex that sits at its geographical, historical and spiritual heart -- is awash with tourists.

More than 640,000 visited in the first three months of 2012, with archaeologists claiming the UNESCO World Heritage Site is being loved to death.

Ironically, there are dozens of Angkor-era temple complexes in Cambodia that receive a fraction of the visitors Angkor Wat gets, some of which you can have all to yourself.

Here are four of the most impressive.

Phnom Chissor

Start training now. To get to the top of Phnom Chisor, visitors have to climb 412 steps.

Set upon a hill not far from Phnom Penh with knockout views of the fertile deltas and emerald green rice fields of Cambodia’s deep south, this small but impressive Hindu temple predates Angkor Wat by 100 years.

Cambodian blood antiquities

Photo: Duryodhana, 10th century statue from Cambodia

Wednesday 20 June 2012
ABC Radio National (Australia)

"[Sotheby's] argument, well, can't stand on it's own two feet! Why? Because the feet are in Cambodia."

You've no doubt heard of the term blood diamond, but what about blood antiquities? In the 1970s many artefacts from Cambodia's ancient Hindu temples were plundered during the Vietnam War and the horror of the Khmer Rouge regime. They were taken out of the country and many landed in private collections as well as museums and auction houses. Now the Cambodian government is seeking repatriation of their cultural heritage and is taking legal action to get them back. Tomorrow in the US, a court case is being heard over a 10th century Hindu statue that was to be auctioned by Sotheby's.

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Should Cambodian 'blood antiquities' be returned?

This kneeling figure at the Metropolitan Museum of Art was estimated to have been carved around 921 to 945.

Thu June 7, 2012
By Mark V. Vlasic and Tess Davis, Special to CNN

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Writers: Met and Sotheby's have ancient figures thought to have been looted in Cambodia
• U.S. authorities have attempted to seize Sotheby's figures; now Cambodia seeking those at Met
• Vlasic, Davis say some in art world act the victim because Cambodia wants its art back
• Writers: Why would anyone want stolen art? Both sides must make reasonable concessions

Editor's note: Mark V. Vlasic, a senior fellow and adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University, served as the first head of operations of the joint United Nations-World Bank Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative and leads the international practice at Madison Law & Strategy Group PLLC. Tess Davis is the executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation and is working with Cambodia to combat the illicit trade in the kingdom's antiquities.

(CNN) -- The last time most New Yorkers focused on pillaged antiquities from Cambodia was likely after the release of the Angelina Jolie film "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider," which featured the heroine's adventures through the country's famous archaeological wonder, Angkor Wat.

Now, real "tomb raiding" is making the news as the Cambodian government seeks to recover antiquities allegedly plundered from the kingdom's ancient sites during its civil war, ethnic cleansing and foreign occupation.

At Cambodia's request, the United States recently filed suit in U.S. District Court against Sotheby's in New York, demanding that the auction house forfeit a sandstone warrior that was "illicitly removed," according to the complaint, from a remote jungle temple. But according to a recent New York Times story, Cambodia has now set its sights on another Manhattan institution: the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It has specifically targeted the highlight of its Southeast Asian collection: two kneeling figures that archaeologists declare are companions to the contested Sotheby's piece.

If these stones could speak, what a story they would tell.

Sotheby’s Files Papers to Stop Cambodian Statue Export

The catalogue listing for the lot in question. (Courtesy ki-media.blogspot.com)

6/06/2012
By Dan Duray
Gallerist NY

The New York Times reports that Sotheby’s filed papers yesterday as part of an effort to prevent the repatriation of a 10th-century statue the house had planned to sell in March 2011, but pulled from the auction over claims from Cambodian representatives that it had been looted in the 1970′s.

More details about from that story:

…Sotheby’s argued, among other things, that under the Cambodian laws, the government needed to expressly declare its ownership of particular items, and that this never occurred with the statue, a point Cambodia disputes.

The story has an architect calling this claim “inaccurate and unconvincing.”

Cambodia Says It Seeks Return Of Met Statues

Kneeling Male Attendant Cambodia, Angkor period, Khmer style of Koh Ker, ca. 921–45. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

June 1, 2012
By TOM MASHBERG and RALPH BLUMENTHAL
The New York Times

The Cambodian government is convinced that two life-size 10th-century statues that have anchored the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Southeast Asian galleries for nearly two decades were looted from a jungle temple and plans to ask for their return.

“The government is very serious about moving this forward, and we are getting much legal advice,” said Im Sokrithy, a director of Apsara, the Cambodian agency that oversees heritage and land management at the sprawling temple complex where, archaeologists say, the statues stood for centuries. “We are taking a forceful position, and we hope they can be returned.”

The twin sandstone figures, called the Kneeling Attendants, flank the doorway of the gallery where the Met displays its small but globally significant collection of artifacts from the glory days of Khmer civilization.

Cambodia's looted treasures

SOTHEBY'S WARRIOR: His feet are still at Prasat Chen, in Cambodia. (Department of Homeland Security / April 24, 2012)

Plundered temples mean the history of many is lost for the pleasure of a few.

April 25, 2012
By Tess Davis
Op-Ed

During the Cambodian civil war from 1970 to 1998, the Khmer Rouge and other paramilitary groups began decimating that country's ancient sites in search of treasures to sell on the international art market. Along with arms dealing and drug smuggling, the looting and trafficking of artifacts became organized industries, which helped finance one of the 20th century's most notorious regimes.

My colleagues and I have documented the painful scars from this plunder — desecrated tombs, beheaded statues and ransacked temples — at archaeological sites throughout Cambodia. We've spoken with looters, middlemen and dealers, and have even posed as collectors. The exact path of pillaged objects is admittedly difficult to trace. But when they do surface, more often than not, it is in the legitimate art world.

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Sotheby's

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

US Government, Sotheby's Battle Over Ancient Khmer Warrior Statue

http://www.voanews.com/templates/widgetDisplay.html?id=147194785&player=article

Cambodian Statue Stays at Sotheby's, for Now

Wednesday, April 11, 2012
By ADAM KLASFELD
Courthouse News Services

MANHATTAN (CN) - A 10th century statue that was allegedly looted from a HinduKhmer temple in Cambodia can remain in Sotheby's pending the resolution of forfeiture proceedings, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

Duryodhana, which translates to "difficult to fight with," is a sandstone statue depicting an antagonist of the Mahabharata, an epic battle described in "The Bhagavad Gita."

Prosecutors believe that Duryodhana and a statue of his arch-nemesis, Bhima, were looted from the Prasat Chen temple in Cambodia in the 1960s or 1970s, as war raged in the neighboring Vietnam and the Khmer Rouge rose to power.

"These two statues once stood face to face, depicted at the moment of preparation for their epic battle, as chronicled in 'The Bhagavad Gita,'" the complaint states. "The site of this sculptural group is now surrounded by rubble from the building and only the pedestals on which they stood remain."

United States v. A 10th Century Cambodian Sandstone Sculpture & Sotheby's reply

http://www.box.com/s/92bc408ae74d831c704b


http://www.box.com/s/44c596f3af547f95a315

U.S. demands Sotheby's give up ancient Cambodian statue

Mon Apr 9, 2012

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors on Wednesday filed suit demanding auctioneer Sotheby's forfeit a 10th-century sandstone statue the government says was looted from a Cambodian temple.

The statue, known as the Duryodhana, is believed to have been stolen from the Prasat Chen temple at Koh Ker in Cambodia sometime in the 1960s or 1970s, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara said in a statement.

The Duryodhana "was looted from the country during a period of upheaval and unrest," Bharara said. "With today's action, we are taking an important step toward reuniting this ancient artifact with its rightful owners."

If successful in the suit, the United States plans to return the statue to Cambodia.

10th-century statue found under tree

Monday, 09 April 2012
Vong Sokheng
The Phnom Penh Post

An ancient statue of a Hindu god believed to be more than 1,000 years old was discovered on Thursday at Koh Ker National Park’s Prasat Chen temple, a conservationist told the Post yesterday.

APSARA Authority deputy director-general Seung Kong said workers had been cleaning the temple grounds when they found the statue under the roots of a tree.

It had been excavated and sent to the Preah Norodom Sihanouk Museum, in Siem Reap province, he said.

“It is a statue of Preah Neareay, with four arms, but the arms are broken off at the shoulders, there is no head and the legs are broken at the knees,” Seung Kong said. “We really don’t know how old the statue is, but we estimate that it is the architecture of Koh Ker, during 921AD.”

Sotheby’s Retains Custody of Cambodian Statue

April 5, 2012
By RALPH BLUMENTHAL
The New York Times

Ruling against the immediate seizure of a 1,000-year-old Cambodian statue the United States and Cambodian governments say was looted from its temple site, a federal judge in Manhattan on Thursday gave Sotheby’s continued custody of the antiquity and called a hearing for April 12.

The judge, George B. Daniels, ordered Sotheby’s not to dispose of the sandstone statue, which the auction house had planned to sell for an unidentified Belgian client for up to $3 million last year, and to make it available for inspection by the Department of Homeland Security, which had sought its forfeiture as stolen property.

Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, filed a civil complaint on Wednesday against Sotheby’s, alleging that the auction house knew the statue had been stolen when it offered it for auction on March 24, 2011.

The government then planned to impound the sculpture this week for return to Cambodia.

Feds vs. Sotheby's: Antiquity looted in Cambodia, complaint says

The disputed Cambodian antiquity, as shown in court documents. (April 5, 2012)

April 5, 2012
By Tina Susman
Los Angeles Times

New York — Federal agents have threatened to seize from Sotheby's a 10th-century Cambodian sandstone statue, alleging the auction house planned to sell it despite warnings that looters had stolen the piece from its rightful place, adorning an ancient temple in the former Khmer kingdom.

Court documents filed Wednesday in New York say the Duryodhana statue -- listed as the "Defendant in rem" in the complaint -- was apparently torn from the Prasat Chen Temple in Koh Ker in northern Cambodia sometime in the 1960s or early 1970s, when the Asian nation was engulfed in civil unrest. The statue fell into the hands of a private collector in Belgium, whose heirs recently reached an agreement with Sotheby's to sell it on consignment.

"In April 2010, Sotheby’s imported the Duryodhana into the United States and made arrangements to sell the statue, despite knowing that it was stolen from Koh Ker," according to a statement from U.S. Atty. Preet Bharara in New York.

Text of lawsuit file by the US to recover Koh Ker statue looted from Cambodia

http://www.box.com/s/ac359113838035bf8685

Sotheby's, Famed Auction House, Caught Knowingly Trying to Sell Stolen Cambodian Statue, Prosecutors Say

Thu., Apr. 5 2012
By Graham Rayman
VillageVoice.com (Blogs)

Sotheby's tried to sell a 1,000-year-old Cambodian statue that was pilfered from an important religious site, even though the famed auction house knew it had been stolen, federal prosecutors say.

In a story filled with intrigue, spies, temple thieves, and the scent of money, federal prosecutors in Manhattan have brought a civil forfeiture action to return the statue to Cambodia after three decades. Sotheby's had been planning on selling it for $2 to $3 million.

"In April 2010, Sotheby's imported the Duryodhana into the United States and made arrangements to sell the statue, despite knowing that it was stolen from Koh Ker," federal prosecutors say.

The sandstone statue, known as the Duryodhana, was made in the 10th century, and resided at Prasat Chen temple at Koh Ker in Cambodia, until it was stolen in the 1960's or 1970's during the civil war and genocide which devastated the south Asian nation.

Sotheby's Asked to Give Up Ancient Hindu Statue

Thursday, April 05, 2012
By BARBARA LEONARD
Courthouse News Service

MANHATTAN (CN) - Federal prosecutors have filed suit to force forfeiture of a 10th century sandstone statue from the Sotheby's auction house so that it can return to Cambodia.

The Duryodhana was stolen from the Prasat Chen temple at Koh Ker in Cambodia as war raged in the neighboring Vietnam and the Khmer Rouge took power in 1975, according to the complaint.

"The Koh Ker site is of great significance from a religious, historical, and artistic perspective," according to the complaint, which explains that the city was an ancient capital that was once home to "a vast complex of sacred monuments."

Prasat Chen, a sandstone temple at Koh Ker dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, was looted in the 1960s or 1970s, prosecutors say.

Among the temple's lost artifacts are two large sandstone statues, the Duryopdhana and the Bhima.