For a kingdom on which the 'Sun never set,' the UK sure has a very dark history.
Shiva in Nataraja formSource: indianculture.gov.inA bronze statue of Lord Shiva doing the cosmic dance was returned to India by the Australian government in 2014.
The Oxford and Cambridge universities have agreed to eventually return these bronze masks, statues, and other treasures to Nigeria.
Multiple calls for Kohinoor to be returned to India have not worked, but efforts are still ongoing.
Some say "the past is in the past," but often the past is what holds us back from heralding in the future.
The marks of India's 200-year-long colonial subjugation by the UK are everywhere. From the railways to "modern" education (though Indians were educating themselves much before the British), pro-colonialists somehow use these to justify the brutal looting of Indian coffers for the benefit of British wealth.
As Congress MP Shashi Tharoor pointed out in a now-famous speech, 'India missed the bus, for they (the British) threw us under its wheels.' He went on to note that British children are not even taught about their colonial history, let alone about the troubles of the colonised.
For a kingdom on which the 'Sun never set,' the UK sure has a very dark history.
Giving or Returning?
Oxford University, whose student union has recently been accused of racism, is about to send back a 500-year-old bronze artefact, depicting the saint Tirumankai Alvar, which until now was on display at its Ashmolean Museum.
This is just the latest in a long list of antiquities that came back to their origins after years of diplomatic parleys. Many more are still in private collections or in foreign museums, forcing Indians to travel long distances to see their own history!
The ones to blame are not just the erstwhile British Raj but smugglers too, as the illegal sale of artefacts to foreign lands is an ever-persistent threat. Who buys them and who sponsors the buyers are the real questions.
Let's take a look at some of the famous artefacts that were stolen and often brought back to India years later.
1. Vrishanana Yogini
Source: indianculture.gov.in
This 400-kilogramme statue of a buffalo-headed deity was found in France after being stolen and sold to an art collector. After his death, his wife gave the statue to the Indian Embassy in Paris in 2008, and in 2013, it was brought to the National Museum in Delhi.
2. Shiva in Nataraja form
Source: indianculture.gov.in
A bronze statue of Lord Shiva doing the cosmic dance was returned to India by the Australian government in 2014. This priceless artefact was stolen and sold to an art gallery in Australia, only to be brought back years later.
3. Lord Buddha's bronze statues
Source: Wikipedia
In 2018, the London Metropolitan Police Service returned one of these statues. This was done as a gesture of goodwill on India's Independence Day. Interestingly, this Budhha statue was first spotted at a trade fair in London earlier in the year. The owner was unaware of its origins and agreed to return the artefact after being informed.
4. 157 artefacts from the USA
In 2021, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the USA, the American government returned 157 artefacts and antiquities that were stolen from India.
Global Habit
This looting and subsequent return of priceless treasures is a global trend, with the Benin Bronzes being the most famous and recent. The Oxford and Cambridge universities have agreed to eventually return these bronze masks, statues, and other treasures to Nigeria. This was hailed as a massive Nigerian victory, and experts around the world rejoiced.
Watch: Harry Potter offers magical boost to UK tourism But it is to be noted that countries—like Nigeria and India—receiving their rightful artefacts, after years of 'requesting' or as 'tokens of appreciation' on their 'Independence Days' is irony at its best.
What is even more ironic is that the country that gave the world so many 'Independence Days' is also home to the crown jewel (quite literally) of all Indian treasures—the Kohinoor Diamond.
The 'Peacock' Diamond
(Source: Wikipedia)
The diamond, which is one of the world's largest cut gems, was seized by the East India Company in Punjab, northern India, in 1849. Some say it was "given," but others say that coercion doesn't create a level playing field.
It was then given to Queen Victoria and has remained a part of the crown jewels. It has been housed for public display at the Tower of London ever since.
Multiple calls for Kohinoor to be returned to India have not worked, but efforts are still ongoing.
The Way Forward
India and the UK's only way forward is for the latter to return all artefacts to their birthplace and help not erase the colonial past but learn from it.
Diplomats of both parties are busy doing just this, trying to help bring back India's history.
Some say "the past is in the past," but often the past is what holds us back from heralding in the future.
