via Thai PBS, 05 July 2022: Feature on Thai archaeologist Tanongsak Hanwong and his attempts to repatriate a Khmer sculpture from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, believed to be from a temple in Buriram province.
A Thai archaeologist has embarked on a mission to reclaim a bronze sculpture, believed to be of Khmer King Jayavarman VI, from a museum in the United States. Tanongsak Hanwong, leader of the Samnuek 300 Ong conservation group, is collecting evidence to prove that the valuable antique originated in Thailand, but was smuggled abroad by antique traders.
A team of Thai PBS reporters recently joined Tanongsak on a trip to Ban Yang in Lahan Sai district of the north-eastern province of Buri Ram, where they met 67-year-old Nil Pedsakul, a villager of Ban Yang, who was shown pictures of the bronze sculpture from Tanongsak’s book.
The woman said images look like the sculpture which was found by her brother-in-law, during an archaeological dig at Prasat Ban Yang ruins in Ban Yang village about 50 years ago. She recalled taking the sculpture to their home, where she washed it with water.
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