UNITED KINGDOM, June 8, 2024 (The Guardian): Oxford University has announced it is to hand back a 500-year-old sculpture of a Hindu saint to India. The almost 2 foot-tall bronze statue, which depicts Tirumankai Alvar, had been on display at the university’s Ashmolean Museum. A claim for the 16th-century sculpture of the Tamil poet and saint from south India was made through the Indian high commission. A statement for the Ashmolean said: “On 11 March 2024 the council of the University of Oxford supported a claim from the Indian high commission for the return of a 16th-century bronze sculpture of saint Tirumankai Alvar from the Ashmolean Museum. India has made several claims to be the rightful owner of the diamond, which was used in the coronation of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.

Source: The Guardian June 11, 2024 09:23 UTC