US to return a trove of nearly 300 history-spanning antiquities to India

In July, the US and India signed an agreement to protect cultural property by preventing illegal trades and streamline the process to return stolen antiquities back to India.. ..

The relics most of which are terracotta artifacts from Eastern India are expected to be repatriated shortly, according to the Indian government in a statement on Saturday.. ..

The timing coincided withModis visit to Bidens hometown in Wilmington, Delaware, where the president held a Quad summit over the weekend, aimed at strengthening the close alliance between the US and India, Japan and Australia.. . Prime Minister (Modi) thanked President Biden for his support in the return of these artifacts, the Indias Ministry of External Affairs said.. . Modi also noted the relics were not just part of Indias historical material culture but formed the inner core of its civilization and consciousness, according to the statement.. ..

Among the exhibited objects was a sculpture of Apsara, a celestial performer in Hindu and Buddhist mythologies, made of sandstone from 10th to 11th century CE in Central India.Wearing ornamental headgear and a girdle with tassels, she strikes a posture found commonly in Indian classical dance.. ..

The US has returned 578 pieces of cultural artifacts to India since 2016, repatriations which in recent years have become an important aspect of India-US cultural understanding and exchange, according to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs.. ..

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