The Ashmolean Museum, in Oxford, England, has returned a 16th-Century bronze statue of Saint Thirumangai Alvar to the Government of India, following research into the object’s provenance and liaison with Indian authorities.
The handover of the statue was marked at a celebration held at the High Commission of India in London on Tuesday (March 3, 2026). The director of the Ashmolean, Xa Sturgis, CBE, and Professor Mallica Kumbera Landrus, head of the Museum’s Department of Eastern Art, were present.
In a statement released from the Ashmolean, Dr. Xa Sturgis said: ‘The Ashmolean is pleased to see this important object returned to India and we are grateful to the Indian authorities and scholars who have helped establish its provenance. The Museum and the University of Oxford are committed to ethical collections practices and continued research into our collections, their origins and their history.’
A spokesperson for the High Commission of India, London, says: ‘The High Commission of India to the United Kingdom warmly thanks the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford for its partnership and for its decision to return a 16th-century bronze icon of Saint Thirumangai Alvar to its original purpose as an object of worship. Enabling the return of this bronze statue to the Soundararaja Perumal temple in Tamil Nadu demonstrates the Museum’s strong leadership and commendable moral clarity. The government and the people of India appreciate this action and effort, which is not merely restoration of an object of art, but the reunification of an icon of faith with its intended shrine, restoring memory, and enabling cultural continuity.’
