Thirteen ancient Ban Chiang artifacts have been returned to Thailand by a Thai citizen who had been living in the United States.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) held a handing over ceremony for the artifacts to be given to the Department of Fine Arts.
The event was attended by Nattapol Kanthahiran, Deputy Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs; Phanombut Chantarachot, Director-General of the Department of Fine Arts; Kanchana Patarachoke, Director-General of the MFA’s Department of Information; and Nitiya Kanokmongkol, Director of the National Museum Office, and other officials.
The artifacts include five clay-fired pottery items and eight iron bracelets.
The collector, Mali Nongyao informed the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Los Angeles upon realizing the value of the Ban Chiang artifacts and stated his desire to return them to Thailand as national heritage items.
The MFA and the Department of Fine Arts are working to repatriate invaluable Thai artifacts from abroad and expressed their gratitude to Mali for relinquishing the ownership of the ones in his possession.
The joint effort between the MFA and the Department of Fine Arts is part of a larger initiative to bring Thai artifacts back to their homeland. The Department of Fine Arts will examine the condition of the artifacts and begin an authentication process before storing them appropriately. (NNT)
