From Canberra to Phnom Penh: Collaborative Research and the Repatriation of Three Cham Bronzes

In July 2023, the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra ceremonially repatriated three bronze bodhisattvas to the Kingdom of Cambodia. Produced in Campā between the 9th and 11th centuries and likely buried centuries later in southeastern Cambodia, the sculptures were returned following years of research into their findspot and provenance. The handover celebrated a decades-long relationship between the National Gallery and the National Museum of Cambodia in Phnom Penh and reflected broader shifts in museum practice, ethical decision-making, and collection management.