NEW DELHI: An attempt was made to smuggle out a bronze idol of Lord Vishnu (Perumal) dating to the late medieval period as a courier consignment in July 2021 from Tamil Nadu to Malaysia. It was sculpted using the ‘lost-wax’ casting method, a technique prevailing in the Chola Empire. However, alert customs officers in Bengaluru noticed oxidation suggesting that the approximately 22 kg statue is of historical significance. They red-flagged the shipment, and subsequently, the antiquity was seized.In February 2021, Bengaluru customs officers confiscated an idol of Lord Vishnu made of chloritic schist stone belonging to the same period. It was being exported to Japan. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence thwarted the smuggling of six handwritten Qurans from the 17th-19th century at Delhi airport in October 2018.These archaeological treasures, along with 93 other antiquities including a tracker telescope, daggers, manuscripts, and several figurines seized by the customs from different states, were handed over to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Thursday at a virtual ceremony presided over by the Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman.“In total, 101 articles of seized antiquities were handed over by different field formations of Customs to ASI for display and specialized care. Out of the 101 antiquities, a few of them will be displayed at ‘Dharohar’- the National Museum of Customs in Goa,” said officials.
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