Stolen Thirumangai Alwar bronze idol returns to Kumbakonam temple after nearly 70 years

After several decades of uncertainty, an antique bronze statue of Thirumangai Alwar, stolen from the Soundararaja Perumal Temple at Kumbakonam, has finally been recovered and returned to its rightful custodians.

The Idol Wing-CID of the Tamil Nadu Police traced the idol to the Ashmolean Museum in the United Kingdom, marking a breakthrough in the endeavour to restore the temple’s lost heritage. The Ashmolean Museum is the University of Oxford’s museum of art and archaeology.

On February 12, 2020, the Idol Wing-CID registered a case on a complaint, filed by the executive officer of the Sri Soundararaja Perumal Temple, of the theft of four idols from the temple between 1957 and 1967. The idols are the bronze statue of Thirumangai Alwar and the metal idols of Kaalinga Narthana Krishnar, Vishnu, and Sridevi.

During the investigation, Idol Wing-CID officers traced the Thirumangai Alwar statue to the Ashmolean Museum. It had acquired it in 1967 from an unidentified seller. The other idols were traced to three different museums in the United States.

Kalpana Nayak, Additional Director-General of Police, Idol Wing-CID, stated the officers had meticulously gathered scientific evidence establishing the provenance of the stolen idols. They had compiled compelling evidence and submitted it to the authorities in the countries where the idols were located. The evidence played a crucial role in establishing that the idols had originated from the temple and had been smuggled abroad, she said.

As part of the verification process, the Ashmolean Museum sent a representative to conduct due diligence on the report submitted by the Idol Wing-CID. The representative subsequently submitted a detailed report to the senior officials of the university. Following this, the university council acknowledged that the Thirumangai Alwar statue had been illegally removed from the Sri Soundararaja Perumal Temple at Kumbakonam.

In 2024, the university expressed its commitment to send the idol back to India. In 2026, the Tamil Nadu government wrote to the High Commission of India in London and the Union Ministry of Culture in New Delhi, informing them that a replica of the Thirumangai Alwar statue had been completed and was ready to be handed over to the Ashmolean Museum for the repatriation of the original statue.

After receiving the original statue, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) informed the authorities on August 6 that the antique bronze had been received by it in New Delhi. A team of the Idol Wing-CID travelled to New Delhi and brought the idol to Chennai. The team presented the statue before Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Monday, in the presence of Director-General of Police and Head of Police Force Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal and Ms. Kalpana Nayak.

“The triumphant return of Thirumangai Alwar marks the first step towards solving a theft that took place nearly 70 years ago. The larger challenge is to ensure that the remaining stolen idols. It have been traced to museums in the United States, are also swiftly repatriated and justice is delivered to the residents,” said S. Vijay Kumar, cultural enthusiast and co-founder of India Pride.

The Thirumangai Alwar statue was handed over to the temple custodians at the Kumbakonam court on Tuesday. The idol was then taken back to the temple in a grand procession, during which residents gave it a rousing reception.