HÀ NỘI, VIETNAM—Vietnam News reports that a seventh-century A.D. bronze statue was handed over to Ambassador Nguyễn Hoàng Long in a ceremony in London. The sculpture, recovered after a long investigation conducted by U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and London’s Metropolitan Police, was looted from central Vietnam’s Mỹ Son Sanctuary in 2008. The well-preserved statue weighs more than 500 pounds and stands some six feet tall. It may represent Durga, a Hindu goddess associated with protection, strength, motherhood, and destruction, or a queen or royal consort, based upon the depictions of clothing and jewelry. For more on the archaeology of Vietnam, go to “Around the World: Vietnam.”

Source: archaeology.org