NFTs, metaverse of museums and idol recoveries: Here’s what the TN idol wing does

The Tamil Nadu idol wing has been in the news of late because of the numerous idols that they have been recovering from international auction houses and local art smugglers. This extremely successful team has a humble beginning. Until 1980, a small team of CB-CID officials investigated idol thefts. But there was a sudden rise in the theft of panchaloha idols (idols of Hindu deities Ganapati and Murugan made of five metals including gold, bronze, iron, silver and lead) in Tamil Nadu which began affecting public morale. Based on a government order from the then Director General of Police (DGP), a separate team was formed which later became the Tamil Nadu Idol Wing and is currently headed by IPS officer Jayanth Murali.

The Idol Wing is governed by the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972, which regulates the export trade and prevents smuggling and fraudulent dealings in antiquities. While this law is applicable within the borders of the country, the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) 1970 convention signed a treaty to prevent the sale of illicit trafficking of cultural property between countries. 

TNM spoke to Jayanth Murali regarding the recent idol recoveries in Tamil Nadu. Excerpts from the interview:

Of late, there seems to have been a rise in stolen idols being retrieved from all over the world. Is there a sudden spike or is there more media attention now?

Earlier, the recoveries used to happen once in a blue moon. But of late, we have been more active and upped our game. There has definitely been more press coverage than before. When we share these stories with the press, we don’t do it for publicity but to create awareness. When people see these stories, they are scared and voluntarily surrender the illicit antique statues that they own, to the HR&CE (Hindu Rights and Charitable Endowments). It acts as a deterrent because people come to know that they cannot have antique idols without proper documentation. Sometimes people have left idols by the river, on highways, and other such places because they are beginning to realise that it is illegal and can lead to punishment.

How do you initiate the process of retrieving a smuggled idol?

Someone usually files a complaint with the local police about a stolen idol. Once the FIR (First Information Report) is filed by the police, we begin our search. We trace and investigate based on the details provided in the FIR. Sometimes, when we trace the idol to a museum in a different country, we do a reverse investigation and ask the museum how they were able to procure it. Then, our team builds a case based on what the concerned museum told us including all the relevant information required by the UNESCO treaty and begins the process to get the idol back.

What are some challenges your team faces while trying to recover an idol from a foreign country?

One of the main challenges is in terms of paperwork. We first have to file our paperwork containing details of the missing statue to the state government. They review it, give their feedback and we incorporate it. After that, we send it to the union government – to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of External Affairs. They share their comments as well which are also incorporated and sent to the Ministries once again for review. Once they clear it, we send it to the concerned country and begin the process of retrieving the idols. But it can get a little more complicated at this stage.

Sometimes, the concerned country is not convinced by the paperwork we send, so a representative from their country comes here to do a spot assessment. The representative visits the temple the idol was stolen from and other relevant sites. Then, they file a report based on their findings and only if the concerned country is satisfied, the process for returning the statue is initiated from their side. The legalities can be extremely time consuming and delays the whole process. On an average, it can take anywhere from three months to one year or even two years to recover the statue, solely because of diplomatic reasons.

What happens to the statues once they are retrieved?

The country returning the idol hands them over to the Archaeological Department who then surrender it to the local court in the district from where the idol was stolen. This is done because in most cases there is an FIR, stating that the statue went missing. The court then hands it over to the concerned temple. Once the statue is received by the temple, some rituals are performed before they are installed again.

What happens if a recovered idol is damaged?

Sometimes, idol smugglers cut a portion of the idol or melt body parts of the idol to analyse what metals they are made of to determine their market value. It's a sad thing, really. Such idols cannot be returned to temples as people’s religious sentiments will be hurt. So, we keep them in museums and icon centres (establishments, often within the compounds of a temple, to preserve valuables from the temple). Some of the idols, especially those that have been severely damaged or are extremely old and fragile, need to be preserved carefully to avoid further damage. The icon centres are all air-conditioned and have a good security system, so the idols are safe there.

Is there a historian or an archaeologist on your team? How does their expertise weigh in?

There was no such position in the team until recently, but I put my foot down and said that we need a subject matter expert. My request was accommodated and we are going to be announcing an opening for the position shortly. Before that, we used to consult retired archaeologists who are experts in the subjects related to the missing idol. Their expertise helps us because all the members in my team, including myself, are police officers with little to no experience in history. But an archaeologist will be able to provide detailed insights into the history of the idol, its workmanship that was probably unique to the era and so on which makes the process of recovering the idols relatively easier.

The idol of goddess Parvati was recently found in Bonhams Auction House in New York. How is an idol retrieved if it is up for auction or sold to a collector for a high price?

When we were on the hunt for the Parvati idol, we had no evidence that this particular idol was the one that was stolen. We had no pictures of the idol to compare as well. The FIR filed mentioned that there were five missing idols and one was of the goddess Parvati. This was the only information we had. There is an Indo-French Institute in Puducherry which usually has analog pictures of some ancient temples and sometimes the idols in those temples. Luckily, we were able to find a picture of a Parvati idol that matched the descriptions of the missing one and was from the same era (the Chola period). Once we had visual inputs, we began looking at museums and auction houses all over the world. All of them have web catalogues which made it easier for us to trace the idol. We checked with the Smithsonian Museum in the USA and Victoria and Albert Museum in the UK, but there was no luck. We began checking in auction houses then. We checked in Christie’s (an online auction house) and then we checked Bonham’s and we finally found the statue there.

But the process did not end there. Once we found the statue we began preparing our paperwork in line with the UNESCO treaty. We included the picture from the Indo-French Institute, the FIR for the missing statue and eyewitness accounts of people who had seen the statue in the temple. Even though it was at an auction house, we were able to stake a claim to it, because the UNESCO treaty states that idols stolen and smuggled from one country to another must be returned if there is sufficient evidence that it was illegally procured. Several countries, including India, have signed this treaty and we are all bound by its rules so we staked our claim to the statue, provided the appropriate documentation and were able to get it back.

Some of the idols that were smuggled are said to be worth millions of dollars. How is the price of an idol determined?

Two things determine the price of an idol. One is its antiquity and the other is workmanship. Sometimes, idols that are not too old are also extremely valuable because of the exquisite craftsmanship. Most millionaires consider idols a valuable investment because they have tax exemptions and their value only appreciates over time. So they are ready to pay any price for such artefacts, which is also a determining factor in the market price of these idols.

How has technology helped in the process of retrieving idols? Has it become easier?

Since we have internet access now, it has become easier to look at the catalogues and brochures of museums, auction houses and art dealers to identify if it has any of the statues that we need to recover. Apart from that, we have also planned to inaugurate a virtual museum consisting of all the idols we have recovered till now. The idols have been 3D photographed and can be observed from all angles so that people can appreciate the workmanship. There is also a plan to create a metaverse consisting of virtual museums.

With such virtual museums, people will be able to look at these statues from the comforts of their homes. We also have plans to make NFTs (Non Fungible Tokens are unique cryptographic tokens that cannot be replicated and often represent real-world things like artwork) of the statues, for two reasons mainly. Art collectors and patrons can own the NFTs which will fulfil their desire to own valuable statues and I believe that this will reduce idol thefts as well. Another reason is that this will increase government revenue because each NFT can be sold easily for Rs 25 to 30 lakh. We have also collaborated with IIT-Madras to create algorithms that would identify the period the idol belongs to, based on its unique features and workmanship. All of this will be accessible to the public very soon.