Auction of gems linked to Buddha postponed after India legal threat

The Indian government is seeking to repatriate ancient gem relics linked to the Buddha’s remains after halting their sale at an auction in Hong Kong. Sotheby’s postponed the sale of the Piprahwa gems, due on Wednesday, after the ministry of culture threatened to take legal action against the auction house in Indian and Hong Kong courts and through international bodies “for violations of cultural heritage laws”. In a statement, the ministry said it would discuss repatriation of the gems to India with Sotheby’s and the sellers, three descendants of William Claxton Peppé, a British colonial landowner who, in 1898, excavated the gems on his estate in northern India. In a legal notice issued to Sotheby’s on Monday, India’s ministry of culture told the auction house that the gems should be treated as the sacred body of the Buddha and it would be “participating in continued colonial exploitation” if the sale went ahead. The letter, posted on the ministry’s social media accounts, added that Peppé’s great-grandson, Chris Peppé, a Los Angeles-based TV director and film editor, lacked the authority to sell the gem relics, which “constitute inalienable religious and cultural heritage of India and the global Buddhist community”. There has been a growing international outcry against the sale of the gems, which many Buddhists believe are imbued with the presence of the Buddha and should be treated as corporeal remains. The 334 gems, which were expected to sell for about HK$100m (£9.7m), include amethysts, coral, garnets, pearls, rock crystals, shells and gold, either worked into pendants, beads and other ornaments, or in their natural form. The gems were originally buried in a dome-shaped funerary monument, called a stupa, in Piprahwa in present-day Uttar Pradesh, India, in about 240-200BC, when they were mixed with some of the cremated remains of the Buddha, who died in about 480BC. The British crown claimed Peppé’s find under the 1878 Indian Treasure Trove Act, with the bones and ash presented to the Buddhist monarch King Chulalongkorn of Siam. Most of the 1,800 gems went to the colonial museum in Kolkata, while Peppé was permitted to retain approximately a fifth of them. Legal experts told the Guardian that the Indian government could pursue legal action even if the gems were sold. Sameer Jain, a managing partner at PSL advocates and solicitors, India, said the auction could well be in breach of Indian laws including the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972, the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act 1958, and the Indian Treasure Trove Act 1878, as the Indian ministry of culture claimed. Jain said: “These laws vest the ownership of relics in the government of India, whether or not they were exported during the colonialist period. Any export trade without licence is prohibited. The root question would be whether [the gems] were exported out of India legally and whether the Peppés are even owners of these items. It is arguable that the relics were given to the family only for custody.” Noor Kadhim, an art lawyer at the legal consultancy Kadhims and an independent consultant in Fieldfisher’s art law department, said India could not sue Sotheby’s under The Hague and the Unesco conventions because it was a private auction house rather than a state museum. She added: “If they wish to use these treaties, the more viable path would be to employ them against China, as the host state for Sotheby’s Hong Kong.” Conan Cheong, a curator and expert in south-east Asian art, welcomed Sotheby’s decision, saying: “This is a rare chance for the Peppés to finally consult with the Buddhist voices raised in protest of the sale in Thailand, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and elsewhere, as well as with the Indian government, to find a truly equitable way to share them with all humanity.” Chris Peppé has been approached for comment. With regards to his rights and those of his two relatives to sell the gems, he previously told the Guardian: “Legally, the ownership is unchallenged.” In a statement, Sotheby’s said: “In light of the matters raised by the government of India and with the agreement of the consignors, the auction of the Piprahwa gems of the historical Buddha, scheduled for 7 May, has been postponed. This will allow for discussions between the parties and we look forward to sharing any updates as appropriate.”