Stolen trove of Angkor crown jewels returned to Cambodia after resurfacing in London

The trove includes crowns and other treasures from the Angkor period, which ran from the ninth to the 14th century AD. Photograph: Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts/Handout via Xinhua

Dozens of pieces of Angkorian crown jewellery stolen from Cambodia, many never seen by the public, have been returned after resurfacing in London, the Cambodian culture ministry said on Monday.

The trove includes crowns, necklaces, amulets and other treasures from the Angkor period, which ran from the ninth to the 14th century AD, when the Khmer empire was a dominant force in south-east Asia.

The ministry said officials in Cambodia received the 77 pieces from the family of British antiquities dealer Douglas Latchford.

Latchford died in 2020 while awaiting trial in the United States for art trafficking, and his family reached an agreement with Cambodia the same year to return his collection of Khmer antiquities.

The collection, which arrived discreetly in Cambodia on Friday, features “gold and other precious metal pieces from the pre-Angkorian and Angkorian period including crowns, necklaces, bracelets, belts, earrings and amulets”, the ministry said.