Synopsis: The Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts says the repatriation followed years of negotiations and is part of efforts to recover lost heritage.
István Zelnik, a Hungarian national and longtime private collector of Asian art, has returned a vast collection of Khmer cultural heritage objects to Cambodia.
In a statement released on Thursday, the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts said the returned items include 183 pieces of Khmer silk textiles, significantly expanding the National Museum’s textile collection. Other items include artefacts, coins, beads, jewellery, and objects made of precious metals, bronze, stone, and clay—many of which were looted during Cambodia’s decades of civil conflict. The returned items also include important stone and bronze pieces from the Pre-Angkor and Angkor periods.
The ministry noted that the repatriation follows several years of negotiations and forms part of ongoing efforts to locate and reclaim lost Khmer cultural heritage abroad.
Zelnik, who has collected Asian art for decades, established the Hungarian Southeast Asian Institute in the early 2000s. Through this institute, he funded major research initiatives at Angkor and Koh Ker, including archaeological surveys, LIDAR studies, and historical research—contributions that played a significant role in the successful World Heritage inscription of Koh Ker.
The ministry expressed its gratitude to Zelnik, now in his seventies, for his “commendable decision” to return the extensive collection. Zelnik has previously repatriated several Khmer artefacts and has long supported Cambodia’s cultural preservation through research funding and the publication of scholarly works on heritage, inscriptions, and contemporary Khmer art.
“Peace and political stability achieved through the Win-Win Policy of Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen have provided Cambodia with the opportunity to reclaim the souls of our Khmer ancestors and recover numerous priceless treasures that were looted from their homeland during the decades of war,” said Phoeurng Sackona, Minister of Culture and Fine Arts.
She also thanked Prime Minister Hun Manet for his unwavering commitment and full support in the protection, conservation, and promotion of our national culture and civilisation.
Sackona also expressed her gratitude and appreciation to the team of the ministry and particularly to Bradley J Gordon of Edenbridge Asia and his associates, for their active collaboration with the ministry in researching, identifying, and negotiating the return of these lost Khmer cultural heritage properties to Cambodia.
The ministry has also called on all private collectors and institutions worldwide which possess Cambodian artefacts to cooperate with Cambodian Government—through the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts or Cambodian embassies in their respective countries—in facilitating the return of Khmer cultural property to its homeland.
“The Royal Government of Cambodia extends its sincere gratitude for such acts of goodwill. The repatriation of Khmer cultural heritage is regarded as a noble and honourable gesture—one that reflects a profound sense of ethical responsibility in safeguarding a nation’s identity and contributes meaningfully to the preservation of humanity’s shared cultural legacy,” the statement said.
