As Nepal demands repatriation of stolen artefacts, the auction of a Buddha statue raises questions

The statue of Buddha that was up for sale at Christie’s auction house was, according to art experts, an early test: would recent controversy around objects once owned by two prominent Chicago collectors hinder its sale and send a signal about how the art market views the renowned collection?

The answer came quickly. The 7 1/4-inch copper-alloy Buddha from 9th-century Nepal, which had been on loan to the Art Institute of Chicago until last year, failed to sell last week, a Christie’s spokesperson said.

It never received a bid in the estimated price range of $60,000 to $80,000.

“Nobody wants to buy trouble,” said Erin Thompson, an associate professor of art crime at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York who has advocated for repatriation of Nepali artefacts. “Why would you buy someone else’s stolen cultural property?”

Although the Christie’s auction was a single sale of a single object, art experts said it was telling nonetheless. The rare Buddha had been in the collection of James and Marilynn Alsdorf, whose massive art holdings focused on pieces from Nepal and other parts of South and Southeast Asia.

The Christie’s spokesperson said 63% of the auction’s 124 lots found buyers.

The Alsdorfs obtained the Buddha at a time when protocol around collecting were lax,...

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