Sotheby’s Hong Kong on Wednesday postponed an auction of gems associated with early Buddhism after India said the jewels were part of its religious and cultural heritage.
The Piprava gems date back to around 200 B.C. and were unearthed in northern India in 1898 by Englishman William Claxton Pepper, Sotheby’s said. The gems were due to be auctioned in Hong Kong on Wednesday, the auction house said.
India’s Ministry of Culture issued a legal notice on Monday, calling the jewels “inalienable religious and cultural heritage of India and the global Buddhist community” and saying the sale violated Indian and international law.
The ministry called for the auction to be cancelled, the jewels to be repatriated to India, an apology to the Indian government and full disclosure of their provenance documentation, according to the notice posted on X’s website.
Sotheby’s said Wednesday morning that the auction had been postponed “in light of the issues raised by the Indian government and with the consignor’s consent.” “This will enable discussions between the parties and we look forward to sharing any updates in due course,” Sotheby’s said in a statement.
Sotheby’s said the night before that the auction would “go ahead as planned.”
India’s Ministry of Culture wrote on the X website that it was pleased to inform readers that the auction had been postponed due to its intervention.
The gems being auctioned in Hong Kong are part of a collection of nearly 1,800 gemstones and precious metal pieces, including amethysts, pearls and gold pieces made into small beads.
The gems were unearthed in the village of Piprahwa, near the birthplace of the Buddha, and are thought to have belonged to a family associated with the religious figure.
Indian authorities said an inscription on one of the caskets confirmed that its contents — including bone fragments — were “Buddha relics deposited by the Sakya clan.”
In an article for Sotheby’s, Chris Pepe said his ancestors “gifted the gems, relics and reliquaries to the Indian government” and that his family kept only “a small portion.”
