A Buddhist statue returned to Japan after a 13-year legal dispute between Japan and South Korea will go on public display at Kyushu National Museum from July 7. The seated Kannon Bodhisattva statue, created in 1330 and designated as a Nagasaki Prefectural Cultural Property, was stolen from Kannonji Temple on Tsushima Island in 2012 and taken to South Korea. A prolonged ownership dispute ended in 2023 when South Korea’s Supreme Court recognized Japan’s ownership, leading to the statue’s return in 2025. This marks its first exhibition outside Tsushima. The statue is normally kept under enhanced security at the Tsushima Museum, while the exhibition offers visitors a rare opportunity to view a cultural treasure with an extraordinary modern history. Source: KBC News / RKB News
Photo: Kyushu National Museum
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