The French antiquities dealer and collector Christian Deydier has donated another 24 gold tomb ornaments taken in the 1990s from Dabuzishan in Gansu Province to the Chinese government, Xinhua news agency reports.
Dating from China’s pre-imperial Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), the objects were handed over on 21 September at a ceremony at the Gansu Provincial Museum, where they will be stored. At a display of the Dabuzishan artefacts, Deydier expressed his hope that the will all “return home and be united”.
With the growth of its international clout, the Chinese government has been successfully pushing for the return of art and artefacts looted from China since in the 19th century and taken abroad. This summer, Deydier joined with the collector François Pinault to return 32 gold objects from the same tombs.