Thread by @ICIJorg

We dug into Cambodia's lost heritage and one of the world’s most elite & secretive trades — the antiquities market — with @washingtonpost & @FinUncovered.

Our latest search on the fate of allegedly looted relics led us to the pages of a luxury magazine. 🧵bit.ly/3w7xMJz

A 2021 @ArchDigest spread on a San Francisco mansion featured a photo of a lavish courtyard with several empty pedestals off to one side.

But our reporters discovered another version of the image showing ancient Khmer sculptures resting there. bit.ly/3w7xMJz

It’s unclear who modified the photo or why, but those sculptures match missing relics that Cambodian officials say were stolen from one of the nation’s most sacred sites years ago — offering clues in a global effort to repatriate 1000s of lost artifacts. bit.ly/3w7xMJz

The Khmer relics edited out of the 2021 magazine photo appear to have come from what’s been called “one of the greatest collections of Southeast Asian art in private hands” — owned by the billionaire Lindemann family. bit.ly/3w7xMJz

The Lindemanns have not been accused of wrongdoing, but have been contacted by U.S. authorities, sources say.

The Cambodian culture minister says the collection “should be repatriated as soon as possible.” bit.ly/3w7xMJz

The stalemate points to the challenges facing investigators trying to reclaim relics linked to looters.

Experts say private collectors and institutions can often acquire stolen art without consequences due to a lack of regulation and secrecy of the trade. bit.ly/3w7xMJz

Investigators say a key middleman in the decades-long ransacking of Cambodian sites was once-renowned British antiquities dealer Douglas Latchford — the subject of a #PandoraPapers exposé last year.

He was indicted by U.S. prosecutors in 2019. bit.ly/3mevlk1

Just last week, dozens of looted religious artifacts that Latchford sold to a U.S. museum and private collectors were handed back to Cambodian authorities.

Prosecutors urged others who may hold illegally obtained antiquities to come clean. bit.ly/3SRi5jj

See ICIJ's #HiddenTreasures collection for more #PandoraPapers, #PanamaPapers and #FinCENFiles investigations on how the secretive art and antiquities trade can provide cover for looters, thieves, money launderers, sanctions dodgers, tax evaders and more. bit.ly/3AjPWKG

To follow along our reporting on the global hunt to recover Cambodia’s lost heritage, and the secretive art and antiquities trade, subscribe to ICIJ’s free e-newsletter: bit.ly/3IIjBQr

And please consider making a donation to support our efforts! bit.ly/3QsqKHB