Hungarian Collector Returns 183 Khmer Textiles and Artefacts to Cambodia

Xinhua, ' Cambodia: Hungarian collector to return looted Khmer cultural heritage objects', China Daily November 21, 2025

Cambodia said on Friday that Istvan Zelnik, a Hungarian national and private collector, has agreed to return stolen Khmer cultural heritage objects to the kingdom after several years of negotiations. "Among the significant Khmer cultural heritage objects which will be returned to Cambodia under this agreement are 183 pieces of Khmer silk textiles ... as well as prehistoric artifacts such as coins, beads, jewelry, and items made of precious metals, bronze, stone and clay," said a press release from the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts. "Many of these objects were looted from Cambodia during the decades of civil war," the press release added [...]

Zelnik has collected Asian art for decades, including Khmer art and had already repatriated several Khmer artefacts . In the early 2000s, he founded the Hungarian Southeast Asian Institute, which he funded to support key research at Angkor and Koh Ker, including archaeological surveys, LIDAR studies and historical research. These efforts have significantly contributed to Cambodia's cultural preservation efforts and also contributed significantly to Koh Ker’s nomination for the World Heritage List. Zelnik anfd the Institute have also been involved in the publication of numerous scholarly works on cultural heritage, inscriptions, and contemporary Khmer art.