The Leiden copper plates, recently returned to India, are a vital record of Chola history

When the priceless Chola bronzes from Sivapuram and Pathur villages successful Tamil Nadu were returned to India successful 1986 and 1991 aft protracted ineligible battles successful the U.S. and U.K., it created a sensation. A formidable squad of experts from divers fields helped repatriate the bronzes aft they were smuggled abroad. On February 17, 1988, Justice Ian Kennedy of a London court, awarding the idol to Tamil Nadu, praised R. Nagaswamy, who testified successful the case, arsenic “an acknowledged adept successful the tract of Chola bronzes.” Then Director of the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology, Nagaswamy was an epigraphist, iconographer, archaeologist, and student of Tamil and Sanskrit.

It was solemnisation clip again for epigraphists and scholars of Chola past erstwhile Leiden University successful the Netherlands handed implicit the Anaimangalam copper-plate charter, popularly known arsenic the Leiden plates, to Prime Minister Narendra Modi astatine The Hague connected May 16, 2026.

Repatriating smuggled artefacts to their countries of root is simply a tedious process. It involves prolonged tribunal battles and testimonies from scholars, iconographers, epigraphists, forensic specialists and constabulary officers. More importantly, the state successful which the artefacts are discovered indispensable beryllium consenting to instrumentality them, noted K. Muniratham, Director of Epigraphy, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Mysuru.

The roles played by ASI Director General Y.S. Rawat, S. Swaminathan, epigraphist and Professor Y. Subbarayalu, a student of Chola history, were important successful persuading The Netherlands to instrumentality the plates to India. “We had been trying for the past 14 years. The existent process began successful 2024, erstwhile UNESCO asked maine to hole a dossier connected the Leiden plates. I did so, with the assistance of epigraphist Swaminathan. We worked intimately with UNESCO,” said Munirathnam. The ASI besides prepared a video presumption and successfully established the provenance of the plates, proving that they belonged to Tamil Nadu but had been taken to Holland. “We person brought backmost 155 artefacts successful the past 13 years,” helium added.

Lennart Bes, adjunct professor, Indian and Asian History, Institute for History (Colonial and Global History), Leiden University, wrote to Subbarayalu, seeking clarifications.

According to Subbarayalu, “South Indian historians respect the 2 sets of Leiden copper plates, weighing astir 30 kg and held by the assemblage since 1862, arsenic important sources for 11th‑century history. While thousands of chromatic inscriptions papers Chola history, copper‑plate grants are comparatively rare. These plates, therefore, are invaluable records.”

The connection of Leiden University’s Colonial Collections Committee (CCC), which conducted an autarkic provenance probe earlier deciding to instrumentality the plates, noted that the artefacts were “most apt excavated during the operation of Fort Vijf Sinnen and the redevelopment of the tract astatine the Chinese Pagoda successful Nagapattinam by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) betwixt 1687 and 1700. At the time, the VOC had captured Nagapattinam. The plates had been cautiously buried successful the ground, astir apt to support them during a play of upheaval.” Florentius Camper “brought” the plates to the Netherlands successful 1712, and they were aboriginal donated to Leiden University successful 1862.

“The Leiden copper plates subordinate to the Chulamani Vihara, a Buddhist constitution successful Nagapattinam, an important larboard municipality of the Chola kingdom. The institution, and the grants made to it by the Chola kings, attest to the beardown planetary ties betwixt South India and Southeast Asia,” explained Subbarayalu.

The copper plates dwell of 2 sets. The larger acceptable comprises 16 Tamil plates and 5 engraved successful Sanskrit successful Grantha script. The inscriptions connected the larger plates uncover that the Sailendra king, Sri Mara Vijayotunga Varman of Srivijaya (Java), approached Rajaraja Chola I (r. 985–1014 CE) for support to physique a Buddhist vihara astatine Nagapattinam, successful representation of his father, Sri Chulamani Varman. Rajaraja granted support successful 1006 CE and endowed the vihara with revenues from onshore successful Anaimangalam village, including 8,943 kalam (a portion of measurement) of paddy and different materials for its maintenance.

The Chulamani Vihara was besides called Raja Raja Perum Palli (a large vihara). Another vihara built astatine Nagapattinam was named Rajendra Chola Perum Palli. So determination were 2 Buddha viharas astatine Nagapattinam.

An intriguing communicative surrounds the aureate Buddha idol erstwhile installed successful the Chulamani Vihara. In his Substack nonfiction dated November 15, 2025, T.S. Krishnan, a specializer connected the Chola, Pandya, Chera and the Nayaka dynasties, and writer of respective books wrote: “…it is important to code a portion of misinformation often repeated — that Tirumangai Azhwar, 1 of the Vaishnava saints, robbed a aureate Buddha statue from the Vihara and utilized it to physique the Srirangam temple wall. There is nary humanities grounds for this claim. Records notation to the monastery arsenic ‘Chudamani Vihara,’ which was constructed centuries aft Tirumangai Azhwar’s time.”

Referring to the plates, Krishnan said, “They are not simply inscriptions. They are surviving grounds of Chola administration, onshore grants, maritime connections, Tamil–Southeast Asian relations, and the civilisational assurance of the Chola age.”

Nagaswamy felt that radical wrote connected metallic for 2 reasons. One was the content that inscribing mystical diagrams (yantras) connected metallic would bestow spiritual powers; the different was to make durable documents.

All the large dynasties of the Tamil portion and the Vijayanagara dynasty issued these copper sheet inscriptions, which were discovered astatine antithetic places and times. Some were unearthed by farmers portion ploughing fields; others were recovered successful locked rooms oregon spiritual mutts. “They are replete with humanities facts and unneurotic with chromatic records person benefitted historians and archaeologists. Fascinating arsenic they whitethorn seem, these copper sheet inscriptions are wide sheets of copper, held unneurotic by a heavy ringing passing done holes successful the plates, and crowned by the seal of the dynasty that issued them,” said R. Balasubramanian, erstwhile curator, Government Museum, Chennai.

Somehow, Rajaraja’s bid was not engraved connected the copper plates arsenic was the custom. After helium attained deiva thanmai (his passing) arsenic the inscription mentions, his lad ‘Madurantaka’ Rajendra Chola I got his father’s decree engraved connected the copper plates. “This is mentioned successful the Sanskrit portion,” shared seasoned epigraphist V. Vedachalam.

“Importantly, the connection ‘Anaimangalam’ has been carved successful Tamil connected the ringing that connects the larger plates,” helium pointed out.

The seal connected the larger plates features a tiger, the royal emblem of the Cholas, the duplicate food of the Pandyas, and the bow of the Cheras, flanked by 2 fly-whisks and 2 lamps — symbols of royal authority. Around these runs a Sanskrit sloka praising Rajendra.

The smaller plates were issued by Kulottunga Chola I (r. 1070–1120 CE) successful 1090 CE, aft 2 emissaries — Raja Vidhyadhara Sri Samanthan and Abhimanothunga Sri Samanthan — from a Javanese ruler met him to question reconfirmation of Rajaraja’s earlier grant, arsenic the rulers had since changed. Kulottunga not lone reaffirmed the assistance but besides augmented it, endowing further onshore and 4,400 kalam of paddy to the Chulamani Vihara. The seal connected these plates bears a little Sanskrit sloka successful praise of Kulottunga I, underscoring some royal patronage and the continued ties crossed the seas.

Subbarayalu said helium had erstwhile visited the Leiden University room and observed the attraction taken by its officials to sphere the plates for truthful long. He requested ASI officials to instrumentality bully attraction of the plates and supply entree to scholars to survey them.