New Delhi: India has finally succeeded in retrieving the ‘Chola Plates’ considered one of the most important surviving inscriptions of the dynasty, with the Netherlands formally restoring the property on Saturday in a formal ceremony in the presence of PM Narendra Modi and PM Rob Jetten, marking another success of the Modi government in recovering stolen artefacts in foreign jurisdictions.“A joyous moment for every Indian! 11th century Chola copper plates to be brought back to India from the Netherlands. Prime Minister Rob Jetten attended the same ceremony in presence.” PM Modi Said in a post on X.“The Chola Copper Plates are a set of 21 large plates and 3 small plates and contain texts largely in Tamil, one of the most beautiful languages ​​in the world. They relate to the formalization of a verbal commitment made by the great Rajendra Chola I to his father, King Rajaraja I. They also demonstrate the greatness of the Cholas. In India we are extremely proud of the Cholas, their culture and their sea power.He also particularly thanked the Government of the Netherlands and the University of Leiden, where the copper plates had been housed since the mid-19th century.The compensation marks the culmination of a 14-year-long effort since 2012 to bring them back. Of the 668 antiquities brought back to India from various countries so far, 655 have returned after the Modi government came to power in 2014.The return of the Anaimangalam Copper Plates, known as the Leiden Plates in the Netherlands, will further expand the list. The inscriptions on these plates are among the most important artefacts of Tamil heritage preserved anywhere outside India. The plates record important agreements regarding the rights of a Buddhist temple and several monasteries at Nagapattinam on the revenues of the villages.Dating back to the reign of Emperor Rajaraja Chola I (985-1014 CE), considered one of the greatest rulers in Indian history, one of the objects includes 21 copper plates, weighing about 30 kilograms each. The plates are divided into two volumes: one in Sanskrit and one in Tamil. The second item being restored includes three copper plates with Tamil inscriptions. Both are tied with bronze rings bearing the royal seal of the Chola dynasty.According to sources, India’s efforts to recover the Chola plates received a decisive impetus on October 30, 2023, when India’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to UNESCO formally requested to include the Chola Dynasty Copper Plates in the agenda of the 24th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation (ICPRCP).The 24th session of the ICPRCP found that India’s claim as a nation of origin was legitimate. By November 2023, the UNESCO committee encouraged the Netherlands to engage in constructive bilateral dialogue with India regarding the return of the plates, which ultimately culminated in an agreement to hand over the plates during PM Modi’s visit.The plates were brought to the Netherlands around 1712 by Florentius Camper, who was in India as part of a Christian missionary at the time when Nagapattinam was under Dutch control. The plates were eventually donated to Leiden University in 1862 and have been housed in its library ever since.According to officials, the exact legal and personal circumstances under which Camper obtained the plates from India are not fully documented.