The Ministry of Culture has sent a representative to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to inspect two artefacts before they are returned to Thailand, according to Culture Minister Sermsak Pongpanit.
Nitaya Kanokmongkol, executive director of the Office of National Museums under the Fine Arts Department, is now in the United States to join the inspection of the two ancient bronze statues.
One of them is a Standing Shiva, known as the "Golden Boy", and the other is a female figure in a kneeling position.
The 'Golden Boy'.
The details and timeframe for the repatriation of the artefacts are to be discussed. The Met will shoulder the costs of repatriation, which is expected to take place next month, the minister said.
The Met decided to return the two statues to Thailand after verifying that they were connected with Douglas Latchford, an American antiquities trader, who was in 2019 charged with operating a major network that stole treasures from Southeast Asia.
Mr Sermsak said that Fine Arts Department director-general Phanombut Chantarachot and Director of The Met Max Hollein will also sign a memorandum of understanding on museum development cooperation.
Somjai Tapaopong, the Thai consul-general in New York, will witness the signing of the MoU.
A kneeling female figurine.