$1.5 million Japanese Buddhist statue stolen

On the night of 18th September 2023, an Edo Period bronze statue of the Buddha was taken from the Barakat Gallery in Los Angeles’ La Cienega Design Quarter (www.barakatgallery.eu). The statue, priced at $1.5 million, was produced by Edo Period artist Tadazou Iinuma, and commissioned by a religious official, Ryozen. Dating from the Seventeenth Century, it depicts the Buddha as an athletic youth, seated in the Lotus Position, with a crown and halo. It was originally installed at the Yudonosan Temple. The monumental sculpture is a centrepiece of the Barakat Gallery’s Los Angeles Buddhist collection. Continue reading