The case of the stolen masks
26 April - 18 mins
Podcast Series
Planet Money
About thirty years ago, Yagya Kumar Pradhan woke up to the news that the temple he and his clan used had been broken into. The temple had been ransacked. And someone had stolen two holy Bhairav masks. Yagya says they had been in his family for more than five hundred years – since the 16th century.
Yagya is a kind of Hindu priest for his clan. And he says, these Bhairav masks were very holy. People made offerings to them during Dashaun, a festival held in the fall.
Yagya thought the masks were gone for good. He didn't realize... they were hiding in plain sight.
On today's show: The story of a group of amateur art detectives who use modern tools, subterfuge, and the power of the law to r...
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