In 2023, South Korea's Supreme Court ordered Buseok Temple in Seosan, 98 kilometers southwest of Seoul, to return the 50.5-centimeter-tall statue, stolen by South Koreans from the Japanese temple.

A 14th-century Buddhist statue that Korea’s Supreme Court ruled should ... the Korean temple believed to be its real owner in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province. Buseoksa sought to reclaim ...

Sekko Tanaka worships the Buddha statue, which was stolen from Kannonji temple in Japan, at Buseoksa Temple in South Korea on Jan 24, 2025. - Photo courtesy of the Board of Education in Tsushima ...