The Buddha relics from Piprawaha were unearthed by William Claxton Peppé in 1898. These gems, consisting of semiprecious stones, gold and silver leaf, pearls, and beads shaped into emblems such as tri-ratna, bird, leaf and lotus motifs etc. These were carefully mounted between glasses in three separate frames shortly after their excavation. The Peppé family retained a portion of the extracted funerary gems and kept them in custody until Chris Peppé decided to auction them at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in May 2025. The planned auction sparked outrage and protests from India and other Buddhist nations, leading to its postponement after the Indian government issued legal notices against both the Peppé family and the auction house, Sotheby’s. The Indian Ministry of Culture emphasised that these gems are sacred relics for millions of Indians and Buddhists around the world, asserting that according to Buddhist theology and archaeological standards, the gems are “not separable from the remains (bone fragments) they accompany.” Ultimately, on July 30, 2025, the Piprawaha gems were repatriated by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi after 127 years. This unique repatriation process was expedited through a Public-Private Partnership with Godrej Industries Group, as the artefacts were held by a private collector, thereby fundamentally distinguishing it from previous repatriation efforts.