The brass idol, dating back to the early 1800s, weighs 4.56 kilograms and is 36 cm in height.
Customs authorities at the Chennai airport have recovered an antique Shivalingam with a Nagabharanam idol, dating back to the early 1800s, that was bound for the United States.
The department sleuths, based on specific inputs, intercepted an export consignment headed for the US. While the export documents referred to the idol purchased in Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu, the exporter did not provide the mandatory certificate from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), a press release said.
The brass idol weighing 4.56 kilograms and 36 cm in height was sourced from an individual in Kallakurichi.
The Customs authorities referred to an ASI expert team which on examining the idol certified that it was an antique datable to early 1800s.
The idol was seized along with other items under relevant sections of Customs Act and an investigation was on, the release said.