Two suspects have been detained for allegedly looting 14 stone sculptures of Buddha heads dating back to around 1,000 years ago from a temple in Shaanxi Province, an official said Saturday.

The third suspect, who carries all the Buddha head sculptures, is still at large. The items are on a national list of cultural heritages for protection.

The three men pretended to be tourists and entered Wan'an Buddha Hall in Huangling County at about 5:30 p.m. Friday. They tied up and beat the three employees of the temple, robbed them of their cash and cell phones.

Then the three suspects cut off the heads of 14 Buddha statues, all about 9 centimeters to 15 cm tall, which were engraved during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127), and escaped, Wang Chunmei, director of the county's press office, told Xinhua Saturday.

Police seized Zhang Yingjie and Zhang Mingqiang at about 8 p.m. the same day after receiving reports about the looting, but the third suspect, who carried all the Buddha heads, was still at large, said Wang.

Police officers have cordoned off the temple, hunting the third suspect and questioning the two in police custody.

(Xinhua News Agency September 13, 2009)