Israel returns stolen Greek artefacts in landmark handover

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A ceremony at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens has marked the handover of 22 ancient artefacts, returned by Israel after their illegal removal from Greece.

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni received the objects from the Israel Antiquities Authority and from Amir Ganor, director of its theft prevention division, on Tuesday.

The return comes as Athens intensifies an international repatriation campaign, which has an ultimate goal of securing the return of sculptures taken from the Acropolis.

“It is the first time that Israel has returned antiquities to Greece, marking the starting point of closer cooperation between the two countries for the protection of cultural heritage,” Ms Mendoni said.

“Every return of a cultural object to its place of origin has a broader symbolic and moral dimension.”

The recovered collection spans centuries, with the objects provisionally dated to between about 700 B.C. and 320 B.C.

Among them is a small bronze statuette of a woman. The rest is pottery: slender oil flasks, two-handled amphorae and drinking cups.

The vessels are decorated with mythological scenes and geometric motifs.

The handover forms part of a wider Greek effort to broaden bilateral cultural ties as it pursues the return of the Parthenon Marbles.

The 2,500-year-old sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, were removed from the Acropolis in the early 19th century by agents of Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin.

They are now displayed at the British Museum in London.

Greece’s current conservative government has built closer energy and defence ties with Israel in recent years.

In August, Israel signed a €3 billion (about £2.5 billion) deal to build an air defence system in Greece, dubbed Achilles Shield.

That agreement was described as the largest defence deal between the two countries.

Officials from both countries did not disclose on Tuesday how the artefacts came to light in Israel, nor the circumstances of their illegal removal from Greece.

In previous cases, antiquities returned from private collections abroad have often been traced to illicit excavations.

Pninat Yanay, the Israeli ambassador to Greece, said the items were recovered during an “investigation by the Israeli authorities into the illegal antiquities trade”.

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