Antiquities Returned to Greece from NYC ... But I'm Not Among Them

 

The most interesting antiquity to me is to the far left front

Saturday—Jeff

 

I’m talking about the return yesterday of thirty antiquities at a presentation in the New York County (Manhattan) District Attorney’s office celebrating the success of a joint operation among the DA’s office, US Homeland Security, and Greece’s Ministry of Culture.  The details are reported at length in Greece’s Protothema newspaper. I’m reproducing below a translation of the article to spare all of you from racing off to Google translate and crashing the site.  And yes, bringing this exercise in cultural diplomacy to the attention of some folks on the other side of the Pond would be greatly appreciated.

 

The antiquities cover a wide chronological range from prehistoric to Byzantine times – They were handed over to the Greek authorities by the head of the relevant antiquities unit at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

 

On their way back to Greece they will take with them 30 antiquities seized by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office and handed over to the Greek authorities on Friday, December 15, 2023 by the head of the Antiquities Trafficking Unit, Matthew Bogdanos, Deputy Prosecutor in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

The pilfered antiquities on display

According to an announcement by the Ministry of Culture, the antiquities that are repatriated cover a wide chronological range from prehistoric to Byzantine times and are representative examples of sculpture, metalwork and ceramics.

The objects come from seizures in warehouses of British antiquarian Robin Symes and in the gallery of Michael Ward in New York.

 

Which items stand out?

An intact marble Cycladic figurine of the "Spedou" type and three surviving fragments are considered separate.

Cycladic marble figurine of the "Spedos" type 2700-2300 BC

Also stand out are two heads and a trunk of the "Spedou" type (2700- 2300 BC), a clay cup of the Kamaraicou style and a bronze bull figurine of Minoan times (1900-1500 BC), a pitcher and a breast of Mycenaean times (1300-1150 BC), a aryballos in the form of a male helmeted head made of faience, two aryballos, one in the form of a seated female figure and the other in the form of a hare from Archaic times (6th century BC) , a red-figure skyphos of classical times (5th century BC), a calyx of the "Western Slope" category and a bucket of Hellenistic times (4th-3rd century BC), seven bronze helmets (6th-4th/3rd century BC), including one Corinthian, five Attic and one Chalkidic, 2 bronze and 2 iron Hellenistic anatomical breastplates, one Hellenistic/Roman bronze horse harness, two Roman Venus marble statues.

 

Attic Helmet 4th-3rd c. e.g.

Among the repatriated antiquities are also a silver icon with a representation of the Virgin Mary from Byzantine times and a silver plate with plant, animal and geometric decoration.

The handover of the antiquities took place in a special ceremony held at the offices of the Prosecutor's Office, in the presence of the Secretary General of Culture Georgios Didaskalos, the Consul General of Greece in New York Konstantinos Konstantinou and executives of the Directorate of Documentation and Protection of Cultural Properties.

 

Chamber Cup 1900-1500 BCCorinthian helmet 6th - 5th c. e.g

The fight against the illegal trafficking of cultural goods requires strong partnerships.

The Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni made the following statement "The fight against the illegal trafficking of cultural goods requires strong partnerships and a lot of work. The head of the Antiquities Trafficking Unit Matthew Bogdanos and his colleagues, the officers of the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the archaeologists of the relevant Directorate of Documentation and Cultural Protection Goods of the Ministry of Culture have these characteristics and their continuous successes prove it abundantly. The repatriation of the 30 antiquities from New York follows the return of the 55 antiquities in 2022 and the 29 antiquities in the spring of 2023 that were recovered with the cooperation of the same protagonists, who now form a strong team".

The return of the antiquities was achieved after the actions of the prosecutor's office of Manhattan. The investigations proved their illegal movement from Greece. Also, Homeland Security Investigation and the relevant Directorate of Documentation and Protection of Cultural Property participated in the investigations, which provided archaeological documentation for several of them.

 

Chamber Cup 1900-1500 BC

"It is a close-knit group that works with determination, dedication and method, without timetables and similar restrictions, with the sole aim of combating illegal trafficking" as stated by Matthew Bogdanos, who also highlighted the outstanding contribution of Homeland Security Investigation special agents. The Secretary General of Culture expressed the importance of the cooperation and Greece's deep gratitude to the Manhattan Prosecutor's Office and the Homeland Security Investigation and stated the will of the Ministry of Culture to continue the close cooperation that has yielded excellent results to date.

 

"Spedos" type marble trunk 2700-2300 BC.

Marble torso of Aphrodite 1st-2nd c. e.g

Bronze figurine of a bull 16th - 15th c. e.g.

Silver icon with a representation of the Virgin Mary

-- Jeff