Nicosia, Cyprus. Forty-eight Cypriot antiquities dating from the early Bronze Age to the medieval period have been returned to Cyprus from Greece and formally handed over to the Cyprus Museum on Tuesday. The artefacts include pottery and limestone figurines.
Hand-over ceremony
The antiquities were presented to Deputy Culture Minister Vasiliki Kassianidou by Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni during an official ceremony.
The objects had been acquired in Cyprus during the 1960s and 1970s and later became part of a private collection in Greece. After the collector’s death, his heirs voluntarily handed the items to Greek authorities to facilitate their return to Cyprus.
Reactions from Cyprus and Greece
Kassianidou thanked the Greek government and the heirs for returning the antiquities, saying the repatriation was more than a successful collaboration between Cyprus and Greece.
“It is a tangible example of how the protection of cultural heritage and the right of societies to maintain their connection with history, memory and identity can be put into practice,” she said.
She said the issue has particular significance for both Cyprus and Greece, which have rich cultural heritage and have experienced the loss and removal of cultural property. “Our struggle is common and closely linked to preserving historical memory and our roots,” she said.
Mendoni said the repatriation was a source of great satisfaction for Greece and that the country remains committed to combating the illegal trafficking of cultural property.
She said the return took place under the framework of the 1970 Unesco Convention and a bilateral agreement signed between Cyprus and Greece around 18 months ago.