Israel hands back ancient Greek artifacts as Athens seeks return of Parthenon Marbles

As Athens steps up an international repatriation campaign ultimately aimed at securing the return of sculptures taken from the Acropolis, ATHENS, Greece (AP) – Israel on Tuesday returned 22 ancient artifacts that had been illegally removed from Greece.

What happened

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni received the objects from the Israel Antiquities Authority and Amir Ganor, director of its theft prevention division, at a ceremony held at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens.

"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, " Mendoni remarked. "Every return of a cultural object to its place of origin has a broader symbolic and moral dimension."

For context, the collection includes a small bronze statuette of a woman and pottery comprising slender oil flasks, two-handled amphorae and drinking cups decorated with mythological scenes and geometric motifs. The objects are provisionally dated to between regarding 700 B.C. And 320 B.C.

The bottom line

In short, israel hands back ancient Greek artifacts as Athens seeks return of Parthenon is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.