Greek police open investigation after discovery of ancient statue ‘near trash cans’

Simple coincidence or new indication of the scale of antiquities trafficking? Greek police open investigation Wednesday after statue found in black plastic bag « near trash cans » in a street in the region of Thessaloniki, the second Greek city (north).

The organized crime department opened « a preliminary investigation after a 32-year-old man went to police to drop off a statue he allegedly found inside a black bag near trash cans »indicates the police in a press release. According to the first estimates of the archaeological service, this headless marble statue of approximately 80 cm by 25 dates from « the Hellenistic period » (323-31 BC), according to the same source.

Greece plagued by antiquities trafficking

It will be transferred to the Crime Investigation Department of Northern Greece for laboratory examination and then to the Antiquities Department to be evaluated and preserved, the press release concludes. Rich in archaeological objects due to its history dating back to Antiquity, Greece is plagued by antiquities trafficking networks.

In April 2023, six people were arrested on the island of Crete during the “dismantling» of an antiques trafficking network and numerous antique objects whose value is estimated at one million euros. Various antique objects are often discovered across the country during roadworks or at construction sites.