There are 46 archaeological artifacts from Etruscan, Greek and Roman times returned to the state and destined for the National Museum of Sibari, located in the territory of the municipality of Cassano all’Ionio, in the province of Cosenza, within the archaeological area of the ancient Magna Graecia colony. The official handover took place on April 15, 2026, in Cosenza, in the Sala Leone of Palazzo Arnone, by the Carabinieri of the Nucleo Tutela Patrimonio Culturale to the Director of the Archaeological Parks of Crotone and Sibari, in the presence of the main civil, military and religious authorities of the territory, including the Prefect of Cosenza and the Procurators of the Republics of Cosenza and Crotone.
The recovery of the finds is part of the investigation called Achei, conducted between 2017 and 2018, which uncovered a complex illicit trafficking of archaeological goods operating on a national and international scale. The investigation documented the existence of a structured network with branches in Britain, France, Germany and Serbia, fueled by clandestine excavations carried out on Italian territory. Part of the returned artifacts had been seized in France and repatriated on Oct. 16 at the order of the French judicial authority.
The investigation made it possible to reconstruct the systematic activity of organized groups of grave robbers, divided by skills and roles, capable of ensuring a continuous flow of materials destined for the clandestine market. The finds were fed into complex receiving circuits, both in Italy and abroad, through structured channels. The operation ended with the issuance by the GIP of the Court of Crotone of precautionary measures against 23 people, believed to be involved in various capacities in a criminal conspiracy aimed at damaging the state’s archaeological heritage, illicitly taking possession of cultural goods, receiving stolen goods and illegal exportation. At the same time, 80 search decrees were executed against the same number of individuals under investigation at large.
The return of the goods represents the outcome of a complex investigative activity, conducted in cooperation with the central and peripheral organs of the Ministry of Culture, and aimed at the recovery and protection of material evidence considered an integral part of the collective heritage.
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| International illicit trafficking: 46 artifacts returned to National Museum of Sybaris (Cosenza) |
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