Some 1,055 ancient coins including 61 silver staters were returned to Türkiye on Thursday after they were confiscated by the Greek customs at Kipi on the Evros border in July 2019.
The hoard includes the staters (two-drachma coins) of the ancient cities of Pamphylia, Cilicia, Ionia, Cyprus, Aegina,and Melos, and 994 silver tetradrachms from Athens, including one with a copper core, all of them issued between the start and end of the 5th century BC.
At a ceremony in the Numismatic Museum of Athens, Culture Minister Lina Mendoni spoke of the protection of cultural heritage that "is achieved only through collaboration, mutual help and mutual understanding between peoples and states. Respect and protection of cultural heritage are a national duty and a global ethical commitment." The event was attended by her Turkish counterpart, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.
Mendoni said the coins were "products of illegal import to Greece from Türkiye" and cited Greek specialists of the Museum, who assessed the hoard that was hidden in Asia Minor at the end of the 5th century to the start of the 4th century BC. The assessment was shared by the Turkish specialists, who were notified by the Greek Culture Ministry of all documentation establishing their provenance.
"Both sides confirmed the illegal trafficking of coins from Türkiye to Greece," Mendoni said, adding that the turnover of the coins observes the UNESCO Convention of 1970 on illegal trafficking and transfer of ownership of cultural goods, as well as the joint Greek-Turkish agreement on trafficking of cultural goods (signed by the two countries on March 4, 2013 in Istanbul). Mendoni also thanked Ersoy for his country's support of Greece on the issue of the return of the Parthenon sculptures to Athens.
Speaking of the "very important repatriation," the first of Greece to Türkiye, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy extolled "the bilateral collaboration that has been fruitful," as well as the collaboration with international organizations. "Our two countries should jointly fight trafficking and have close ties," Ersoy said, expressing the hope "with all our heart" that the Parthenon sculptures are reunited, and that this is achieved shortly.