Italy returns 25 pre-Colombia archaeological pieces to Colombia
Italian authorities have returned 24 archaeological artefacts and an important terracotta sculpture to Colombia, all belonging to pre-Columbian art and deemed of immeasurable value.
The recovery of these items follows two police investigations conducted in Florence and Turin, northern Italy, by the Carabinieri (militarized police) of the Protection of Cultural Heritage (TPC) to combat the illicit trafficking of cultural property.
The Cooperation of the Colombian Embassy in Italy also helped identify and retrieve these stolen artefacts.
Among the 24 archaeological pieces of pre-Colombian art returned pieces are various cups and sculptures, representing different Columbian archaeological regions such as Muisca, Guane, Quimbaya, and Nariño.
According to local media El Espectador, the items were found during checks at commercial establishments, particularly at an auction house in Florence, where they were being sold by the heir of a deceased collector.
“The assets were identified and confiscated by the TPC Nucleus of Florence in the course of specific prior controls in commercial establishments in the sector, in particular in an auction house in Florence, where they had been put up for sale by the heir of a deceased collector,” El Espectador quoted TPC.
A terracotta sculpture representing a seated dignitary was also seized by the TPC of Turin during an operation targeting a merchant involved in the trafficking of falsified contemporary art.
