US returns 36 ancient Syrian artifacts worth over $5 million
U.S. authorities have repatriated 36 ancient Syrian artifacts, valued at over $5 million, to their home country. The collection includes a monumental Palmyrene relief and Roman-era mosaics, some of which were seized from the Metropolitan Museum of Art as part of an ongoing investigation into illicit antiquities trafficking.
Why it matters
The return of looted cultural heritage is a major focus of international law and efforts to preserve historical identity against conflict-driven destruction.
Ancient pieces of Syrian history that had traveled far from their original landscapes are now making the journey back home. US authorities have returned 36 antiquities to Syria, a collection worth more than $5 million that includes a monumental relief from Palmyra, Roman-era mosaics and objects recovered from major private and institutional collections, states a report by Arab News. The repatriation, announced September 23, marks another major effort to trace and recover cultural objects that entered the international art market through illicit trafficking.A collection spanning centuriesAccording to Arab News, among the returned objects is a massive limestone relief from ancient Palmyra. The funerary sculpture dates to the late second century CE and depicts a reclining man surrounded by a woman and three children. Weighing more than 1,000 pounds, the relief originally formed part of a Palmyrene tomb.
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