Stolen Cypriot Artifact Repatriated After Nearly 50 Years

As the global art market prepared for its prestigious December auctions, Costas Paraskevaides, director of London-based gallery ArtAncient, was conducting his routine analysis of thousands of pieces from auction houses worldwide. Among the mix of counterfeits and unremarkable items, a particular listing caught his attention: a rare terracotta zoomorphic vessel, cryptically labeled as being from the "Eastern Mediterranean region." For Paraskevaides, a London-based Cypriot with extensive expertise in his homeland's material culture, this vague description raised immediate red flags.

Bronze Age Zoomorphic vessel in question.

Upon deeper investigation, Paraskevaides and his team made a startling discovery: the vessel had last been documented in Famagusta, Cyprus, before 1974 – a year that had forever changed the island's cultural landscape.

The 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, which led to the ongoing occupation of the island's northern region, triggered one of the most devastating cultural heritages crises in modern history. Thousands of artifacts were systematically looted from churches, museums, and archaeological sites, flooding international art markets. Many of these treasures remain lost to this day, scattered across private collections worldwide.

While most dealers of art or collectors would simply ignore such a piece or maybe in rare cases report it, Costas wanted to go further. He decided to participate in the auction and was determined to be the winning bidder, and to begin the process of returning the stolen artefact to its homeland.

The auction was held in Germany in late December, Costas and his team eagerly waited for the lot to come up. They began to bid and thankfully other collectors and dealers seemed to have little motivation to compete. The lot was won by ArtAncient after a few minutes of tense bidding. Costas informed the Department of Antiquities of the successful bid and quickly got to work repatriating the piece to Cyprus.

Repatriation Ceremony, Costas Paraskevaides pictured on the left holding the Vessel in question.

The artefact in question is a rare zoomorphic beaked vessel, which was produced by Cypriot potters in the Middle Bronze Age, around 2000 BCE. The Bronze Age was known for its fantastic hand made pottery across the island, and this piece is no exception. The vessel is in the shape of a animal, with a long neck and an interesting multi-prongued handle on the back.

The vessel is in excellent condition, with only a few minor chips and cracks. It is a fantastic example of Cypriot pottery from the Middle Bronze Age. Through ArtAncient and collaboration with the Department of Antiquities, the vessel is now safely in Cyprus to be displayed in the Nicosia Cyprus Museum in the coming months.