The Department of Antiquities, Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works, announces that on May 20, 2023, thirty-six (36) Cypriot antiquities were repatriated from Australia, which were returned following the kind initiative of Australian citizens who offered to return the Cypriot antiquities that they had in their possession in their country of origin, which is Cyprus.
The repatriation of the 36 Cypriot antiquities took place thanks to the coordinated actions of the Australian Authorities, the Australian National University, the University of Sydney and the Cypriot Authorities.
The antiquities in question belong to various chronological periods, from the Bronze Age to the Roman period, and include stone tools, clay and glass vessels, clay lamps, bronze objects and stone sculptures.
Specifically, the Director of the Department of Antiquities, Dr. Marina Solomidou-Ieronymidou, accompanied by the Head of the Office for Combating Illegal Possession and Trafficking of Antiquities of the Police Headquarters Senior Deputy Constable Michalis Gavrielidis and the Conservator Dr. Eleftherios Charalambous received the antiquities in question in Canberra and Sydney. There, they supervised the packing procedures of the antiquities, which they accompanied to the Cyprus Museum in Nicosia on May 20, 2023. The antiquities will be preserved and digitized in the database of the Department of Antiquities.
During her visit to Australia, the Director of the Department of Antiquities, Dr. Solomidou-Ieronymidou was invited to give lectures on various topics, such as the role and work of the Department of Antiquities, but also on the measures taken to combat the theft and illegal trafficking of cultural heritage. Specifically, he lectured at the Australian National University in Canberra and the Near Eastern Archeology Foundation in Sydney. Also, a seminar on the illegal trafficking of cultural heritage was organized at the Chau Chak Wing Museum of the University of Sydney, during which Dr. Solomidou-Ieronymidou and Senior Constable Michalis Gavrielidis participated with presentations and answered relevant questions from the students and the rest of the public.
The Department of Antiquities and the National Commission for Suppression of Counterfeiting and Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Heritage express their warm thanks to the Australian High Commission in Cyprus and in particular High Commissioner Ms Fiona McKergow and Deputy Head of Mission Consul Michelle Anderson, to the High Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in Australia and especially the High Commissioner Mr. Antonis Sammoutis, as well as the Deputy Head of Mission Consul Mr. Stavros Nikolaou. Special thanks are also extended to Dr. Georgia Pike-Rowney of the Australian National University (College of Arts & Social Sciences), to Dr. Melanie Pitkin, Senior Curator of the University of Sydney's Nicholson Collection and to Dr. Craig Barker of the University of Sydney and Director of the Paphos Theater Archaeological Project in Cyprus. The Cypriot mission also expresses its special appreciation to the Presidents and representatives of the Cypriot communities in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney for their assistance and excellent hospitality.
The Department of Antiquities, as the competent Department of the Republic of Cyprus for the protection and management of the cultural heritage of Cyprus, will continue its intensive efforts to strengthen the protection of cultural heritage and promote the repatriation of cultural goods to their place of origin. In this direction, the cooperation of all the competent authorities, both at national and international level, is considered to be of the utmost importance. Cultural property is an invaluable and irreplaceable part of the heritage, not only locally but also internationally, for humanity as a whole.
