750 archaeological finds repatriated from London on May 19 were displayed yesterday in Rome at the National Museum of Castel Sant'Angelo, following investigations by the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, coordinated by the Public Prosecutor's Office at the Court of Rome, aimed at combating international trafficking of cultural goods, which also resulted in an out-of-court procedure and a civil lawsuit, conducted in close collaboration with the Ministry of Culture through the State Attorney General. The discoveries, resulting from clandestine excavations on Italian territory, had flowed into an English company in liquidation, Symes Ltd, attributed to Robin Symes, a major cultural goods trafficker. According to the MiC, the company, which had opposed repeated attempts at recovery by the Italian Judicial Authority and was subject to bankruptcy proceedings in the United Kingdom, was also sued in Italy by the Attorney General of the State for the restitution of assets or civil compensation for damages. The delivery was made possible by the complex negotiations conducted by the Ministry of Culture (Office III of the General Secretariat, Legislative Office, and Directorate General ARCHAEOLOGY, Fine Arts and Landscape), in synergy and close collaboration with the Carabinieri dell'Arte, who, with the active collaboration of the Italian Embassy in London, facilitated the trasportation of the goods to Italy. On May 11, the restitution agreement was signed.
|