Cypriot Antiquities from 700 BC Offered at Auction in New York and Brussels

The Department of Antiquities of the Deputy Ministry of Culture announced the official return of two Cypriot antiquities on August 6, 2025, at a ceremony in Washington. These include a clay chariot and a flask of Bichrome IV ceramic, dating back to the Cypro-Archaic period (700-600 BC).

The antiquities were located in 2024 being offered at auction by the «Art for Eternity» gallery in New York. The Department of Antiquities, in collaboration with the Cyprus Police, Interpol Nicosia, and the Legal Service, requested their repatriation. With the intervention of the US Department of Justice and the FBI, the gallery agreed to return them.

Additionally, on the same day, in Brussels, a Bichrome IV ceramic amphora from the Cypro-Archaic I period (750-600 BC) was handed over, having been found for sale at auction by Vanderkindere auction house in early 2025. Following coordinated efforts and the intervention of the Belgian authorities, the auction house agreed to return the antiquity.