Spanish Police Seize Suspected Stolen Ukrainian Gold Artifacts; Experts Question Authenticity

Five arrested in Spain for smuggling suspected ancient Ukrainian gold artifacts; as various experts and archaeologists argue the items are likely modern fakes.

• Spanish police seized 11 pieces of gold believed to be Greco-Scythian artifacts originating from between the 4th and 8th centuries B.C. from Ukraine, arresting five individuals in the process. These individuals were charged with money laundering and the artifacts were estimated to be worth around $64 million.
• The confiscated artifacts were sold through unofficial channels and supplied with documents falsifying their ownership and origin, claiming they belonged to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. One of the arrested individuals was an Orthodox Church priest who falsified these documents.
• Experts, including Leonid Babenko of the M.F. Sumtsov Kharkiv Historical Museum in Ukraine and Caspar Meyer, a professor of ancient Greece and Eurasia, state that these pieces are likely modern fakes. Despite their doubts regarding authenticity, both experts recommend returning the items to Ukraine for further examination.
• It was discovered that the allegedly stolen artifacts were on display in a museum in Kyiv from 2009 to 2013, with Spanish police suspecting an illegal removal in 2016. Dr. Meyer mentioned having seen these items in a private collection in a Kiev church building in 2011.
• The artifacts are currently being studied by Spain's National Archaeological Museum and the Spanish Cultural Heritage Institute. The investigation into the matter is ongoing, with police yet to respond to questions about the authenticity of the items.

2 Articles

Newsweek HuffPost