The return of Cypriot artifacts is considered to be the most important case of repatriation of Cypriot cultural treasures since the 1974 Turkish invasion.

Last week the Bavarian Police handed over a total of 173 objects looted from the Turkish occupied areas of Cyprus.

The objects are part of a number of cultural treasures of Cypriot origin found in October 1997, after a police operation, in the possession of Turkish citizen Aydin Dikmen, most of which were looted from churches after the Turkish invasion.

“This is probably the largest and most important case of repatriation of Cypriot artifacts after the Turkish invasion of 1974, both in terms of numbers and value”, a Church press release says.

The ceremony last week was attended by the Head of the Church of Cyprus Representation to the EU, Bishop Porphyrios, Head of the Criminal Department of the Bavaria Police, Peter Dathe, Minister of Justice of Bavaria Dr. Beate Merk, Eleni Papanicolaou Consul at the Cyprus Embassy in Berlin, as well as conservators from the Cyprus Department of Antiquities.

In her speech, the Bavarian Justice Minister said she was very pleased that the looted treasures will finally be returned home and expressed the wish that more artifacts are returned.

She was referring to the ongoing investigation for additional 80 objects, half of which belong to the prehistoric period of Cyprus.

Bishop Porphyrios thanked the German authorities for their efforts and expressed the wish that this would be the start of a closer cooperation between Cyprus and Germany in combating illegal trade in religious items.

He also said that the Church of Cyprus expects the return of the remaining objects, pointing out that when Cyprus is freed of the Turkish occupation and its places of worship open again, this would be the end of the Odyssey of Cyprus religious treasures which have been looted.

The damage is grave and in many cases, irreversible.

The occupied museums have been looted and so have many private collections of antiquities.

Churches have been vandalized; ecclesiastical icons and vessels stolen, church frescoes and mosaics have been removed and in many cases have been traced in Europes illegal antiquities trade markets and in auctions around the world.

The most serious and large-scale damage has been noted on the islands occupied churches.

Some of the churches have even been demolished, others pillaged and some are currently being used as stables, mosques or as part of military camps.
 — Copyright Famagusta Gazette 2013