The Italian government requested that the Louvre return seven ancient amphorae from its collection to Italy, RAI TV reported, quoted by the Slaveykov Square site.
The artefacts were stolen by the mafia in the port city of Ostia and then sold. The objects date from the 4th to the 6th century BC, specified the Minister of Culture of Italy, Gennaro Sangiuliano.
The museum acquired the amphorae between 1982 and 1998. During this period, there were no strict legal requirements to trace the path of acquisition of the artifacts, commented the French edition “Mond”. They also quote the director of the Louvre, Laurence de Carre, with her recent statement that there are “works of dubious origin” in the museum’s collections.
The amphorae are part of the Louvre’s collection of Greek, Roman and Etruscan art. One of them, dating from the 5th century BC, is considered a true masterpiece. A musician playing a zither is depicted on one side of this black amphora, and a figure with a laurel wreath on the other.
Source: NP Standard
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