Cypriot antiquity repatriated from UK
A Cypriot antiquity has been returned from the United Kingdom after being identified in an online auction, the Department of Antiquities said on Tuesday.
The item, a pitcher dating to the Cypro-Archaic I period (750–600 BC), was traced by officials monitoring the illegal trafficking of antiquities online.
Following contact with the auction house, the object was withdrawn and handed over to the high commission of the republic of Cyprus in London on March 7.
According to the department, the vessel is of the Black on Red III (IV) type, featuring a spherical body, a short cylindrical neck and a vertical handle.
It is decorated with concentric circles and bands, although its rim is not preserved.
The department of antiquities thanked Watsons auctioneers and the donors for voluntarily returning the artefact, as well as the cultural section of the Cyprus high commission in London for coordinating the repatriation.