The stolen archaeological artifacts were found after several investigations by Italian police in various cities, including Rome, Perugia, Ancona, and Consenza. The investigation was also coordinated by five public prosecutor offices in Rome, Pordenone, Florence, Ancona, and Palmi.
To confirm the artifacts’ authenticity, and that they actually come from Mexico, the National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico, INHA, carried out tests to validate their provenance. The objects originated from different time periods and different archaeological sites.
Some of the objects were from the Teotihuacan culture, while others represented the Zapotec culture, the Mesoamerican classic period, the middle Mesoamerican Preclassic period and the Aztec culture.
The most notable items recovered include clay miniatures, anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figures made from stone, black ceramic vases, and even a vase with the effigy of Tlaloc, the rain god of the Toltec-Maya culture.
Main Image: Credit Italian Ministry of Culture
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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