Manhattan D.A. Bragg announces return of Antiquities to Spain and Cyprus

The objects being returned to Cyprus were recovered pursuant to several criminal investigations, including one into previously convicted London-based trafficker Robin Symes, who passed away in 2023. Throughout the ongoing investigation into Symes, the Office’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit, working closely with London’s Scotland Yard, has seized 121 antiquities valued at more than $56 million that had allegedly been trafficked by Symes into and through New York County. The Silver Medallion allegedly was looted in 2006, smuggled out of Spain and into Geneva, then finally surfaced in New York in 2024.

“I want to thank the prosecutors, investigators and analysts who helped return these extraordinary objects. We will not allow our borough to be a haven for looted and trafficked antiquities,” said District Attorney Bragg. 

Consul General Marta de Blas of Spain said, “On behalf of the Spanish Government, we would like to thank the District Attorney´s Office and its Antiquities Trafficking Unit for their excellent cooperation with both our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Home Affairs which has led to the recovery of the Visigoth Silver Medallion, an antiquity dated from the 5th-7th century that was looted from the Extremadura region and recovered to return it to Spain. This return is the result of the strong collaboration in the fight against trafficking in cultural property that the U.S. and Spain have developed for years and that we hope will be strengthened in the years to come.”

“We would like to congratulate Matthew Bogdanos and his terrific team for their work toward the returning of stolen artifacts to their homeland Cyprus. We, in Cyprus, rely on our friends for their assistance and support in our common efforts to ensure that our cultural heritage is protected and that it is not used to finance illicit operations that endanger human lives around the world. This is the second time I had the honor to receive reclaimed stolen artifacts from the Antiquities Tracking Unit at the DA’s office in New York, and I consider it a prime example of the good relations between the United States and Cyprus, but also the adherence of both our democracies to the rule of law,” said Consul General Michalis Firillas of Cyprus.

The Silver Medallion being returned to Spain, which is valued at $210,000, is a roughly 6th-century C.E. Visigothic phalera, a metal disk typically used to decorate a soldier’s breastplate or equestrian gear. Discovered  in 2006 by a local metal detectorist near Peraleda de la Mata, Extremadura, Spain, it next appeared in the possession of the Barcelona-based antiquities dealer Felix Cervera Bea, who allegedly smuggled it out of Spain. From there, it was purchased Phoenix Ancient Arts in Geneva and then exported to New York for sale.

Pictured: Silver Medallion

Spain’s Guardia Civil identified the Silver Medallion when it arrived in New York and immediately notified this Office’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit. Working closely with Spanish authorities, the Antiquities Trafficking Unit seized the Silver Medallion in 2024.

As for Cyprus, key pieces being returned include the following: The Plank Figurine is a 2^nd millennium B.C.E. figurine of a woman that likely functioned as a smaller, hand-held imitation of a larger cult statue in Bronze Age Cyprus. The Plank allegedly was smuggled out of Cyprus and eventually passed to a New York-based antiquities dealer, who consulted with Symes regarding these and other with other trafficked Mediterranean antiquities that have been seized and repatriated by the ATU. The Figurine was seized by the ATU in 2025. The Flask dates to the 3^rd millennium B.C.E. and bears incised geometric decoration typical of Bronze Age ceramics found in Cypriot tombs. The flask is distinct for its red and black coloring, which occurred during firing. Like the Plank Figurine, this flask allegedly was also smuggled out of Cyprus and to the same New York antiquities dealer and Symes. The Flask was seized by the ATU in 2025.

Main Image: Flask Being Returned to Cyprus