Police find 100 stolen Roman artefacts

Police in southern Italy have seized some 100 ancient Roman treasures, from marble busts to vases, that were unearthed by archaeological scavengers and sold illegally to collectors.

A Naples police unit that specialises in archaeology raided homes, restaurants and hotels, said Lorenzo Marinaccio, the unit’s commander. The raids stemmed from an investigation of scavengers and traffickers.

The finds included a sarcophagus and busts of bearded men, all made of marble.

They were “really important objects, and the archaeologists who work with us were stunned by them”, Mr Marinaccio said. The sarcophagus alone could have brought up to €200,000, he said.

The clandestine art market in southern Italy is full of ”grave diggers” who excavate ancient sites, some of them under the sea, unearthing priceless objects that go unreported to authorities.

Often, the scavengers move in on sites that have been abandoned by archaeologists who ran out of funds, Mr Marinaccio said.

Also today, police in the Tuscan town of Lucca said they had dismantled an art thievery ring that targeted expensive homes in the region, the Ansa news agency said. Police uncovered hundreds of stolen pieces of art worth millions of euro.