| 3 June 2013
Thousands of prehistoric artefacts returned to Greece
An archaeological open-air museum in southern Germany - consisting of reconstructions of stilt houses from the Neolithic and Bronze Age - will return 8,000 pottery fragments from the Neolithic Era, illegally excavated in 1941 near Velestino, Thessaly.
The repatriation of Greek cultural artefacts is among Greece's demands for German reparations from World War II, according to the foreign ministry. The ministry is collecting data for all antiquities illegally removed from Greece during the German occupation.
The two ministries are working together on the formation of an international cooperation network through the signing of bilateral agreements for the protection of cultural goods and the prevention of artefact trafficking. Greece has already signed agreements with Switzerland, China, the USA, and Turkey, and negotiations are ongoing with several other countries for the signing of similar agreements.
Edited from Enet English (29 May 2013)
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