Italy recovers Etruscan artifacts worth $8.5 million bound for black market

Italy recovers Etruscan artifacts worth $8.5 million bound for black market

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Italy’s Carabinieri art squad has revealed a find of Etruscan urns and sarcophagi confiscated from traffickers. Officials say the art squad began their investigation in April 2024 near Città di Pieve in the Umbria region after receiving a tip. The artefacts were saved just before they were about to be sold on the black market. (AP video shot by Paolo Lucariella. Production by Trish Thomas)

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Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli, right, Perugia’ Chief Prosecutor Raffaele Cantone, center, and Carabinieri General Francesco Gargano pose for photographers near archaeological finds from the Etruscan era during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Archaeological finds from the Etruscan era and recovered in a police operation are shown during a press conference in Rome, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

ROME (AP) — Italian authorities announced Tuesday the seizure of an illegal excavation of an Etruscan burial site in the central Umbria region and are investigating two people for suspected theft of urns, sarcophagi and other artifacts worth 8 million euros ($8.5 million) intended for sale on the black market.

The illegal dig was adjacent to another Etruscan burial site discovered by a farmer tilling his land in 2015, authorities said. They were tipped off by photographs of artifacts and the site that were circulating on the black market that resembled objects found on the farmer’s land.

Using a drone for aerial photography and phone taps, they located the second site on land belonging to a local businessman who had access to earthmoving equipment.

At the new site they found two sarcophagi, believed to be of two Etruscan princesses, one still with the skeleton inside, and a burial trousseau complete with urns with battle and hunting scenes, perfume jars and a comb made from bone.

The Etruscan civilization existed from about 900 B.C. to 27 B.C. in central Italy primarily between the Tiber and Arno rivers, covering parts of present-day Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio.

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The headline of this story has been corrected to reflect that the artifacts recovered are worth $8.5 million, not $8.5 billion.