Twenty-two Greek antiquities that had been illegally removed from the country were handed back by Israel on Tuesday 13 October 2026. Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni received them from the Israeli ambassador to Greece, Pninat Yanay. The ceremony took place in the Altar Hall of the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. Amir Ganor, director of the Theft Prevention Unit of the Israel Antiquities Authority, was present, according to the Greek Ministry of Culture's announcement as carried by Ethnos and LiFO.

Map showing where National Archaeological Museum of Athens is
National Archaeological Museum of Athens, Athens Municipality, Greece

What came back

The ministry's announcement says the antiquities were located and seized by the Israel Antiquities Authority's Theft Prevention Unit. The group is made up of 15 vases of Attic origin, six vases from Corinthian workshops and one bronze statuette of a female figure.

According to Ethnos's report of the announcement, 11 of the Attic vases are black-figure, three are red-figure and one is black-glazed. They are dated to the Archaic and Classical periods. The six Corinthian vases are dated to the Archaic period.

The statuette is the odd one out. The announcement, as Ethnos reports it, says its authenticity needs further investigation. So 21 of the 22 pieces are dated, categorised vases, and the last one is returned with a question mark over it.

What was said

Mendoni said the return was the first time Israel had returned antiquities to Greece. She described it as the starting point of closer cooperation between the two countries on protecting cultural heritage. LiFO quotes her saying the return confirms that cooperation between states can contribute substantially to fighting antiquities trafficking.

In Ethnos's account of her remarks, she said the relevant officials on both sides had already begun working in this direction. She said they were exchanging experience and good practice on preventing and tackling the illicit trade in cultural goods, and she called the return a tangible result of that approach.

Yanay, in her own remarks as reported by Ethnos and LiFO, asked the audience to imagine a child looking at one of the ancient vases today and feeling a spark of wonder. She said that child sees what another child may have seen and felt 2,000 years ago, and so becomes another link in a chain of generations that had been broken. She added that she found it deeply moving to have the privilege, as Israel's ambassador, of handing the ancient object to Mendoni, and that her country had been honoured to contribute to the moment.

A view

The ceremony offers a clear statement of intent from both governments. The ministry's announcement, as Ethnos and LiFO carry it, does not say how the objects left Greece or when they were seized; Al Jazeera and The Independent report that officials gave no details of how they were found or removed, while the Jerusalem Post says they were seized in 2020, in a joint investigation by the Israel Antiquities Authority, Israel Police and the Israel Tax Authority that raided a gallery, warehouses and apartments in the Gush Dan area. For a return described as a first, how the objects left Greece is a notable gap, even though the Jerusalem Post reports that the case led to a joint workshop between the Israeli unit and the Greek Antiquities Police in September. The doubt hanging over the bronze statuette is a reminder that a handover ceremony is not the end of the checking.

Sources

Ethnos Newsroom (2026) 'Επιστροφή 22 αρχαιοτήτων από το Ισραήλ στην Ελλάδα: Πραγματοποιήθηκε η τελετή παράδοσης-παραλαβής', ΕΘΝΟΣ, 13 October 2026, available at: https://www.ethnos.gr/culture/article/423710/epistrofh22arxaiothtonapotoisrahlsthnelladapragmatopoihthhkehtelethparadoshsparalabhs (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

The LiFO team (2026) 'ΥΠΠΟ: 22 ελληνικές αρχαιότητες επέστρεψαν από το Ισραήλ', LiFO.gr, 14 October 2026, available at: https://www.lifo.gr/now/entertainment/yppo-22-ellinikes-arhaiotites-epestrepsan-apo-israil (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

Associated Press (2026) 'Israel returns 22 stolen ancient artefacts to Greece', Al Jazeera, 14 October 2026, available at: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/14/israel-returns-22-stolen-ancient-artefacts-to-greece (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

The Independent (2026) 'Israel returns stolen Greek artefacts as Athens intensifies Elgin Marbles campaign', The Independent, 14 October 2026, available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/israel-greece-artefacts-elgin-marbles-b3066369.html (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

Sela-Eitam, M. (2026) 'Israel returns 22 artifacts to Greece in first antiquities repatriation between Jerusalem, Athens', The Jerusalem Post, 14 October 2026, available at: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-911632 (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

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