Greece regains 2 ancient works from US

The Greek culture ministry said Friday it has struck a deal with a U.S. collector for the return of two important ancient artifacts that Greece says were looted by antiquities smugglers. The works _ a broken marble sculpture that originally decorated an ancient grave and a bronze vase _ both date from the 4th century B.C. They will be returned to Athens later this month.

By NICHOLAS PAPHITIS
Associated Press Writer

The ministry said the two pieces were illegally excavated and spirited out of Greece and that Shelby White, a New York philanthropist, bought them "in good faith" as part of her private collection of antiquities.

Georgios Gavalas, from the ministry's general directorate of antiquities, said the U.S. collector "accepted that the antiquities were illegally exported" from Greece, and that no legal action would be taken against her.

White will not be compensated for the artifacts, Gavalas said. A spokesman for White was not immediately available for comment.

The marble fragment is decorated with relief sculptures of a warrior and a young man, and forms the upper section of a grave marker found in the 1960s during an excavation at Porto Rafti, about 20 miles east of Athens.

It will be sent to a museum near Porto Rafti, where the lower section of the marble is currently exhibited.

The second work is a large bronze vase used for mixing wine with water _ the ancient Greeks frowned on consuming wine neat. Known as a krater, it dates to around 340 B.C. and was probably found during an illegal excavation in northern Greece, the ministry said.

Greece has stepped up its campaign for the return of illegally excavated antiquities from museums and private collections abroad. Recently returned works include sculptures and a gold wreath from the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

In January, Italian authorities said they had struck an agreement with White for the return of 10 artifacts from her private collection.

The photo is of a 2,400-year-old funerary urn is displayed at the archeological museum of Athens on Monday after it was returned to Greece from Basel, Switzerland.