Hundreds of looted icons recovered

[MKPrilep]

TIRANA, Albania — Albanian police have seized more than 1,000 religious and secular pieces of art dating from the 15th to the mid-20th centuries that were stolen from churches and cultural centers in Albania and neighboring Macedonia.

Prime Minister Edi Rama, who began his career as an artist, inspected the works and praised police for recovering them.

The thefts involved 1,077 icons, frescoes and other pieces, and two men suspected of planning to sell them abroad were arrested, a police statement said on Wednesday.

After a four-month investigation, the works were found in two houses in the capital, Tirana, where the arrests took place late Tuesday. Officials did not provide an estimate of the items' value.

Culture Ministry spokeswoman Milena Selimi said the looted art was probably headed for sale in other Balkan countries or in Western Europe.

http://triblive.com/usworld/world/4856874-74/police-albania-art#axzz2hIhVtvYU

Finally they found them!!

[MKPrilep]

http://news.ph.msn.com/lifestyle/albanian-police-seize-over-1000-stolen-pieces-of-art-3

The icons, frescoes and other pieces of art were stolen from Orthodox churches in various towns across southern Albania and neighbouring Macedonia, the Albanian ministry of culture said in a statement.

Two people were arrested following a police operation in the capital Tirana. The art was found in the houses of the two arrested suspects.

It is believed that they were planning to sell the items in Western Europe.

The ministry did not provide an estimated value of the stolen objects nor any other details.

"Albania's cultural heritage is in danger. This operation has just begun. It will continue," Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama told reporters.

"The fact that treasures like these were in the hands of criminals is scandalous and an unacceptable situation," said Rama, whose Socialist Party government took office a few weeks ago.

Since the fall of communism in early 1990s, almost 3,000 icons and hundreds of works of art have been stolen from museums, archeology sites and churches in Albania, according to the national patrimony register.

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[Solid]

Is there a chance that Albania gives back the looted icons of Macedonia?

[George S.]

yeah give it to the Macedonians .Then they may be recognized.

[DedoAleko]

Icons found by Tirana police were stolen from Macedonian Churches



There has been over two dozen Church robberies reported in the Western parts of Macedonia during the past year and a half. Each time dozens of religious icons and fresques were stolen.

Macedonian police with the help of Interpol was searching for over 130 icons deemed to be priceless.



Three days ago, Albanian police arrested two individuals in Tirana. Policemen discovered over 1000 religious icons and artefacts in an apartment belonging to the two individuals.



Tirana police contacted their colleagues in Skopje. At first Sasho Cvetkovski from the "Dr Nikola Nezlobinski" Museum in Struga confirmed 3, then 7 of the icons belong to Macedonian churches, howver the number kept going up as each minute passed.

Macedonian officials now are certain almost all of the icons were stolen from Macedonia in the past year and a half and are sending officials to Tirana.

Officials on boths sides will meet early next week to confirm and start the process for the return of the religious artefacts back to Macedonia.

izvor: http://macedoniaonline.eu/content/view/24071/1/

[Bill77]

I feel almost certain, Ethnic Macedonians have played a part in the robberies.

[TrueMacedonian]

I feel almost certain, Ethnic Macedonians have played a part in the robberies.

http://www.macedoniantruth.org/forum/showthread.php?t=7553