The force recently uncovered a clandestine dig in the middle of Naples
Looking towards the semicircular apse with a frescoed image of a partially identifiable Christ on a throne staring back at them, the archaeologists crouching in the small space deep beneath a residential building in Naples were left speechless. They were amid the remains of an 11th-century church.
The archaeologists, however, could not take the credit: the historic jewel, which had just been seized by police, was dug up by tombaroli, or tomb-raiders, illicit gangs who for decades have been plundering Italian cultural sites, in turn fuelling the global market for stolen art and antiquities.
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Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/02/how-italys-carabinieri-cultural-heritage-protection-squad-foiled-tomb-raiders
Author : Angela Giuffrida in Naples
Publish date : 2025-01-02 05:00:34
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