Visitors rush to see returned treasures

Nine historic artifacts, including the Perge sarcophagus and the statue of Emperor Verus, that have been returned to Türkiye three months ago from the U.S., receive great interest from visitors at the Antalya Museum. Last year, 166,000 people visited the museum, according to figures.

Manhattan District Attorney's Office, Culture and Tourism Ministry General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums, Antalya and Burdur Museum Directorates, New York Culture and Promotion Office have collaborated to bring the artifacts looted from their homeland.

The statues of Lucius Verus, Attis, Apollon, terracotta plate and the fragments of four columnar sarcophagi, which were smuggled to the U.S. from ancient cities in Türkiye years ago, were returned to Türkiye in November 2022.

Nine artifacts were opened to visitors at a ceremony held at the Antalya Museum Directorate.

Among them the human-sized bronze statue of the Roman Emperor Lucius Verus and the Roman-era four-piece columnar sarcophagus from the ancient city of Perge in Antalya were the two most popular artifacts.

The museum reported that the statue of Verus is one of the rare human-sized bronze statues that have survived to the present day.

Antalya Museum Director Mustafa Demirel said, "Thanks to the works of the Culture and Tourism Ministry and the late Professor Jale İnan, legal processes started for the return of the artifacts to our country. As a result, they were returned to the country and delivered to the Antalya Museum. There are also other returned artifacts in the museum. They attract great attention. The museum hosted 166,000 visitors last year."