Rare coin, minted by Brutus to mark Caesar’s death, is returned to Greece

A rare and ancient gold coin that morbidly celebrates the stabbing death of Julius Caesar was returned this week to Greek officials by investigators in New York who had determined it was looted and fraudulently put for sale at auction in 2020.

The coin, known as the "Eid Mar" and valued at $4.2 million, features the face of Marcus Junius Brutus, a onetime friend and ally of Caesar who, along with other Roman senators, murdered him on the Ides of March in 44 BC According to historians and experts, Brutus had the coins minted in gold and silver to applaud Caesar's downfall and to pay his soldiers during the civil war that followed the killing.

The return Tuesday came at a ceremony attended by officials of the Manhattan district attorney's Antiquities Trafficking Unit and US Homeland Security Investigations, who cooperated on the case.

The coin, one of 29...