site.btaAncient Bulgarian Artifact Handed Over for Repatriation at Ceremony in Madrid

A ceremony for the handover of an ancient marble votive plaque took place on Wednesday at the Embassy of Bulgaria in Madrid, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday. The artifact, which depicts a Thracian horseman, is part of Bulgaria’s cultural heritage. It was handed over to the Bulgarian Ambassador to Spain, Aleksey Andreev, by the Spanish police authorities.

According to the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Madrid, the ancient artifact dates back to the 2nd century AD and was illegally removed from the Regional Historical Museum in Razgrad in 1996.

The recovery of the long-missing item is the result of effective cooperation between the Bulgarian and Spanish police authorities. Attending the ceremony on the Spanish side were Chief Commissioner Jose Angel Gonzalez, Commissioner Agustin Juan Vazquez of the Central Unit for Specialized Crime and Violence, and Inspector Montserrat de Pedro Esteban, Chief of the Historical Heritage Brigade.

Ambassador Andreev expressed his gratitude to the representatives of the specialized Spanish police units and highlighted the importance of close operational cooperation both bilaterally and within the framework of European structures.

Gonzalez and Esteban expressed their satisfaction that the valuable artifact will return to its rightful place, the Regional Historical Museum in Razgrad.