A total of 7,550 coins and figurines believed to be part of Türkiye’s cultural heritage were seized during an anti-smuggling operation at İzmir’s Çeşme Port, preventing the artifacts from being illegally transported abroad.
The operation, carried out by customs enforcement units under the Trade Ministry, targeted an attempt to smuggle the historical items to Italy. Authorities said the artifacts were recovered before they could leave the country and a judicial process has been launched regarding the incident.
Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said the seizure not only enabled authorities to reclaim the artifacts before they were taken abroad but also provided new information about international smuggling routes.
In a statement, Ersoy said that announcing the return of cultural assets from abroad is always a source of pride, but emphasized that the main fight against cultural heritage trafficking begins within the country.
“Thanks to this seizure carried out by our customs enforcement units, we not only recovered the artifacts that smugglers attempted to take from our land before they left the country, but also obtained new information about international smuggling routes,” he said.
Ersoy also thanked customs enforcement teams and Trade Minister Ömer Bolat for their efforts in preventing the illegal export of the artifacts.
The minister stressed that protecting Türkiye’s historical and cultural heritage is one of the state’s fundamental responsibilities and that authorities will continue their fight against trafficking in cultural property.
“We are determined to track down our cultural assets wherever they are, prevent their smuggling and bring back those taken abroad to the lands they belong to,” he said.
