This belongs to Turkey, says American holder of smuggled artifact

WASHINGTON - Anatolia News Agency

Representative photo. Hürriyet photo

An American citizen in possession of a Roman-era artifact his father had smuggled out of Turkey decades ago recently notified Turkish authorities of the artifact’s existence via email, saying he felt "it belonged to Turkey."
 
An American named Mark sent Turkish authorities an email last week, stating that his father had spent over 30 years in Turkey, at a military base in Yalova. 
 
"My dad passed away several years ago," Mark wrote. "We had to move my mother to a rest home, so we cleaned out her house in South Carolina. That's when we found [the artifact]. We felt that it belonged to Turkey."
 
The email came with photos of the artifact attached, and Turkish authorities in Washington acted immediately to effect its return. The artifact was safely brought back to Turkey. 
 
[HH] Roman statue delivered by mail 
 
Another American citizen returned the head of a Roman-era statue by mailing it to the  Turkish embassy in Washinton, together with a note that said, "We found this while cleaning out the attic."  The head traveled back to Turkey under official care.