The Australian Government has returned a culturally significant object to the Government of the Italian Republic.

An ancient ceramic vase with black and red colouring and animal head-shaped handles.

The ceramic vase has been traced to the southern Italian region of Apulia (Puglia) and was made between 340-325 BCE. It has a bell-shaped body and lugged handles that take on the form of animal heads. This type of vase is also known as a krater.

The circular holes on the object’s surface, known as spall marks, are caused by fragments of limestone in the clay, which slowly expand after the pot is fired and can eventually break through the surface.

A handover ceremony to return the cultural object was hosted by the Italian Ambassador on Friday 26 June.

The vase was detected by the Australian Border Force on import from the United States of America on its way to New Zealand in 2020.

It is protected under Italy’s cultural property laws and a formal request was made by the Government of the Italian Republic for its return. This is the first time the Australian Government is returning a cultural object to Italy under the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986.

The Act provides for the return of foreign cultural property illegally exported from other countries and imported into Australia.

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