Greece and Bulgaria sign protocol returning 48 looted relics after 109 years
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev oversaw the handover of 48 sacred relics taken in 1917, as Athens renewed its rejection of loan deals for the Parthenon Sculptures.
Repatriation agreement in Thessaloniki
On 3 October 2026, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev attended an official ceremony at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki. The two leaders oversaw the signing of bilateral protocols governing the mutual delivery and receipt of historical relics and anthropological material between Greece and Bulgaria. This ceremony concluded a process established under a Memorandum of Understanding previously signed by Greek Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni and Bulgarian Minister of Culture Efthym Miloshev. The formal restitution followed years of systematic negotiations managed by the Greek Ministry of Culture to resolve the status of items removed over a century ago.
- 48 sacred relics are removed from northern Greek monasteries during wartime
- Greece and Bulgaria sign protocols in Thessaloniki for the mutual handover of relics
- Exhibition at Museum of Byzantine Culture concludes before relics return to monasteries
Relic origins and exhibition timeline
The 48 sacred relics returned to Greece were taken from northern Greek religious sites in 1917, spending 109 years in Bulgaria. The repatriated collection originates from three ecclesiastical institutions: the Holy Monastery of Panagia Ikosifinissa, the Holy Monastery of Timios Prodromos in Serres, and the Holy Metropolis of Serres and Nigrita. Under the timetable confirmed at the ceremony, all 48 objects will be displayed at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki until 5 November 2026. After this temporary exhibition concludes, the relics will return permanently to their original monasteries and the regional metropolis.
Mitsotakis on wartime spoils and heritage
During his speech at the ceremony, Mitsotakis framed the restitution as a broader precedent for international heritage disputes. He stated that the agreement establishes a foundation extending far beyond an ordinary cultural exchange, expressing confidence that ongoing bilateral cooperation with Bulgaria will lead to the return of additional items in the future.
Monuments cannot be treated as spoils of war, nor as victims of circumstances subsequent to their creation.
Stance on the Parthenon Sculptures
Mitsotakis connected the Bulgarian repatriation directly to Greece's longstanding diplomatic campaign regarding the Parthenon Sculptures. He argued that the ancient sculptures are not inanimate objects of the past, but living evidence inextricably tied to the natural and cultural landscape where they originated. Removing such artifacts, he said, mutilates their essence and alters historical truth. Addressing potential proposals from abroad, Mitsotakis stated that Greece will reject any settlement that implies foreign ownership or requires Greece to accept temporary loans of its own heritage.
I will repeat that my country will not accept arrangements that signify recognition of foreign sovereignty or pretend to borrow its own treasures.
Acropolis Museum and universal heritage
Mitsotakis affirmed that the Parthenon constitutes a unique and self-contained case that cannot be restricted to legal and technical debates. He emphasized that the universal monument remains violently dismembered, requiring the full restoration of its aesthetic and conceptual integrity. He insisted that the sculptures must be exhibited together in direct visual contact with the Acropolis rock, fulfilling the purpose of the Acropolis Museum. Mitsotakis added that the Greek claim does not question the global mission of museums, concluding that the return of the marbles is an imperative of truth, logic, justice, and ethics.
