Washington-resident John Gomperts had inherited 19 antiquities tracing back to Pakistan, Italy, Greece and Cyprus from his grandmother. They are valued at around £80,000. Gomperts returned the objects with the consent of his siblings.
"It seemed like the right thing to do…I read stories on repatriation and I thought: we have these pieces that are 2,500 years old from other countries; we should explore whether we can give them back,” The Guardian quoted him as having commented.
Uninitiated when it came to repatriating rarities, he reached out to archaeologist Christos Tsirogiannis, quoted by the aforementioned paper. Tsirogiannis said Gomperts had set an "extraordinary" precedent. "He reached out to me, which is a first for an owner of unprovenanced antiquities, asking for advice to do the right thing.”
Twelve of the antiquities were traced to Greece, four to Italy, two to Cyprus and one to Pakistan. "I advised him to give them back,” Tsirogiannis said. Welcoming the gesture, the nations responded with notes of gratitude addressed to both: Tsirogiannis and Gomperts.