A French citizen admitted to finding 27,400 archaeological artifacts. Among them were 14,154 Roman coins which he said were found on his property in Belgium in September 2019.
Upon hearing of the story, the Belgian authorities questioned its veracity and contacted their French counterparts. Then, the French authorities investigated. Speaking to CNN, a spokesman for French customs said officials searched two properties in eastern France.
If indeed the man finds Roman coins in Belgium, then he has the right to keep them. However, if these archaeological objects are found in France, then they belong to the state.
In the end the man confessed that all the archaeological artifacts were found on French soil. This was stated by customs agent Florent Nourian in a video released by the French customs agency.
Therefore, the officials confiscated all objects of this “immeasurable value”. This incident is said to be one of the greatest finds of plundered artifacts in French history.
How could I not, apart from 14,154 Roman coins, there are also more than 13,000 archaeological artifacts with “extraordinary quality”. They found Gallic coins, bracelets and necklaces made in the Bronze and Iron Ages, sculptural pieces and belts from various historical times, and a Roman dodecahedron – a 12-sided three-dimensional geometric. It is said that there are only about 100 known examples of dodecahedron.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire praised the “exemplary cooperation” of the French and Belgian authorities. Meanwhile, French Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin stressed “the importance of European cooperation in dealing with criminal activity that knows no boundaries.”
Instead of getting rich, the man could be subject to prison terms and hundreds of thousands of euros in customs fines. This was conveyed by Le Maire who also said: “This is a clear message directed to those who, for the benefit and selfish pleasure of some, rob us of our common heritage and erase whole parts of our history.”
