- A 32-year-old Greek national found the statue on Jan. 18 in a black bag near the trash bins.
- The statue, believed to be from the Hellenistic period, is currently being held by authorities for forensic testing.
- Discoveries of ancient artifacts are relatively common in Greece, often unearthed during construction projects.
A headless statue believed to be 2,000 years old has been found inside a black plastic bag near trash cans in Greece, prompting a police investigation.
A 32-year-old local found the statue on Jan. 18 in the Greek port city of Thessaloniki, according to Hellenic Police. The statue that dates back to the Hellenistic period, which covers the time between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the conquest of Egypt by Rome in 30 BC, according to the History Channel.
The man who found the statue took it to authorities in Thessaloniki. It was then was examined by an archaeologist with the Ephorate of Antiquities, which handles the conservation, protection and preservation of antiquities.
A crime team that combats the trafficking of people and goods then got the statue, which will be forensically tested and ultimately go to the Ephorate of Antiquities for further evaluation.Â
CBS News reported that the statue is 32 inches tall by 10 inches wide. It appears to depict a someone wearing flowing garments. It is missing its head and arms.
Finding statues from ancient Greece not common in country
The trafficking of antiquities from ancient Greece is not new as police continue to investigate other discoveries and road and construction workers across the country still regularly find new pieces from that era, CBS News reported.
In December, construction workers putting in natural gas pipelines near Athens found a Roman-era statue of the ancient Greek god Hermes buried upright in a brick-lined pit near the Acropolis of Athens historical landmark, according to CBS News and the Greek City Times. Weeks ago, Thessaloniki authorities unveiled a litany of antiquities found during the decades-long construction of its metro system that officially opened in November, the outlets added.
Some of the key finds included a marble-paved Roman thoroughfare and tens of thousands of artifacts spanning the Greek, Byzantine and Ottoman periods, CBS News reported. These artifacts are now showcased at subway stations, the outlet said.