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The prosecutor's office and archaeologists prevented the illegal sale of an artifact from the time of the Roman Empire - the valuable overlay will be handed over to the museum

The Primorsky District Prosecutor's Office of Odesa, in collaboration with the police, has halted an attempt to illegally sell a unique artifact of exceptional historical and cultural significance as part of a pre-trial investigation.

The information about the sale was provided by Maksym Levada, the head of the cataloging and monitoring sector of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine. He reported that a resident of Odesa attempted to sell a rare lace overlay inscribed with "VICTOR I UTERE FELIX", which translates to "To the victor, enjoy happiness!"

This artifact is characteristic of the warrior legionary culture of the 2nd–3rd centuries during the late Roman Empire. It was listed at auction under the name "Roman Overlay" with a starting price of 40,000 hryvnias.

During the investigation, law enforcement identified the seller and seized the artifact.

A commission art expert examination has now been appointed to confirm its authenticity and determine its cultural value. After the examination is completed, the overlay will be transferred to the collections of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine for storage and further study.

Notably, this is already the second example of successful cooperation between archaeologists and prosecutors. Earlier, thanks to the concern of scientists and the prompt actions of law enforcement, the sale of a fibula from the 1st-2nd century, characteristic of the Germanic cultures of Central Europe and related to the Marcomannic Wars of the Roman Empire, was prevented. At that time, the artifact was listed at auction with an initial price of 170,000 hryvnias.

The pre-trial investigation in the criminal proceedings is being conducted by Police Station No. 1 of the Odesa Regional Police Department No. 1.

We are grateful to the archaeologist specialists for their assistance and concern!

We continue to cooperate in returning archaeological cultural values to the state that are in the shadow circulation contrary to the requirements of the Law of Ukraine "On the Protection of Cultural Heritage".

The preservation of Ukraine's cultural heritage is our common priority.