VMFA returns $400K in stolen Turkish relics

State of play: The discovery that VMFA might be in possession of stolen artifacts stemmed from an investigation by the Antiquities Trafficking Unit of the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

• Since 2022, that office has been tracking more than $80 million of art looted from ancient Turkish sites then smuggled across the globe, much of it landing in American museums.
• Last month, officials told VMFA it was likely in possession of plundered works — namely, 41 polychrome terracotta relief fragments (multi-colored, raised clay sculptures), valued at around $400,000.

What they're saying: "VMFA immediately and voluntarily surrendered them" for repatriation, the D.A's office said in a statement.

Zoom in: The museum acquired the pieces in three waves between 1978 and 1979.

• It initially bought 34 reliefs and was gifted the other seven.
• VMFA's circa-1970 cost for the art now valued at $400,000 was around $15,000, the Times-Dispatch reports.

Flashback: This isn't the first time the museum has returned stolen art.

• In 2023, it returned 44 ancient works found to be looted from Italy, Egypt and Turkey.
• And has returned multiple pieces of Native American art and Nazi-era stolen works in recent years.