Turkish city asks Louvre to return statues: report
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The Turkish city of Izmir has asked Paris's Louvre museum to return two statues of Greek gods Zeus and Apollo, a newspaper reported Monday.
In a letter to the management of the French museum, mayor of the port city Aziz Kocaoglu demanded the return of the marble figures, newspaper Hurriyet said.
Now displayed in the Louvre, they were discovered towards the end of the 17th century in the Izmir region, on the Aegean Sea, which is the site of the ancient city of Smyrna.
They were taken to France and presented to King Louis XIV.
The mayor of Izmir is asking for the statues to be returned to form part of a museum of Aegean civilisation that the city plans to establish and has requested "long-term cooperation" from the Louvre.
The statue of Zeus measures 2.34 metres (7.68 feet) and the Apollo statue is 2.16 metres (7.1 feet), the paper said.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments