Turkey to present historic Jesus, saint icons to Istanbul patriarch

By Ayse Sensoy Boztepe

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey will deliver icons stolen from historical local churches to Istanbul’s Fener Greek Patriarch Bartholomew, the government said on Monday.

Demonstrating Turkey’s protective attitude towards the nation’s cultural assets regardless of the belief, language, or race involved, Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy will present the icons, which were stolen from historical churches on Tenedos Island off the coast of Canakkale, in the Aegean Sea.

A ceremony at the Canakkale Troy Museum attended by Ersoy and Bartholomew will be held on Tuesday afternoon for the 12 artifacts, including depictions of Jesus and Christian saints.

The artifacts were stolen from the historical churches, including the Panagia Kimisis Church, in the Zeytinli, Eski Bademli, and Derekoy neighborhoods of the island.

In 2007, the local gendarmerie command conducted a successful operation to get back the icons.

Kept under protection at the Canakkale Archeology Museum due to controversies over ownership, the cultural assets were recovered by the ministry through a court challenge.

* Writing by Dilan Pamuk in Ankara