A US federal court has found a Palmdale resident guilty of smuggling a 2,000-year-old Roman mosaic unearthed from Syria at the height of the country’s civil war. In this respect informs CBS channel.
According to the US Department of Justice, Mohamad Yassin Alcharihi purchased the mosaic in 2015. The artwork depicts Heracles rescuing Prometheus. Legend has it that the titan Prometheus was chained to a rock for defying the gods and teaching humans to use fire. Prosecutors claimed that the 56-year-old paid $12,000 and did not report importing Syrian antiquities to customs. Instead, Alcharihi lied to a customs broker and claimed that he imported ceramic tiles from Turkey for less than $600. A government expert estimated the cost of the mosaic at $450,000.
Months before Alcharikhi committed the crime, the UN Security Council passed a resolution condemning the destruction of Syria’s cultural heritage. The accused faces up to two years in prison. He is expected to be sentenced on 31 August.
Earlier to create An ancient Roman amphora with poems by the ancient poet Virgil was discovered in Cordoba.