Returning artworks from north will be challenging says official

The secure transport, storage and insuring of the artworks to be returned to the Greek Cypriot side under a confidence-building measure reached by the two leaders are to be discussed with the government and UN, the co-president of the Bicommunal Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage, Androulla Vassiliou, said on Thursday.

The transfer involves 210 artworks, some of which are of great value, and which were created by Greek Cypriot artists and left behind after the 1974 invasion.

The works were then found in private homes, galleries and ateliers in the Famagusta area in the north.

“They were scattered here and there,” Vassiliou said. “[Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa] Akinci gave the order to gather the artworks in one space, to record and photograph them, before wrapping them for protection.”

Finding the rightful owners will be painstaking, Vassilou said. Ownership will be discussed at the next meeting of the committee to be held between March 12 and 15 in the presence of a lawyer who can assist in the process.

“First of all, there’s the issue of safety, and the need to transfer the artworks to a secure space on the Greek Cypriot side until we can determine who the rightful owners of the works are.”

The task is complicated by the fact that while the names of the artists are known, it is still unclear whether the artworks were sold to other individuals, since many of the paintings were found in private homes, suggesting that the paintings were bought, Vassilou said.

On Wednesday, Vassiliou told the Cyprus Mail that the names of the artists whose work is to be returned will be made known soon.

Finding a secure space is one thing that must be discussed with the government and the UN, Vassiliou said, adding that that the greatest issue is that of insuring the artworks.

“Many of the works are of great value, so insuring them will also require large sums,” Vassiliou said, noting that either the government or the UN must provide this money.

Regarding a second confidence-building measure reached by the two leaders on Tuesday, that of the return to the Turkish Cypriot side visual and audio recordings of Turkish Cypriot artists stored by the state broadcaster CyBC, Vassiliou said that these recordings concern theatre plays that included the participation of Turkish Cypriot musicians.

Further confidence-building measures agreed by Anastasiades and Akinci on Tuesday included the linking of the two sides’ telephony networks and electricity grids and mine clearance.

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