A 2,000-year-old statue is found abandoned in a garbage bag in Greece

The Yahudi Hamman, a 500-year-old Ottoman bathhouse, stands near the flower market in Thessaloniki, Greece on June 25, 2022. (Giovanna Dell'Orto / AP Photos)

THESSALONIKI, Greece — A marble statue of a woman believed to be more than 2,000 years old was found abandoned in a garbage bag near the Greek city of Thessaloniki, police said Wednesday.

A resident discovered the 80-centimetre (31-inch) headless statue beside a trash bin in Neoi Epivates, outside Greece’s second-largest city. The man turned it over to local authorities, who contacted archaeologists to assess its significance.

Police said experts, following an initial evaluation, determined the piece dates to the Hellenistic era, a period roughly between 320 and 30 B.C. that was marked by a flourishing of art and culture following the conquests of Alexander the Great.

The statue was sent for further examination by archaeologists. It will ultimately be handed over to the local antiquities authority for preservation and study.

Police opened an investigation to determine who discarded the statue and briefly detained a man for questioning who was later released without charge.

Accidental archaeological discoveries are relatively common in Greece, a country renowned for its ancient heritage, and often made during building construction or public works. In December, workers installing natural gas pipelines near Athens uncovered a Roman-era statue of Hermes buried upright in a brick-lined pit near the Acropolis.

Thessaloniki weeks ago unveiled a trove of antiquities found during the decades-long construction of its metro system, which officially opened in November. Key finds, including a marble-paved Roman thoroughfare and tens of thousands of artifacts spanning the Greek, Byzantine, and Ottoman periods, are now showcased at subway stations.

Costas Kantouris, The Associated Press