Extremely rare Greek coin found in anti-smuggling operation

Rare ancient coin worth $1M seized from smugglers in Turkey.

As a result of the operations conducted against historical artifact smugglers in 30 cities including Adana, authorities have found an extremely rare coin. It is reported that there are only 40 rare coins in the world, each worth $1 million (TL 8.55 million). The coin dates back to ancient Greek times and is called the “Athens Dekadrachm.” The coin was retrieved in operation conducted in a house in the southern province of Hatay.

The silver coin was minted between 467-465 B.C. and is among collectors' most sought-after ancient coins. It has a figure of the Greek goddess Athena on one side and an owl on the other. Weighing 42.5 grams and worth $1 million, the coin is known as the “Athens Dekadrachm.”

The coin is also listed on Harlan Berk’s “Top 100 ancient coins list.”

Following the demonstration of the coins at the police headquarters, the officers handed over the coins to the museum. Thirty-six of the 78 suspects were released following questioning while the others are still being interrogated. As part of the operation on Tuesday, security forces aided by history experts reviewed catalogues of auction houses worldwide to track down the stolen and smuggled artifacts. Some 4,122 historical artifacts have been recovered from Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Turkey in four operations conducted against the international smuggling organization.