Crimean Museums File Lawsuit Over Scythian Gold Collection

Director of the Kerch historical and cultural preserve Tatyana Umrikhina is hopeful that a collection of golden Scythian items will get back to the place it belongs to - "to its native soil, to Crimean museums."

MOSCOW, November 26 (Sputnik) — Four Crimean museums have filed a class action lawsuit in an Amsterdam court seeking the return of a collection of golden Scythian items from Netherlands to Crimea, Tatyana Umrikhina, director of the Kerch historical and cultural preserve, told RIA Novosti.

"We have filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of four museums in an Amsterdam court November 19," she said.

The director is hopeful that justice will be served and the collection will get back to the place it belongs to — "to its native soil, to Crimean museums."

A collection of rare Scythian gold artifacts, totaling more than 1,000 items, was sent to Netherlands for an exhibition at the Allard Pierson Museum in February, before Crimea’s reunification with Russia.

The collection contains archeological artifacts from five museums, including four Crimean institutions: the Central Tavrida museum, the Kerch historical and cultural preserve, the Bakhchisarai historical and cultural preserve and the "Tauric Chersonese" national preserve.

In March, after Crimea’s reunification with Russia, the Ukrainian government demanded all of the gold back to itself. Crimea dismissed the claims as groundless.

The Ukrainian Culture Ministry said the items in the collection would be returned to Kiev, since they are considered Ukrainian property.

However, the Dutch museum where the collection went on display, decided to keep the artifacts until the sides resolve their dispute peacefully or in court.

The exhibition officially ended in late August, however due to the dispute between Ukraine and Crimea the collection cannot return to the museums so far.