Forty-eight repatriated artefacts: Thessaloniki exhibition opens
The objects returned from Bulgaria are on display at the Museum of Byzantine Culture until 5 November, after which they will be handed to their institutions of origin.
What changed on 10 October 2026
Greece's Ministry of Culture announced the opening of a temporary exhibition at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki featuring the 48 ecclesiastical artefacts returned from Bulgaria. The exhibition will run until 5 November 2026; the objects will then be handed to the historic monasteries and churches to which they belong.
The artefacts had been moved to Sofia in 1917 and were kept or displayed at Bulgaria's National Museum of History. Their return was based on the memorandum of understanding signed by the Greek and Bulgarian culture ministers on 29 September 2026.
What the exhibition includes
According to the official presentation, the objects mainly date from the 16th to the 19th century and include reliquaries, crosses, icons, vestments, silverwork, an episcopal throne, a door and a lectern. Their attribution to the institutions of origin was documented through inscriptions on the objects and the available bibliography.
The ministry describes the return as a first phase and says Greek experts will be able to examine and document additional objects and manuscripts in Bulgarian institutions. This describes a planned scholarly process and does not mean that a further repatriation has already been agreed.
The protocols signed on 3 October
Protocols under the Greece–Bulgaria cultural agreement were signed at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki on 3 October, confirming the next step that the Ministry of Culture had announced on 29 September.
Which objects are involved
The 48 artefacts come from the Monastery of Panagia Eikosifoinissa, the Monastery of St John the Baptist in Serres, the Metropolis of Serres and Nigrita, and the Monastery of the Transfiguration at Naousa.
Greece, in turn, handed Bulgaria remains identified as those of Tsar Samuel, together with anthropological material found in four sarcophagi in the Basilica of St Achilleios.
The next stage
The exhibition in Thessaloniki runs until 5 November 2026, after which the artefacts are to be returned to the monasteries, metropolis and churches according to their origin.
The two countries have also agreed to continue discussions about other historical objects of mutual interest that are not included in the current agreement.
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