Will shipowner Panagiotis Laskaridis be brought to trial or acquitted for illegally salvaging an ancient anchor and cannon from the 17th-18th century from the seabed of Antikythera? The case was first reported by Ef.Syn. in August 2020 («Strange »rescue« of antiquities from the seabed of Antikythera“ 24/8/2020), and last Friday, November 18, 2022, the trial was to take place at the Piraeus Three-Member Misdemeanor Court with shipowner Panagiotis Laskaridis as the defendant. He faces charges of damaging a monument and violating the obligation to declare a monument as a misdemeanor for the two objects, which are protected by the provisions of the archaeological law and were salvaged in violation of the established protection framework.
However, no trial took place. The case was not even listed on the court docket, as on October 4, 2022, the shipowner filed an appeal with the Piraeus Public Prosecutor's Office against the summons. The decision of the court and the reasoning of the Public Prosecutor of Appeals as to whether Mr. Laskaridis will be referred to trial or acquitted by indictment are therefore awaited with great interest.
According to reliable information obtained by Ef.Syn., the committee appointed by the Ministry of Culture to assess the objects, headed by archaeologist and director of the National Archaeological Museum, Ms. Anna-Vasiliki Karapanagiotou, has ruled that the cannon does not fall under the provisions of the archaeological law, as it is not related to a shipwreck. So how did this heavy and bulky object end up at the bottom of the sea? With this assessment, however, Mr. Laskaridis is acquitted of the charge of «damage to a monument,» which mainly concerned the cannon.
The recovery of the two ancient objects from locations known to the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities (EEA), their transport to the yacht «Glaros,» and their storage in a private space in Lavrio (before being handed over to the competent EAA) took place in August 2020 on the exclusive initiative of Mr. Laskaridis, even though this is prohibited by archaeological law for all Greek and foreign citizens. This was done without prior special permission or any consultation with the competent EEA of the Ministry of Culture, without studies, without the presence of archaeologists conservators, and without complying with the specifications required and provided for objects protected as cultural heritage artifacts. The scientific community, for its part, has made it clear that a special methodology and protective measures are needed right away for objects that are being raised, as they risk damage from sudden changes.
Following a complaint (16/8/20) by a foreign citizen to the Port Authority of Kythira (12/8/20), who had photographed the incident of the cannon being hoisted and transported to the boat «Glaros,» the incident was reported to the Ministry of Culture and Sports by archaeologist Aris Tsaravopoulos (17/8/20) and finally the letter from Mr. Laskaridis to the EEA, confirming (written on 17/8 and sent on 18/8/20) that he had salvaged the objects and transported them to his private premises with the intention of handing them over. In his second letter (20/8) to the EEA, he claimed that he had salvaged the objects in order to save them and reproached the Service for not doing its job properly. He wrote that Article 24 of the Constitution: «...gives every Greek citizen the right and duty to care for the protection and preservation of our cultural heritage, especially when state officials who are supposed to protect it, such as yourselves, fail miserably in their duty. In this duty, therefore, I have succeeded completely and you have failed completely!».
The EEA replied to Mr. Laskaridis that «it is prohibited to raise, move, or photograph objects of archaeological or other value found on the seabed» based on the provisions of Laws 3028/2002 and 3409/2005. «...you should have reported the location of the archaeological objects you found without undue delay...» it wrote, asking Mr. Laskaridis to transfer the objects to the EEA's premises, which he did on August 21. At the same time, the Service forwarded the case file to the Athens Public Prosecutor's Office and then to the Piraeus Public Prosecutor's Office. The coverage of the issue by Ef.Syn. and other media outlets provoked many reactions, announcements by scientific associations (archaeologists, conservators, employees of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, etc.) and questions from SYRIZA MPs (Theodoros Dritsas and Panos Skouroliakos) to the Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, who responded cautiously that «the case is under investigation.».
In the interim period between the illegal lifting of the ship and the trial, Ms. Mendoni's relations with Mr. Laskaridis were excellent. They were not even disrupted when he spoke disparagingly about the prime minister and the institutions, when he expressed his crude opinion (May 2021) about the relationship between shipowners and the government: «...they can f*** the prime minister, he is of no use to them. Why? Because shipping has nothing to do with Greece. There is nothing a shipowner can gain in Greece...’. They met at her office on Bouboulinas Street in June 2021 in the presence of the then interim head of the EEA, Aikaterini Dellaportas. Mr. Laskaridis was an official guest at the opening of the »Arethousa« Archaeological Museum of Chalkida and continues to be a sponsor, through the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation, the archaeological research on the Antikythera shipwreck, which is being conducted under the supervision of Angeliki Simosi, head of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Euboea.
Vasiliki Tzevelekou
