Photo of find 'shows shield handle, '
sleuth says
Riace Riddle Thickens
(ANSA) - Riace, September 24 - The riddle of an alleged theft from Italy's famed Riace bronzes has resurfaced 35 years after they were lifted from the Calabrian seabed.
A photo of the 1972 find has reignited speculation that the two figures were stripped of a shield and possibly other objects - and even a companion who has never been seen. The photo was put on display recently by a Riace cultural association and spotted by Riace bronze sleuth Giuseppe Bragho', an amateur archaeologist who has long been arguing that the site was raided by art thieves.
Bragho' says the snap, taken just after the statues were brought ashore, is ''unequivocal evidence'' that a shield was torn from the left arm of the so-called 'younger' statue.
''The photo clearly shows an object protruding from the statue's left hand. It's easy to guess that it was the handle of the shield that has never been discovered,'' Bragho' said. Bragho' said the photo should ''lend fresh impetus'' to an inquiry opened last year on the basis of his claims. The local sleuth, who has written a book outlining his suspicions, says he has ''tracked down and photographed a series of documents that indicate an alarming scenario''.
He says a third statue - ''completely different from the other two'' - as well as two shields and a lance, were seen lying on the seabed by the finder, scuba diver Stefano Mariottini.
Bragho' points to a statement made by Mariottini the day after he discovered the statues on 16 August 1972.
In the statement, he refers to ''a group of statues''.
Bragho' also highlights another section of Mariottini's statement in which he reportedly said he saw ''three statues, probably made of bronze...one of them lying on its side with a shield on its left arm''.
In addition, the expert has provided prosecutors with the name of a man who allegedly helped smuggle a shield and lance away from the scene of the discovery.
