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The Metropolitan described the stolen treasures as the \u201cElgin Marbles\u201d of Macedonia and Thrace. Although the number of returned religious artefacts remains small, he stressed that their value and symbolic significance are enormous.<\/p>\n
He also expressed the people of Serres\u2019 profound desire to see every stolen artefact returned without exception.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause now we know the method and the way forward,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Read more: Serres Relics Return to Monastery 109 Years After Bulgarian Theft<\/p>\n
\u201cThe truth of history has been vindicated and the artefacts have returned,\u201d said Nektarios, representative of Jerusalem Patriarch Theophilos. He praised the Greek government\u2019s efforts and highlighted Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis\u2019 contribution to the return.<\/p>\n
Following the doxology service, the prime minister joined the procession carrying the sacred icon of the Archangels, accompanied by the returned religious treasures. When the procession reached the Ecclesiastical Treasures Repository, it stopped so officials could place the artefacts in their specially prepared display case.<\/p>\n
(Source: AMNA)<\/p>\n
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