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January 27, 2024
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January 27, 2024In May 2023, over ten Orthodox icons were discreetly moved from Ukraine to France. According to the Wall Street Journal, a convoy with military escort transported sixteen rare icons, some dating back to the 6th century, from the National Museum of Arts in Kyiv to France through Poland and Germany.
These 6th-century artworks, currently displayed at the Louvre, were secretly relocated from Kyiv during the ongoing war. Maximilien Durand, the head of the Byzantine and Eastern Christian Art Department at the Louvre, mentioned, “Only a select few were aware of our activities.”
The level of secrecy matched the sophistication of the icons. Staff at the Hanenko Museum collected and concealed 25,000 exhibits, including icons, in the Louvre for protection shortly after the war commenced on February 24, 2022. This decision was considered prudent as bombs subsequently damaged the museum’s windows and roof. It should be noted that when the works of art will return to Ukraine, and whether they will return at all, is unknown. Collectors and museums often try to acquire antiquities and find many reasons not to return valuable specimens.