MONTREAL Syria recovered a priceless part of its cultural heritage on Monday when the Canadian government returned 39 ancient mosaics seized when importers tried to smuggle them into Canada and the United States. In a ceremony coinciding with the opening of Syria's first embassy in Canada, nine of the mosaics, which are roughly 1,500 years old, were displayed at Montreal's Pointe-a-Calliere Archaeological and History Museum. A 10th mosaic available for display weighs 3,000 pounds (1,361-kg) and was too heavy for the museum.

Most of the 86 mosaics seized from smugglers were already back in Syria, ending their long journey through the murky, lucrative world of illegal international trade in antiquities. Syrian officials were elated at recovering the colourful artworks, which were crafted centuries earlier by embedding flowing and intricate patterns of stone and glass pebbles in mortar. These mosaic panels are indeed part of our national treasure and heritage, Ahmad Arnous, charge d'affaires of Syria's Embassy to Canada, told a gathering of dignitaries.

We say thanks to the people of Quebec and to Canada, he added. According to archaeological experts and Canadian customs officials, the mosaics were robbed from the floors of ecclesiastical buildings such as churches and monastic complexes in the ancient bishoprics of Apaneia and Epiphaneia in northwestern Syria. Experts dated the works by comparing their styles and composition with other mosaics from the area.

The artifacts included carpet mosaics featuring abstract geometric designs, and larger ones depicting scenes of animal life. The recovered artifacts had attributes that added to their rarity and value in the underworld market for antiquities, experts told Reuters. One depicted the head of Euterpe, the muse of the flute in Greek mythology. It was an unusual piece because Syrian mosaics from that period rarely depicted humans.

John Fossey, a McGill University professor of art history and archaeology who helped identify and date the mosaics, said their recovery was a victory against those who illegally trade and collect cultural artifacts. Canada has been regarded in a certain sense as the back door to get things into the United States, he said. What I can say to the illegal antique traders is: `Watch it guys, we're after you.' Fossey said the area from which the mosaics were removed is particularly rich in artifacts because it was a prosperous agricultural region during the fifth and sixth centuries A.D. Canadian customs officials said the first 54 mosaics were imported into Canada in 1991 and declared as handicrafts from Lebanon with a value of only 200,000 Canadian dollars.

At that time, Lebanon had not signed a UNESCO convention prohibiting the illicit international transfer of cultural property such as antiquities and works of art. When a second batch of 32 mosaics arrived in Canada in 1996, archaeologists agreed they were authentic artifacts dating from the fifth and sixth centuries and originating in northern Syria. They also determined that the mosaics had been taken from the same archaeological sites as the 1991 shipment.

In July 1998, U.S. customs officials seized five mosaics at the Champlain, New York, border post near Montreal. Experts determined they were from the original 1991 shipment. Canadian customs investigator Richard Boucher said there were no criminal arrests in the case as officials were able to proceed more quickly under civil law. Importers must assure that when they acquire cultural goods, it is done respecting international conventions and national laws.

In any case, we will be there to keep watch, he said. (Reuter)