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French police recover Roman treasures taken 25 years ago

PARIS (AP) – France’s custom authority says police have recovered sunken Roman coins and a gold plate snatched from an underwater site 25 years ago.

The DGDDI customs authority says the recovered treasures are worth an estimated euro1 million-euro2 million ($1.4 million-$2.8 million).

The plate is considered the star piece of the so-called “Lava Treasure,” discovered by fishermen in the Gulf of Lava, off the western coast of the French Mediterranean island of Corsica.

French authorities opened an investigation after some coins from the treasure appeared on the antiquities market. The plate was found to be missing in 1985, and it was feared it would end up on the black market.

In a statement Wednesday, the DGDDI said called the recovery a “historic seizure.”

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AP-ES-10-27-10 1446EDT