Illegal traders in antiques, policemen, archaeologists, and all people connected to ancient items were looking forward to finding out if the Kore called “Peploforos,” which was found in a sheep cote in Attica, was ancient at all!
According to those who have the appropriate knowledge (that is, the archaeologists), this statue is a very good replica of the original one, displayed at the Akropolis Museum.
The illegal traders got arrested and the would-be “clients” felt really relieved. Not because they aren’t in handcuffs right now, as we would think, but due to the fact that they now know this Kore was not an original one. Had the traders not been arrested, they would have wasted 500,000 euros!
This price may seem pretty high for the average Greek, who owes money to his children’s teacher, to his butcher, and to the baker! But such a statue costs millions, and the buyers seemed to ignore this fact.
According to Professor Vassilis Lamprinoudakis, as well as to archaeologists and conservators, they realised from the very first moment that this “Peploforos” could not be real.
But the person who sculpted the fake statue did a great job. Its color, size and even its marks or missing pieces of the statue, are exactly similar to the original Kore. The latter was found at the Erechteum on the Acropolis. It is 1.20 metres tall and made of Parian marble. The traces of paint are still visible, although faded a little bit. This Kore was named after the red garment put on her waist, called “peplos” in Greek.
The last station of this new Kore’s “trip” will be the National Archaeological Museum in Athens, where everything that is confiscated goes.
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