Police in Athens have arrested a Greek man suspected of illegally possessing some 450 ancient and late mediaeval artifacts, authorities said on Tuesday.

The suspect, identified as an 81-year-old former mine owner, was arrested during a raid on his Athens home on Monday, police said.

Officers confiscated the collection, which dated from as early as prehistoric times and was the most important seized in Greece in recent months.

Police said the artifacts included two marble heads — of a youth and a young woman — 147 silver and copper coins, jewelry, metal and pottery figurines, some 50 vases, bronze arrowheads and axes, a bronze dagger and spearhead, as well as 21 religious icons.

Police did not provide precise dating for the seized artifacts.

Under Greece's strict protection laws, it is illegal to own, buy, sell or excavate antiquities without a special permit. Any items found accidentally must be handed over to authorities.