A historical crown thought to date to the era of the Kingdom of Pergamum was recovered in the province of Manisa in western Turkey.

The golden crown and other historical artifacts were seized by police disguising themselves as purchasers. The illegal loot will reportedly be delivered to the Manisa Archeology and Ethnography Museum for study. The crown itself is worth an estimated $75,000.

Manisa Police Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Department teams discovered that T.C. and four accomplices would come from İstanbul to Manisa and meet purchasers for the historical artifacts in their possession. Police teams disguised as purchasers at first bargained with the suspects for the golden crown, two golden earrings, one necklace and one wine pot. As the bargaining over the golden crown, the most valuable piece in the collection, ended negatively, the police broke cover and arrested the suspects and recovered the historical artifacts.

Following expert examination, the pieces were determined to be pure gold. Figures on the crown suggest it may belong to the Kingdom of Pergamum that prevailed in western Asia Minor in the first century A.D. Reportedly, the necklace, earrings, and pot may have also been taken from the same site. During initial interrogation, the suspects claimed they did not know the items had historical value. Alleged historical artifact smugglers T.C., K.S., S.T., A.N.O. and I.C were taken into custody and will be referred to a court following medical exams today. The historical artifacts will reportedly be delivered to the Manisa Archeology and Ethnography Museum for further study.