The 10 icons stolen from the "Assumption of Mary" church in Labova e Kryqit are returned after 14 years

2026-01-30 15:04:00, Kulturë CNA

The 10 icons stolen from the "Assumption of Mary" church in Labova e

His Beatitude, Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania, Joan, today received the ten icons of the Church of the Dormition of the Theotokos of Labovo e Kryqit.

The 10 icons stolen from the "Assumption of Mary" church in Labova e

Experts identified ten icons stolen from the church of the “Assumption of the Virgin Mary” in Labova e Kryqit, which are now being returned to the Orthodox Church after a 14-year absence. Not only were cultural assets “rescued” from trafficking, but it is also a very significant example of success, which clearly demonstrates how vital the registration of cultural assets is as the only and reliable means of identifying their origin, in cases where they are at risk of being trafficked or lost.

The 10 icons stolen from the "Assumption of Mary" church in Labova e

This return is not only a legal act, but an act of historical and spiritual justice. Cooperation with the State Police and with the Archbishop and all other religious communities will continue without interruption, with the aim of finding and returning other objects declared lost, in an uncompromising commitment to the protection of our cultural heritage.

The 10 icons stolen from the "Assumption of Mary" church in Labova e

"I am happy to be here, for the return of a very important part of our cultural heritage. I want to thank all those people who found and collected 10 very beautiful and very important icons for our history, and I am especially very grateful to the Minister, who had the commitment, the desire to return them to the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania. We are all committed to protecting this culture and this identity and this is one of our passports for our European identity, and European culture. I believe that the cooperation will continue further for the good of all. I thank all those people once again who found and returned these very important icons to their place", said Archbishop Joan in his speech.

His Beatitude, Archbishop Joan expressed gratitude for the act of returning the icons and for the continuation of other concrete works./CNA