The discovery of a 2000-year-old headless statue from the Hellenistic period has prompted Greek police to investigate.

On the evening of Jan. 18, a 32-year-old Greek man went to the police with an unusual object that he said he had found in a plastic bag among trash bins near the northern city of Thessaloniki. It was a headless, armless statue depicting a female form in a flowing, draped garment.

Authorities say the statue dates back to the Hellenistic period and are investigating how it ended up among garbage. It was worse for wear — no head and no arms.

A marble statue of a woman, believed to be more than 2,000 years old, was found abandoned in a garbage bag near the Greek city of Thessaloniki, police said Wednesday.

Ancient statues have also been found in trash before in other parts of Europe. In 2023, a Roman-era statuette of Venus was discovered in a trash dump in Rennes, France. That same year, ancient bronze statues were found in a garbage dump in Tuscany, Italy.

Police in Greece say a marble statue of a woman believed to be more than 2,000 years old has been found abandoned in a garbage bag and handed to archaeologists.

A man found the headless statue of a woman just outside Greece's second biggest city before handing it over to local authorities. | ITV National News

A resident was surprised to discover a marble statue over 2,000 years old abandoned in a rubbish bag. A marble statue of a woman was found abandoned in a rubbish bag near the Greek city of Thessaloniki.

She was lying in a garbage bag, and nothing indicated she was an invaluable relic. A marble statue of a woman, which may date back to the Hellenistic era, was discovered near Thessaloniki. The find has been sent for archaeological research.