The Pope sends Parthenon pieces back to Greece (images)

Source: AMPE

As a "testimony and sign of the desire to continue the ecumenical path of truth," Pope Francis has decided to donate Parthenon fragments that were previously housed in Vatican museums.

The official Vatican statement stresses the following in more detail:

Three fragments of the Parthenon, which have been meticulously preserved for centuries in the collections of the Pontiff and the Vatican Museums and have been on display to millions of visitors, have been donated to His Beatitude Ieronymos, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece, by Pope Francis as "an essential proof of his sincere desire to continue the ecumenical march for the witness of truth."

Which three pieces are they?

The three Parthenon fragments that Pope Francis has chosen to give to Archbishop Hieronymos and Greece are covered in great detail by the Italian media.

These three marble shards are from the Parthenon sculptures and were brought to the Vatican in the 19th century.

Experts claim that the first fragment is from one of Athena's tetris' horses.

According to the Italian news agency Ans, the second fragment is a teen's head. It is the face of a statue that was carrying bread when it was being offered during the Panathenaea and stood outside the temple's cemetery.

The third fragment, a male head with a beard that came from the southern metope where the Centaur battle was portrayed, is the last one.