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ATHENS, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Greece and Bulgaria signed a protocol Saturday on the reciprocal handover of cultural artefacts, under which 48 Greek artefacts will return from Bulgaria, while Greece will hand over to Bulgaria the remains identified as those of medieval Bulgarian ruler Tsar Samuel, Greek national broadcaster ERT reported.

The protocol was signed by the two countries' culture ministers at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, in the presence of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev.

The 48 artefacts are being displayed at the museum until Nov. 5, 2026, after which they will be returned to their institutions of origin: the Monastery of Panagia Eikosifoinissa, the Monastery of Timios Prodromos in Serres, and the Holy Metropolis of Serres and Nigrita.

After the handover ceremony in Greece, the remains identified as those of Tsar Samuel, who ruled the First Bulgarian Empire from 997 to 1014, arrived in Bulgarian capital of Sofia on Saturday.

The remains were discovered in 1965 during archaeological excavations at the Basilica of St. Achillius in Prespa in northern Greece and have since been kept at the Museum of Byzantine Culture. The Prespa area was a center of Tsar Samuel's rule in the late 10th century, and the basilica is believed to have been built by him as a major religious center.

The two countries also agreed to continue talks on identifying other historical objects of mutual interest that could be included in a future agreement. ■

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