NAPLES, Italy -- Authorities said Saturday they have recovered stolen ancient Roman coins, jewelry and artifacts valued at about $40 million, including an extremely rare coin with the image of Emperor Caesar Augustus worth more than $1.3 million alone.
The coins and other items, all dating from the the time of the Roman Empire, were stolen from the National Archaeological Museum in Naples in 1977 and from the Antiquarium Museum at Pompeii in 1975.
The officials said at a news conference that five men had been arrested, including one who once worked as a watchman in the museum.
Italian, French and Swiss police collaborated in the investigations, which led to the arrest of one of the men in Paris and another in Zurich as he was depositing 71 of the coins in a bank.
