France returns prehistoric treasure to Morocco

On January 27, 2025, customs officers intercepted a freight truck coming from Spain. On board, two packages destined for private individuals living near Genoa and Milan contained fossils dating from 66 to 72 million years ago.

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To identify these pieces, the authorities called on an expert from the Menton Regional Prehistory Museum. According to the information reported by the daily newspaper Nice Matin, the specialist confirmed that they were fossilized teeth from the Tertiary era, coming directly from the Moroccan geological basin.

The truck driver had no import, possession or circulation documents. The illegal goods consisted of a plesiosaur tooth, three mosasaur teeth and five teeth of Dyrosaurus phosphaticus, aquatic species from a time when the current Moroccan desert was covered by the sea.

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These archaeological assets have since been returned to their country of origin. In February 2025, during a trip to Morocco, former French Minister of Culture Rachida Dati officially handed over these nine pieces to Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan.