A Valencia man has just experienced 40 days in a Turkish jail because he inadvertently purchased a piece of stone in a Turkish market for 10 euros .It was not a sculpture ,it was not anything recognisable as an important artifact.It was a fragment of stone with some engraving on it .He packed it in his bag as a momento of his holiday and was then stopped at the airport when his baggage went through the scanner.The suitcase was searched and the couple was informed that it was a criminal offence to remove items of antiquity from the country.An expert was called to examine the artifact .

In the meantime the wife caught the plane and travelled back to Valencia while her husband was questioned .It was confirmed that the stone was almost 2000 years old and of great historical value.In their wisdom a Turkish court imprisoned the Spaniard while investigations took place.During his time in the prison the Spanish man lost 10 kilos in weight and was only permitted to speak to his family on two occasions.Eventually a full trial took place and he was released without charge and he returned to Valencia two weeks ago .

It appears that this type of inadvertent purchasing of antiquities takes place quite often and this man’s lawyer had already defended 22 tourists on similar charges.He has said that he was well treated by the prison staff and the inmates in the prison .However he gives a warning to those who are travelling to Turkey to beware.The irony of it all is that he and his wife won the holiday in a competition .