Spanish police have confiscated 11 pieces of ancient gold jewellery which they said were taken out of Ukraine illegally in 2016.

A police statement said five people who were attempting to sell the pieces in Spain have been arrested in recent weeks. Those arrested included two Ukrainians, one of them an Orthodox Church priest, and three Spaniards.

The jewellery was said to be worth 60 million euros (£52 million) and dated from between the eighth and fourth centuries BC.

Police said the items were part of Ukraine’s national heritage. They went missing after being put on display between 2009 and 2013 in a museum in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital. The pieces included a belt, earrings and necklaces.

An ornate gold belt was seized in 2021 and the rest of the pieces were confiscated in recent weeks. Police said the investigations continued.

The pieces are being studied by Spain’s National Archaeological Museum and the country’s Cultural Heritage Institute.

Interior ministry attaches in Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, North Macedonia and Ukraine helped with the investigation, police said.