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The ruins of Pompeii in Italy are a popular tourist attraction, but it appears some visitors leave with more than just memories and photos.

Thieving visitors, who have been taking artefacts from the ancient site for decades, have now begun returning their stolen wares to the museum.

In October, a 70-year-old woman returned an ancient decoration that she took from the attraction back in 1964 - and local archaeologists claim this is a common occurrence.

Stolen artefacts that have since been returned to the Italian ruins (pictured) include tiles, painted plaster, stones and bricks. Director Massimo Osanna: 'We have been receiving hundreds of packages with hundreds of fragments now for years. People write expressing regret, having realised they have made a terrible mistake'

The unnamed woman picked up the small decoration during her honeymoon, and it is said to have formed part of the entrance to a theatre.

Director Massimo Osanna told Il Messaggero: 'We have been receiving hundreds of packages with hundreds of fragments now for years.

'People write expressing regret, having realised they have made a terrible mistake and that they would never do it again.' 

In October, a 70-year-old woman returned a relic that she stole from the attraction back in 1964 - and local archaeologists claim this is a common occurrence.

Other stolen artefacts that have been returned include tiles, painted plaster, stones and bricks. 

And a fresco fragment, said to have been crucial to archaeologists hoping to restore the Casa Del Frutteto on the site, was returned in March after two decades. 

Other artefacts have been recovered by customs.

In September, a large stone taken from the historical site was seized at Rome's Fiumicino airport after two Americans tried to take the 4-stone 10lb (30kg) artefact home in their suitcase.

Pompeii was a large Roman town in the Italian region of Campania that was destroyed by a volcanic eruption from nearby Mount Vesuvius in 79AD.

Reports claim that two thousand people died, and the location was abandoned until it was rediscovered in 1748. 

Many of the buildings, artefacts and skeletons were found intact under a layer of dust of debris. 

It is now classified as a Unesco World Heritage Site and more than 2.5 million tourists visit each year. 

In November, French and Italian archaeologists excavating areas of the ancient town found raw clay vases that appear to have been dropped by Roman potters fleeing the disaster.

Pompeii was a large Roman town (marked) in the Italian region of Campania that was destroyed by a volcanic eruption from nearby volcano Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. Reports claim that two thousand people died, and the location was abandoned until it was rediscovered in 1748

In November, French and Italian archaeologists excavating areas of the ancient town found raw clay vases (pictured) that appear to have been dropped by Roman potters fleeing the disaster

The 10 pots, which were found sealed beneath a later of ash and pumice, appear to have been ready to be fired, Discovery News reported. 

It looks as if they were dropped as frightened potters saw the smoke and smelt the sulphurous fumes that would have been spewed out by the volcano - and decided to make a run for it.

Historical accounts and archaeological evidence show that many Pompeians took to the streets in a bid to leave the city, braving hot ash and pumice stones ejected from Vesuvius, with some collapsing from inhaling poisonous fumes.

The 10 pots, which were found sealed beneath a later of ash and pumice, appear to have been ready to be fired. This sketch shows the patternation applied by the potters before they fled their workshop

Roman writer, Pliny the younger, described the panic during the eruption of Mount Vessuvius. Terrified Romans (illustrated) living in the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum saw 'sheets of fire and leaping flames' as they ran through dark streets carrying torches with pumice stone raining down upon them, he said

The scene at the pottery, with its abandoned kilns, reveals a terrifying moment frozen in time when the potters decided to evacuate. One of the kilns (pictured left) and a reconstructed broken vase (right) are shown

The pottery was discovered in an area of the town outside its Herculaneum Gate and comprises three rooms housing two large kilns. 

The scene at the workshop, with its abandoned kilns, reveals a terrifying moment frozen in time when the potters decided to evacuate.

Dig director Laëtitia Cavassa, from the Jean Bérard Centre, said: 'They abandoned the workshop and everything they were doing at that moment.' 

The pottery was discovered in an area of the town outside its Herculaneum Gate and comprises three rooms housing two large kilns. This image shows its floor and the location of smashed raw pottery

Mount Vesuvius erupted (illustrated) on August 24 in 79AD, and the tragic events are immortalised beneath ash spewed from erupting volcano. People tried to flee the town, but many were buried by ash and pumice

Archaeologists found pottery wheels as well as the tools needed to create the elaborate patterns and textures on the pots and vases. A floor showing the location of posts is pictured

Archaeologists found pottery wheels as well as the tools needed to create the elaborate patterns and textures on the pots and vases.

They believe that the 10 smashed vessels discovered were intended to be used to hold water and wine.

Dr Cavassa said: 'They are really unique items. The potters made them with clay, embellished them with decorations, and were ready to place them into the kiln when the Vesuvius erupted.'

She explained that the vases are evidence that the workshop was active at the moment of the famous eruption.

The city of Pompeii (pictured) is an invaluable resource to historians because so many tiny details of daily life, from food to objects in houses, were preserved by hot ash when Mount Vesuvius destroyed the city