Artifacts and Assassinations

[Ironhawk]

In a recent game I assassinated an enemy commander who was in possession of an artifact with a remote assassination spell. What happens to the artifact? Is it considered lost? Does another commander in the province (assuming there is one) pick it up?

[Zeldor]

I am almost sure that if the assassination spell works all items are lost so artifact is free to forge.

[JimMorrison]

Isn't it that you can only retrieve items that are lost to deaths during combat? So anything out of combat is buried with the corpse, no looting the peaceful dead!