Looted Ancient Sarcophagus Returned to Egypt From US.
Egyptian officials have confirmed that an old wooden sarcophagus which was displayed in the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences was given back in Egypt following U.S. authorities determined it was stolen years ago.
A sarcophagus made of wood that was on display in the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences was handed back in Egypt in the wake of U.S. authorities determining it was looted a few years long ago. An Egyptian official said this morning.
The repatriation is a part of Egyptian government efforts to end the trade in stolen antiquities. In 2021, the authorities in Cairo achieved 5,300 artifacts stolen from Egypt from all over the world.
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Mostafa Waziri, the highest official of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, stated that the sarcophagus date back into the Late Dynastic Period of ancient Egypt which included the last Pharaonic rulers, from 664 B.C. up to Alexander the Great’s victory during 332 B.C.
Looted ancient sarcophagus returned to Egypt from US https://t.co/MdHFGbUF0G
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The sarcophagus, which is nearly three meters (9.5 feet) tall and with a vibrantly painted top, could be the possession of an older priest called Ankhenmaat however, the inscriptions on it have been removed, Waziri said.
It was ceremoniously handed over during the ceremony that took place on Monday Cairo in the presence of Daniel Rubinstein, the U.S. charge d’affaires for Egypt.
The transfer took place more than 3 months after it was discovered that the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office determined that the sarcophagus had been stolen out of Abu Sir Necropolis, north of Cairo. It was smuggled from Germany to Germany and then into the United States in 2008, according to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg.
“This stunning coffin was trafficked by a well-organized network that has looted countless antiquities from the region,” Bragg stated during the interview. “We are pleased that this object will be returned to Egypt, where it rightfully belongs.”
Bragg claimed that the same network had smuggled a gold-plated coffin from Egypt which was displayed in the New York’s Metropolitan Museum. Met bought the item from a Paris auction house in 2017, for $4 million. It was then returned to Egypt in the year 2019.
