An ancient Ramses II bust returned to Egypt, following its theft and smuggling out of the nation over 30 years ago. Currently, the statue is at Cairo’s National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. Also, it is set up for expert restoration. There aren’t any official announcements whether, or when it will be put on exhibit for tourists.
An Ancient Ramses II Bust First Noticed in 2013
The thoughts are the stone bust disappeared sometime in the late 1980s or early 1990s. It appeared in a London exhibition in 2013. Sales of the sculpture took place during the display. According to the Egyptian ministry of antiquities, it travelled through other nations before ending up in Switzerland once more, and seized as part of “criminal proceedings.”
Egypt declared official possession of the bust in Switzerland. Also, In July of last year, the Egyptian embassy in Bern received the sculpture from the Swiss Federal Office of Culture. Shaaban Abdel Gawad, the head of Egypt-s antiquities reparation department, said that the bust is “part of a group of statues depicting King Ramses II seated alongside a number of Egyptian deities.”.
Rumors say somebody stole the bust from the Abydos Temple of Seti I. This is one of Egypt’s oldest cities, built in the 13th century B.C.E. by Pharaoh Seti I, the father of Ramses II. At the age of 25, Ramses II, often known as Ramses the Great, assumed the throne. He ruled from 1279 to 1213 B.C.E.
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Numerous Institutions Facing Calls to Return Artifacts
He received praise for both his skill as a military commander and the significant construction projects he oversaw during his rule. He restored a number of old temples, such as the complexes of temples at Abu Simbel and Ramesseum. Also, he established Pi-Ramesses as Egypt’s new capital, later abandoned in 1060 BCE.
On April 22, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities released a statement. The institution said the return of the piece to Egypt was through the “joint cooperation” of Egypt and Switzerland “in the field of combating illicit trafficking”. The artefact turned up following “tireless efforts” by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, according to Muhammad Ismail Klahed, Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.
This incident occurs at a time when numerous important American and European institutions are facing calls to return historic artefacts, taken from other countries. And investigations into the involvement of criminal gangs in the trafficking of ancient artifacts are once again making international headlines.
