Lebanon Returns 37 Smuggled Ancient Artefacts To Egypt

Lebanon has returned 37 ancient Egyptian artefacts to Egypt after they were seized in Beirut six years ago following their illegal removal from the country.

According to Al Jazeera, the handover took place on Wednesday at the National Museum of Beirut, where Lebanon’s Culture Minister Ghassan Salame presented the artefacts to Egypt’s Ambassador to Lebanon, Alaa Moussa.

“After investigating the identity and ownership of these items, it was determined that they belonged to Egypt,” Salame said.

“We are setting an example in the strict implementation of the 1970 international convention concerning the prevention of the illicit trafficking of cultural property,” he was quoted as saying by Lebanon’s National News Agency.

The artefacts were confiscated at the Port of Beirut in 2020, after which Lebanese authorities worked with INTERPOL, Egypt and the country’s top public prosecutor to establish their authenticity and ownership.

The recovered collection includes masks, wooden dolls, pieces of Coptic textiles, glass-paste amulets, medium-sized statues and two wooden coffins featuring colourful decorations.

Read Also: Israeli Strike Kills Two In Southern Lebanon Amid Ongoing Escalation

Laura Salloum, an official with Lebanon’s Directorate General of Antiquities, said a Lebanese national had purchased the items without official documents showing their origin.

Egypt has continued efforts to recover antiquities taken out of the country illegally. Last month, 48 artefacts were returned to Egypt by the FBI Art Crime Team in the United States.

Egypt’s official press office also announced on Wednesday that its embassy in Bern had recovered an ancient golden mummy mask with assistance from Swiss authorities.