Greater than 30 years after its theft, Switzerland handed again to Egypt on Monday a fraction of a 3,400-year-old statue of the traditional Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II.
Carine Bachmann, director of the Federal Workplace of Tradition, handed over the fragment to the Egyptian embassy within the capital Bern.
It had been confiscated in Geneva as a part of legal proceedings and was restituted to Egypt underneath Switzerland’s legislation on the worldwide switch of cultural property.
“The stone sculpture of pharaoh Ramses II is part of a group statue where the king sits alongside different Egyptian deities,” the tradition ministry mentioned in a press release.
“The fragment was stolen between the late 1980s and early 1990s from the Temple of Ramses II at Abydos in Egypt. It transited through different countries before arriving in Switzerland.”
The tradition ministry mentioned Egypt was closely affected by the looting and destruction of its archaeological websites, with historic objects from the north African nation being extremely coveted.
“This restitution underlines the joint commitment of Switzerland and Egypt to combat the illicit trade in cultural property,” the ministry mentioned.
Ramses II, also referred to as Ramses the Nice, dominated for greater than 60 years through the thirteenth century BC and oversaw main army conquests and monumental development initiatives, whereas additionally discovering time to father greater than 100 youngsters.
His ornate sarcophagus is on show in Paris from April to September, as a part of a touring exhibition.
The mum itself has stayed behind since Egyptian legislation now forbids transporting royal mummies overseas.
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