Greece returns Teracotta Statuettes to Egypt
Greece handed over to Egyptian authorities a group of terracotta statuettes believed to come from Egypt that were discovered in an Athens skip eight years ago and handed over to archaeologists at the country’s biggest museum.
The Culture Ministry said in a statement that the works were delivered to Egypt’s ambassador in Athens, Omar Amer Youssef. It said they had been illegally exported from Egypt.
The six statuettes were allegedly found by a passer-by amid rubbish in a skip in the western Athens suburb of Peristeri, wrapped individually and placed in a paper bag, and brought to the capital’s National Archaeological Museum.
But the ministry said museum experts who inspected the works determined that two of them were fakes. They are being returned to Egypt together with the apparently genuine pieces.
Culture Minister Lina Mendoni, who attended the handover ceremony at the museum Wednesday, said the move was “an act of respect” to the principle of cultural heritage.
The Egyptian ambassador thanked Greece for the “valuable artefacts.”
Main Image: Courtesy Greek Culture Ministry