When will the poppy flower return? .. Egypt is chasing its stolen antiquities in world fairs and auctions

Cairo -

In 1858, Khedive Said Pasha issued a decree establishing the Egyptian Antiquities Authority and the Egyptian Museum, in an attempt to stop the hemorrhage of theft and smuggling of Egyptian antiquities abroad.

The rates of antiquities theft have decreased successively since then, according to antiquities specialists, while illegal excavations and elaborate thefts, followed by smuggling through hidden paths, continued.

Despite the issuance of a decree in 1835 by Muhammad Ali Pasha, the governor of Egypt, completely banning the export of all Egyptian antiquities, the artifacts preserved in the Egyptian House of Antiquities or “Antickhana” used to give gifts from the rulers of Egypt to officials and princes in Europe, so the number of preserved artifacts decreased until they were transferred to a small hall The castle, before it was gifted to a European prince.

Egypt is seeking to recover the stolen and smuggled from its antiquities abroad with unremitting efforts, and these efforts have been successful in many cases and failed at other times.

A few days ago, Kuwait returned a group of artifacts to Egypt based on a decision by the Public Prosecution, which Kuwaiti customs seized in 2019 in the possession of a passenger who arrived on a direct flight from Luxor Airport to Kuwait.

Luxor International Airport witnessed the most famous exit of original parts as counterfeit and was discovered by the Kuwaiti authorities (Shutterstock)

A source at the Ministry of Antiquities told Al Jazeera Net that the antiquities were officially exited from the airport as "counterfeit pieces that are not original," stressing that thousands of non-original pieces came out in this way, pointing out that many employees and officials in the antiquities in Luxor were referred to the prosecution following Kuwait's announcement of the arrival of the pieces. A delegation of Egyptian experts traveled to cooperate with the Kuwaiti side in verifying the antiquity of the artifacts.

The source - who has reserved his name - adds that the reality of the state of antiquities inspectors and museum curators is extremely "miserable", and if it weren't for "a remnant of conscience and religion, one of them would have become a millionaire within months, as soon as he closes his eyes to his job duties."

This is the second time that the Gulf state has returned smuggled Egyptian antiquities, according to the statements of a Kuwaiti official, and the pieces were described as "priceless."

Recovery and more smuggling

In parallel, the excavation and smuggling gangs succeeded in getting thousands of valuable pieces out of the country, while Cairo recovered many of these pieces, the most important of which was a mass statue of basalt, and a small cabin bearing the name of Prince "Kha' Em West" in 2014.

In the following year, Egypt recovered from Israel two covers for two sarcophagi from the Pharaonic era in the form of a human and made of wood and colored cartons, and the wood was carved and decorated.

The lids of the two coffins were on sale at Bonhams Auctions in London.

The authorities recovered an ivory statue from Berlin dating back to the seventh and eighth centuries AD, as well as the seven sacred oil paintings from Switzerland, dating back to the era of the Old Kingdom.

Egypt also recovered an antique black granite plate dating back to the "30th Dynasty", two niches that had been stolen from the Museum of Civilization's warehouses, and an ancient Egyptian funerary plaque called "Seshan Nefertum" made of limestone.

Between 2018 and 2021, Egypt recovered a large number of artifacts, including 222 artifacts and 21,000 coins from 5 countries, and recovered a golden sarcophagus described as unique, bought by the Metropolitan Museum in the United States of America from an antiquities dealer, and it was on display at the American Museum with forged papers.

The mission of the Recovery Committee is to monitor all auctions of Egyptian artifacts abroad.

Funny and complicated tricks

Until 1983, the task of antiquities dealers was easy and simple, as there was a law regulating the process of selling antiquities, but on the condition that there were certificates accompanying these pieces, until a law was issued to ban Egyptian antiquities trade operations permanently.

Since then, thieves and smugglers have started inventing tricks to try to keep up the now illegal trade.

One of the funniest tricks that occurred in the nineties of the last century, a young man tried to rob the Egyptian Museum in central Cairo, by staying hidden in one of its corridors after the end of working hours, and staying in it at night, then taking one of the pieces and trying to get out in the morning, before the museum’s security could arrest him.

This and other thefts carried out by petty thieves revealed loopholes in museum security, the most famous of which was the theft of Van Gogh's "Poppy Flower".

Paradoxically, Kuwait returned the stolen painting after it was smuggled to it, and recently returned other smuggled antiquities, but the "poppy flower" was stolen again in 2010, this time without return until today.

The series of thefts of museums that include ancient Egyptian or Islamic antiquities or paintings and expensive modern pieces of art did not stop, including the theft of the Museum of Islamic Art in downtown Cairo, and the famous Al-Rifai Mosque.

One of the funniest thefts mixed with a kind of deception was carried out by "Khartieh" or camel and horse workers, as they tried to sell pieces of the pyramid's stones to tourists, and although they were lying on the ground next to the pyramid, and almost without a price, they succeeded in selling them, and the arrest was made. on them.

Artistic workers accompanying the movie "The Treasure" team also stole antiques and old carpets from Al-Rifai Mosque while filming scenes for the actor Mohamed Ramadan, and the stolen items were returned after lengthy investigations.

The current director of the Egyptian Museum, Mohamed Ali Fahmy, broadcast a video clip on YouTube, which sparked a controversy that resonated with Parliament and called for a discussion with a request to brief antiquities officials regarding what the director mentioned about the incidents of neglect that lead to the waste of artifacts in it. The decision to transfer the director was issued after revealing these violations before all parties concerned and before the Minister of Antiquities.

Representative Mustafa Salem reviewed the request for briefing during the meeting of the Culture, Media and Antiquities Committee a few days ago, pointing to numerous violations and violations in the archaeological, technical and financial aspect of the Egyptian Museum, which forced the museum director to appeal to the presidency.

Sources at the Egyptian Museum told Al Jazeera Net - who refused to reveal their identity - that the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities used a foreign-funded committee consisting of Ain Shams University professors for tasks in the museum, which caused administrative confusion and led to decisions that reduced the roles and authorities of the museum's trustees in protecting antiquities inside it, until some pieces were dumped. - without being in the custody of anyone - in the museum display garden, which exposes it to loss and damage.

One of these sources expressed his feeling that there is "negligence that amounts to deliberately leaving antiquities as loot for loss."

In turn, the Director of the Scientific Office of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mohamed Al-Saeedi, confirmed that Egypt will not leave any smuggled antiquities, "whatever the price and how long it takes."

He added, during a telephone interview with one of the satellite channels, that intensive activity took place in order to recover the smuggled antiquities in cooperation with the competent authorities, and as a result, "very valuable antiquities" were returned to Egypt.