Dick Schoof. Credit: JOERAN STEINSIEK / imago stock&people / Profimedia
Authorities in the Netherlands will return to Egypt a 3,500-year-old sculpture that was found at a Dutch art fair, Prime Minister Dick Schoof announced on Sunday during a visit to Egypt, where he met with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Reuters reports.
The artifact in question, which depicts a high-ranking official from the reign of Pharaoh Thutmose III (1479-1425 BC), is believed to have been stolen and illegally exported, most likely during the Arab Spring turmoil of 2011, and then appeared on the international art market.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said the “historical cultural artifact” was “seized at a Dutch art fair” in Maastricht in 2022 following an anonymous tip to authorities.
An investigation by the police and the cultural heritage inspectorate in the Netherlands confirmed that the sculpture was stolen and smuggled out of Egypt. The dealer who owned the piece voluntarily surrendered it following the investigation.
The Dutch government has said it expects to hand over the artifact to the Egyptian ambassador by the end of this year, although an exact date has yet to be set.
Dick Schoof and Abdel Fattah al-Sisi discussed on the sidelines of the opening of the Great Egyptian Museum in Cairo, together with the prime ministers of Belgium and Luxembourg.
The Great Egyptian Museum was officially inaugurated
Saturday evening saw the inauguration of the Great Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
“We are writing a new chapter of the history of the present and the future, in the name of this ancient homeland,” declared President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, welcoming “the world's largest museum dedicated to a single civilization” in front of an audience of kings, heads of state and international leaders, writes Agerpres
“It's a living testament to the genius of the Egyptian people,” he added in the stone and glass building's grand square, overlooking the Giza pyramids bathed in golden light.
As guests arrived, the drones projected a message above the three pyramids and the Sphinx, welcoming them to the land of peace, in English.
