Egypt has announced the successful repatriation of 25 smuggled antiquities from the United States, including ancient sarcophagus lids, a Greco-Roman mummy portrait, and fragments believed to originate from a temple linked to Queen Hatshepsut. The Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities confirmed on Monday that the rare items had been returned following a three-year collaboration involving Egypt’s consulate in New York, the New York District Attorney’s Office, and US law enforcement agencies.
The artefacts span thousands of years of Egyptian civilisation, showcasing the country’s rich and diverse heritage. Among the recovered pieces are wooden and gilded sarcophagus lids estimated to be over 5,500 years old, temple fragments thought to be associated with the 18th dynasty’s Queen Hatshepsut, and a rare mummy portrait from the Greco-Roman period found in Fayyoum, a city famed for its unique blend of Egyptian and classical art styles.
Other items in the collection include finely crafted jewellery from around 2,400 years ago, a granite foot fragment dating back to the Ramesside period—an era that marked the height of ancient Egypt’s power—and various small figurines carved from ivory and stone. A particularly notable item is a gold coin dating back over 2,000 years to the reign of Ptolemy I, a general of Alexander the Great and founder of Egypt’s final royal dynasty.
The ministry stated that the antiquities had been seized through separate investigations launched in 2022. They were safeguarded at Egypt’s consulate in New York before being flown back to Cairo on Sunday. While officials did not disclose how the items were smuggled out of Egypt or ended up in the United States, the illicit trade in antiquities has long plagued the country.
Significantly, many cultural treasures disappeared during the unrest of the 2011 revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak. Amid widespread looting of museums and archaeological sites, thousands of valuable items were stolen and eventually emerged on the global black market or in private collections.
In recent years, Egypt has intensified its efforts to recover stolen heritage. Authorities say nearly 30,000 artefacts have been returned to the country over the past decade.