Ancient stone tablet stolen from Saqqara tomb, authorities on high alert - Egypt Independent

https://www.egyptindependent.com/ancient-stone-tablet-stolen-from-saqqara-tomb-authorities-on-high-alert/

Ancient stone tablet stolen from Saqqara tomb, authorities on high alert

RT Arabic
February 12, 2026

Egypt's Administrative Prosecution has issued a series of orders following investigations into the theft of an ancient stone tablet from the 'Khentika' tomb in the Saqqara archaeological site, Giza Governorate.

According to available data, the stolen tablet measures approximately 40×60 cm and is considered a rare piece documenting scenes of daily life in Ancient Egypt, similar in style to the Mereruka reliefs.

It is believed the theft occurred over two months ago, only coming to light during a recent inventory check.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Prosecution announced it has ordered a comprehensive follow-up on all technical reports related to the incident.

It further mandated a review of security and protection measures across archaeological sites, calling for the implementation of the latest technological security systems.

The prosecution ordered the acceleration of the national archaeological documentation and registration project, aligning with the state's strategy to build a comprehensive database of Egyptian antiquities.

The prosecution confirmed that investigations are ongoing.

A team conducted an extensive inspection of the tomb in Saqqara on Wednesday morning as part of the legal proceedings. The investigation was initially launched after the Prosecution's media center monitored reports on October 5 regarding the disappearance of the stone artifact.

The Khentika tomb, dating back to the Old Kingdom, had been utilized as an antiquities storehouse for the Teti Cemetery.

A technical committee has been commissioned to examine the tomb, accompanied by a security detail from the Tourism and Antiquities Police.

This incident follows closely on the heels of the gold bracelet theft from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir, which sparked widespread outrage across the country.

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Restoration of Rameses II statue completed at El-Ashmunein in Minya - Ancient Egypt - Antiquities - Ahram Online

https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/562243/Antiquities/Ancient-Egypt/Restoration-of-Rameses-II-statue-completed-at-ElAs.aspx

Restoration of Rameses II statue completed at El-Ashmunein in Minya

Nevine El-Aref , Wednesday 11 Feb 2026

An Egyptian-American archaeological mission has completed the restoration and re-erection of a colossal statue of King Ramesses II at the ancient site of El-Ashmunein in Minya Governorate, authorities said.

The project follows the discovery of the statue's upper section in February 2024, nearly a century after the lower portion was first uncovered in 1930. The newly found section was restored and reinstalled atop the base, returning the monument to its original position at the northern entrance of the temple.

The limestone statue now stands about 6.7 metres tall and weighs more than 40 tonnes. It consists of four main elements: the statue's body, previously broken into two parts; a base made of three large stone blocks; and uninscribed foundation stones.

Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy stated that the restoration reflects Egypt's commitment to preserving its cultural heritage according to international scientific standards and described the project as an example of cooperation between Egyptian specialists and foreign missions. He added that the work enhances the archaeological significance of Minya and supports cultural tourism.

Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), added that the project demonstrates the expertise of Egyptian specialists in restoration and documentation. He said the SCA relies on modern scientific methods to conserve large monuments and ensure their preservation.

 

Mohamed Abdel Badei, Head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector, said the statue is one of two known examples located in the northern section of the temple at El-Ashmunein. It depicts Ramesses II seated and reflects the artistic style of the period.

The joint mission has been working at El-Ashmunein since 2023 under the leadership of Bassem Gehad of the SCA and Yvona Trnka of the University of Colorado.

Gehad said the upper section of the statue, measuring about 3.7 metres in height and weighing around 12 tonnes, was found buried beneath later historical layers. The team conducted digital documentation, structural assessments, and stone analysis to confirm that the two sections matched and to stabilise the statue's five-block foundation.

 

After approval from the Permanent Committee for Ancient Egyptian Antiquities, restoration work began in September 2025. The process included dismantling unstable elements, reinforcing and restoring the stone blocks, and reinstalling them in their original position based on technical documentation.

The restored statue marks the return of a major Ramesses II monument to its original setting at El-Ashmunein, one of Upper Egypt's key archaeological sites.

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Northern Cal. Egyptology Lecture Feb. 22: Provenance Research in the Fight Against Looting

The American Research Center in Egypt, Northern California chapter, and the UC Berkeley Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures invite you to attend a Zoom lecture by Sara Aly, Griffith Institute: Provenance Research in the Fight Against Looting Sunday, February 22 2026, 3 PM PST This meeting is virtual, not in-person, and will not be recorded Registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/MvauTi1wT0OHniyDLJXJHw About the Lecture: Since the days when the pharaohs ruled over Egypt, funerary materials have been affected by the greed of people. An enormous amount of wealth was invested in preparations for the afterlife, but often this richness represented by gold and precious minerals in the funerary equipment became the booty of many, rather than the resting place for one. Unfortunately, the scale of destruction due to the ongoing looting is greater today than ever and several illegally sourced artefacts from Egypt constantly appear on the art market. Authorities consistently work to detect these objects by tracing the activity of dealers and galleries, but a lot still needs to be done. Source countries require tougher laws and international legislation needs to become stricter. Moreover, the knowledge of specialists must be employed in a systematic way to assist in the rescue of these objects. Museum curators should implement due diligence, learn about the art market, and understand how to conduct provenance research. This practice helps with the identification of looted artefacts by analysing an object and comparing it with published examples of the same kind, allowing its origins to be identified and some lost archaeological context to be recovered.   About the Speaker: Sara Aly's research focuses on the circulation of illicitly sourced Egyptian artefacts on the art market, following a collaboration that started 6 years ago with the Circulating Artefacts project at the British Museum. Her MA dissertation at the University of Manchester (2023) examined upper coffin fragments appearing on the art market. Since 2023, she has been a member of the Franco-Egyptian Archaeological Mission of Western Thebes, working at the Ramesseum, where she analyses coffin and cartonnage fragments. From 2023 to 2025 she worked as an Art Market Expert at the British Museum helping to identify and recover missing items from the museum's collection. Now based at the Griffith Institute, Sara is studying the archival material of J.J. Clère related to his documentation of Egyptian objects in the possession of antiquities dealers and collectors between the 1930s and the 1980s. How to Register: Register for the lecture by clicking on this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/MvauTi1wT0OHniyDLJXJHw After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the lecture. There are a few things you should know before you join the lecture: * Advance registration is required. When you click on the link to "Register in advance for this lecture" you will receive instructions by email on how and when to join, along with a link on which you will click to join the meeting. Save the email, as you will need the link it contains to join the meeting. Please register now. Please do not share the join link with anyone, it is unique to your email address. Try to join at least 10 minutes before the meeting. When you do join the meeting, be prepared to be put in the waiting room until the lecture starts at 3 pm.  This is a security measure. * If you haven't already installed Zoom, you should download and install the Zoom program (app) well before you try to join the meeting. There IS an option to use your web browser to join the meeting instead of the Zoom program, but the browser interface is limited and depends greatly on what browser and what operating system you're using. * For tutorials on how to use Zoom, go to https://learn-zoom.us/show-me. In particular, "Joining a Zoom Meeting" should show you what you need to do to join our lecture. * All meeting attendees can communicate with everyone, or with individual participants, using the chat window, which can be opened by clicking on the chat button and which you can probably find at the bottom middle of your Zoom viewing screen. Participants will be encouraged to hold their questions for the speaker until after the lecture, and will also be encouraged to address their questions for the speaker to everyone, not just to the speaker, so that all can see them. "Everyone" is the default chat option. If you have any questions, please email glenn@glennmeyer.net or arcencZoom@gmail.com. About Northern California ARCE: For more information, please visit https://www.youtube.com/@NorthernCaliforniaARCE, https://www.facebook.com/NorthernCaliforniaARCE, https://arce-nc.org, https://bsky.app/profile/khentiamentiu.bsky.social, and https://khentiamentiu.org. To join the chapter or renew your membership, please go to https://arce.org/membership/ and select "Berkeley, CA" as your chapter when you sign up.