https://stepfeed.com/more-categories/culture/10-ancient-egyptian-masterpieces-far-rightful-home/
10 ancient Egyptian masterpieces far from their rightful home
Noha Medhat
The
Egyptology community in Egypt and abroad was both shocked and outraged
last year when a British museum sold the 4,500-year-old Sekhemka statue
it had acquired from a Briton who took it during a visit to Egypt in the
1850s.
It is now even more angered as time is running out for someone to buy the precious artifact before its export ban expires and it leaves the U.K. for good.
However, the Sekhemka statue is not the only ancient Egyptian antiquity wrongfully taken or given away, many prominent pieces have been residing away from their rightful homeland for decades.
Despite Egypt’s continued efforts to reclaim many of these masterpieces, the cities that have made them their own landmarks and the museums that profit enormously from displaying them continue to refuse giving them up.
The
iconic 3,300 year old limestone bust of the famous Egyptian queen was
discovered by German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt discovered in 1912
in Egypt’s Amarna and shipped off to Germany. It is now displayed at the
Neues Museum in Berlin.
The former head of Egypt’s Supreme Antiquities Council, Zahi Hawass, repeatedly tried to bring back the bust along with several other pieces in this list but to no avail; he even requested its temporary loan to an Egyptian museum in 2007.
The
famous inscribed stone, which helped decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics,
was discovered by a French soldier during the French expedition to Egypt
and then taken by British troops in 1801. It has been the highlight of
the Egyptian collection at the British Museum since 1802.
The
limestone bust is a rare true portrait of King Khufu’s brother, it was
created by one of the masters of ancient Egyptian art in the Old
Kingdom. Discovered by a U.S. museum expedition in 1925, it is now
displayed at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
The
masterpiece is a famous ceiling sculpture that is considered the only
complete map of the ancient sky; it is an ancient Egyptian
representation of the astrological calendar.
It was removed and taken from the ceiling of the Dendera temple by a French antique dealer in 1821 and is now displayed at the Louvre in Paris.
The
intact and life-size statue of the architect who built the Great
Pyramid of Giza was discovered in 1912 by a German and Austrian
expedition and is now displayed in the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum in
Hildesheim, Germany.
The
23-meter-high 19th dynasty Egyptian obelisk is the centerpiece of the
Place de la Concorde in Paris. Referred to as the “Paris needle,” it was
originally from the Luxor Temple and was gifted to France by Muhammed
Ali Pasha of Egypt in 1826.
The
small colored shrine statue, which depicts the 18th dynasty king and
queen holding hands in a rare portrait, is considered one of the main
highlights of the Louvre’s Egyptian collection.
The 18th dynasty Egyptian obelisk, referred to as “Cleopatra’s needle,” was made for the Pharaoh Thotmes III in 1460 BC.
It was transported to England in 1878 and now resides on the Victoria Embankment near the Golden Jubilee Bridges in London.
The
painted limestone sculpture of a sitting scribe is considered one of
the most significant symbols of ancient Egyptian art. It was discovered
by a French archaeologist in 1850 and is now displayed at the Louvre.
After
the first Egyptian obelisk was erected in Paris, followed by the second
one in London, the United States was determined to get one of its own.
Also referred to as “Cleopatra’s needle,” it is the twin of the London obelisk and was secured in 1879 by then American Consul General in Cairo Elbert E. Farman. It now sits in Central Park in NYC as the city’s oldest artifact.
It is now even more angered as time is running out for someone to buy the precious artifact before its export ban expires and it leaves the U.K. for good.
However, the Sekhemka statue is not the only ancient Egyptian antiquity wrongfully taken or given away, many prominent pieces have been residing away from their rightful homeland for decades.
Despite Egypt’s continued efforts to reclaim many of these masterpieces, the cities that have made them their own landmarks and the museums that profit enormously from displaying them continue to refuse giving them up.
1. Nefertiti’s Bust (Berlin, Germany)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
The former head of Egypt’s Supreme Antiquities Council, Zahi Hawass, repeatedly tried to bring back the bust along with several other pieces in this list but to no avail; he even requested its temporary loan to an Egyptian museum in 2007.
2. The Rosetta Stone (London, UK)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
3. The Ankhhaf Bust (Boston, US)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
4. The Dendera Zodiac Ceiling (Paris, France)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
It was removed and taken from the ceiling of the Dendera temple by a French antique dealer in 1821 and is now displayed at the Louvre in Paris.
5. The Statue of Hemiunu (Hildesheim, Germany)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
6. The Luxor Obelisk (Paris, France)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
7. The Akhenaten and Nefertiti shrine statue (Paris, France)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
8. The London Needle (London, UK)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
It was transported to England in 1878 and now resides on the Victoria Embankment near the Golden Jubilee Bridges in London.
9. The Seated Scribe Statue (Paris, France)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
10. The New York Needle (New York City, US)
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
Also referred to as “Cleopatra’s needle,” it is the twin of the London obelisk and was secured in 1879 by then American Consul General in Cairo Elbert E. Farman. It now sits in Central Park in NYC as the city’s oldest artifact.
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