Lebanon formally transferred 37 artefacts of ancient Egyptian origin to Egypt during an official ceremony held at the National Museum of Beirut on Wednesday. The handover marked the conclusion of a multi-year process involving international cooperation and verification efforts.
The items had been intercepted at the Port of Beirut in 2020 following their illegal removal from Egypt approximately six years prior to their seizure. Lebanon’s authorities spent considerable time working with INTERPOL, Egyptian officials, and the country’s chief public prosecutor to authenticate the collection and confirm its rightful ownership before authorizing the transfer.
The recovered collection comprises a diverse range of objects spanning pharaonic periods, including funerary masks, wooden figurines, decorated coffins, Coptic textile fragments, glass paste amulets, and medium-sized statuary. All items were confirmed to have been purchased by a Lebanese national without proper documentation establishing their legitimate provenance.
During the ceremony, Lebanon’s Culture Minister Ghassan Salame emphasized his government’s commitment to enforcing international cultural heritage protection standards. He noted that the repatriation reflected adherence to the 1970 UNESCO convention addressing the illicit trafficking of cultural property. The items were formally presented to Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon Alaa Moussa.
The repatriation reflects broader efforts to combat antiquities trafficking affecting Egypt. Earlier in the month, the FBI Art Crime Team returned 48 artefacts to Cairo, while Egyptian authorities also recovered an ancient golden mummy mask through their embassy in Bern with assistance from Swiss officials.
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