Egyptian Antiquities Minister Mamdouh El Damaty announced Friday that the ministry was working to bring back eight artifacts from Switzerland.
The artifacts, which were illegally smuggled out of the country, date back to ancient Egyptian civilization and have been seized by Swiss authorities.
El Damaty explained that the latest efforts to bring back the smuggled artifacts were part of the ministry's plan to bring back as many smuggled artifacts as possible.
Ali Ahmed, the general manager of the Repatriated Antiquities department at the Ministry, said that the department was monitoring auction halls and antiquities trading sites all over the world to uncover stolen relics. He pledged to "restore as many objects as possible to keep and protect the Egyptian heritage."
Ahmed explained that Egyptian authorities were sent pictures of some of the missing relics and following an investigation, the department concluded that one of artifacts photographed was stolen from the Temple of Behbit Al Hegara. The artifact is a block of granite dating back to the Ptolemaic era, depicting a Pharaoh giving offerings to a deity.
Ahmed also stated that this piece is registered in the Egyptian antiquities registry and thus, supporting the ministry's attempts to bring it back.
Furthermore, Ahmed explained that the remaining pieces, which are a limestone funerary panel that dates back to the Late Period, a Pre-Dynastic pot, an old Kingdom stone block, a female wooden statue that dates back to the 6th Dynasty, a Greek statue and two coffins also from Greek Era, were stolen as a result of numerous illegal digging works.
