Egypt intends to return its ancient treasures from museums in Europe

Egypt intends to return three "greatest lost treasures" from Western museums — the Rosetta stone, the bust of Nefertiti and the Dendera Zodiac.

Archaeologist, historian and ex-Minister of Antiquities of Egypt Zahi Hawass said that this is being done on the eve of the opening in Cairo of the largest archaeological museum in the world, built at the foot of the pyramids in Giza.

He recalled that most of the ancient valuables in the XIX—XX centuries were illegally exported to Europe by colonialists and ended up in private or public collections.

Thus, Egypt demands the return of the Rosetta stone — a 2,200-year-old basalt slab inscribed with ancient Egyptian symbols. Thanks to her, Jean-Francois Champollion first deciphered the Egyptian text and created the science of Egyptology. Now the plate is in the British Museum.

The second artifact is a bust of Nefertiti, dating from 1340 BC. It is kept in the New Museum in Berlin.

The third exhibit is the Denderian zodiac, considered "the only complete map of the ancient sky", created in 50 BC. It is located in the Louvre in Paris.

According to France24, all three museums deny that they have received official requests for the return of treasures from the Egyptian government.

In November 2022, a Large Egyptian Museum (GEM) is planned to open in Cairo, which will become the largest in the world. More than $1 billion was spent on the construction of the museum, which lasted 15 years.