Looting of antiquities in Egypt

In recent years, we have been made aware of the widespread looting in war zones, especially in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq. However, looting in other countries has not subsided either, and Egypt is no exception.

The Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities started with the good news that they were working on inventorying some 5,000 artifacts from their Alexandria seaside warehouses. Until now, countless antiquities were stored in Egyptian warehouses, but the artifacts were never studied or documented. What a shame! How on earth can they keep track of what they have and what is being stolen or displaced?

[A fragment of an ancient Egyptian artifact is displayed at the opening of the Repatriated Objects exhibition at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt, January 14, 2016. (photo by REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih)]

The problem is familiar, for the Archaeological Museum of Cairo started with the inspection and sorting of their basement not so long ago! Incredible but true. Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities has revealed that there are no less than 72 archaeological warehouses, 35 of which belong to a museum, 20 are labeled as expedition warehouses, and another 17 are small on-site warehouses spread all over the country. So far, only 14 of these warehouses have been “inspected” – whatever that means.

It seems that a mere fraction of Egypt’s antiquities made it to a museum; all the other treasures resulting from decennia of excavations have simply been stored awaiting registration and restoration. Some speak of hundreds of thousands of neglected artifacts about which nothing is known and are making an easy target for thieves. This means there is much more to see and learn from these artifacts than in any museum. Who knows, some Alexander statue or cartouche may still be hidden somewhere?

Of course, these warehouses are guarded, but these people are unarmed, and often they cannot prevent theft. How authorities can still establish how many artifacts are being stolen from different locations is quite remarkable. The following is only a short list:

On September 12, 2013, 238 items were stolen from the Mit Rahina at Giza

On December 31, 2013, 96 small and rare antiquities disappeared from Aswan

On May 27, 2015, three fake lanterns replaced the originals that were removed from Old Cairo

On December 23, 2015, nine antiquities from the Pharaonic era disappeared from Buto

On February 11, 2016, 157 artifacts from the Saqqara era were stolen in Giza.

On April 30, 2016, a statue from the Middle Kingdom was replaced by a fake one at Mit Rahina in Giza

Decent security with modern means like camera surveillance must be implemented, especially when you realize that some of these warehouses have never been inspected. So it is no surprise to see treasures disappear to the black market. It is no news that when artifacts are documented in international libraries, it becomes much easier to recover them. 

One of the main problems, however, is the limited financial resources of the responsible ministries, and the decline in tourism combined with the difficult economic situation is not helping either.