The stone fragment was imported to Switzerland after stays in other countries. Photo: EFE.
Swiss government authorities have returned a stolen fragment of a 3,400-year-old stone statue of Pharaoh Ramses II to Egypt.
According to a statement from the Swiss Ministry of Culture The fragment is part of a group of sculptures depicting the pharaoh seated next to ancient Egyptian gods and was looted from the temple complex of Ramses II in the holy city of Abydos in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The company said the stone fragment was imported into Switzerland after a stay in other countries and recovered as part of criminal proceedings in the canton of Geneva.
The return underlines “the joint commitment of Switzerland and Egypt in the fight against the illegal trade in cultural heritage, which was strengthened by a bilateral agreement on the import and return of cultural heritage in 2011.”
The Swiss ministry announced that the import, export and sale of a stolen or looted cultural property is a violation of the Transfer of Cultural Property Act (LTBC).
Both nations are signatories to the 1970 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Convention on the Prohibition and Prevention of the Illegal Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property.
Ramses II was one of the greatest and most powerful leaders of the New Kingdom of Egypt and scholars place it between 1303 and 1213 BC. at least 90 years old.
(Taken from Telesur)