Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Egypt

The Ministry of Antiquities is the Egyptian government organization which serves to protect and preserve the heritage and ancient history of Egypt.

It was formed from the Supreme Council of Antiquities in 2011 during the reign of President Hosni Mubarak to deal with the security and theft of Egyptian antiquities.

Grave robbers have been looting ancient Egyptian tombs for centuries. The Ministry of Antiquities works to get the items restored back to Egypt, whenever possible. Over the years, thousands of stolen antiquities have made their way back to Egypt. For instance, in late 2016, the ministry recovered and repatriated two of four Islamic era lamps which had been stolen in 2015. In 2018, a carving in the shape of Osiris which had been hidden in furniture and shipped to Kuwait was repatriated to Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities.

From 2009 – 2014, the ministry worked with the Getty Conservation Institute on the management and conservation of the Tomb of Tutankhamen. (Wikipedia)

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