Egyptian mummy's head found in Kent undergoes CT scan
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The Rosetta Stone is deemed to be one of the most important artefacts in the British Museum, reportedly holding the key to understanding Egyptian hieroglyphs. But the artefact, which has been kept in the British Museum for more than 200 years, may have to be returned to its place of origin. Zahi Hawass, an Egyptian archaeologist who is also the former Egyptian antiquities minister, is spearheading a campaign demanding for it to be rooted out of Britain.
He told The National: “The Rosetta Stone is the icon of Egyptian identity.
“The British Museum has no right to show this artefact to the public.”
Along with the Rosetta Stone, he has also demanded two other items, the Nefertiti Bust held in Berlin, and a sculpted Zodiac ceiling held in the Louvre in Paris, also be returned to Egypt.
He said: “We collected all the evidence that proves that these three items are stolen from Egypt”
The Rosetta Stone was taken by Britain during the Napoleonic Wars after French troops surrendered following a brief occupation of Egypt.
After signing a treaty, the item was handed to Britain, and it has been held British Museum since 1802.
The museum has said there has never been a formal request for the ancient tablet to be returned to Egypt.
But Mr Hawass has been calling for its return to Egypt since 2003.
When he held the position as the Supreme Council of Antiquities, he reportedly told British Museum director Neil MacGregor he would take action against the museum unless the Stone was handed back voluntarily.
Now, he seems as determined as ever to get Egyptian artefacts returned to his country, with the artefact being just one piece of a 10,000 collection of ancient Egyptian treasures being held in the museum.
Mr Hawass said: “If I did not succeed, at least people after me will continue,
“This is a case that you cannot stop.”
He launching a petition “signed by a group of Egyptian intellectuals”, which he is set to start sending to a number of European museums from October.
But Mr Hawass is not the only one making demands of this nature
In fact, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Greece and India have all called for certain artefacts to be returned.
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The Governor of Easter Island has even claimed that “the British people, have our soul” as its Hoa Hakananai’a is still kept in the UK.
Prof Peter Stone, an expert on protecting cultural heritage at Newcastle University, said: “One of the arguments about not returning material was that it might be stolen in the future from the host country. I think that’s now a fairly pale excuse.”
A British Museum spokesperson said: “At the British Museum, visitors can see the Rosetta Stone alongside other pharaonic temple monuments, and also within the broader context of other ancient cultures including their contemporaries such as Rome, Athens and Persia, allowing the public to explore this vast arc of history.
‘As with all of the collection, the Rosetta stone is available to all interested audiences, whether in the galleries or via appointment to support academic research. We also engage widely with people all over the world via our website alongside 3D scans of objects on our Sketch Fab site which includes the Rosetta Stone.”
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