Out of Egypt: The Big Six

One of Zahi Hawass’s biggest campaigns as Egypt’s head of antiquities has been to secure the return of many of Egypt’s most prized objects from museums throughout the world—sometimes as a loan but more often as a full return to Egyptian ownership. As Hawass explained to BAR “I’m not against every [Egyptian] artifact in every museum. But anything that I do have evidence that they are stolen from Egypt should be back.” By his count he has had more than 5,000 such artifacts returned to Egypt. Six high-profile objects were still at the center of his efforts when this interview was taped. These antiquities were discovered in Egypt long ago and removed, and Hawass believes they should be returned. The institutions that currently hold them, however, are defending their claims of rightful ownership in the face of mounting media attention.

The Rosetta Stone