Stolen 3,400 Year-Old Ramses II Statue Returned to Egypt

A 3,400 year-old statue of Pharaoh Ramses II has been returned to the country after being spotted for sale at an exhibition in London in 2013. The exact date of the theft is unknown, but it is estimated that it was smuggled out of the country in the late 1980s or early 1990s.

The statue depicts the head of Ramses II, and is part of a group of statues depicting the Pharaoh seated alongside a number of ancient deities. After being spotted in London, it moved to several other countries before ending up in Switzerland. The statue now resides in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, where it is awaiting restoration before being put on display.

The statue was returned to the Egyptian embassy in Bern in 2023 following coordination with the Swiss authorities to establish its rightful ownership.