Cairo: The Egyptian Embassy in the Hague has received a granodiorite statue head that had been illegally smuggled out of the country.

According to State Information Service Egypt, the Egyptian ambassador to the Netherlands and the Dutch Minister of Education, Culture, and Science signed the handover document during a ceremony attended by high-ranking Dutch officials and the Spanish Ambassador to the Netherlands, who represented her government in a recognition of the international cooperation that supported the recovery process.

Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathy stated that the recovery of this ancient piece is a "fruit of constructive cooperation" between Egypt and the Netherlands, highlighting Egypt's commitment to international agreements aimed at protecting cultural heritage and combating the illicit trafficking of antiquities. He also noted the crucial role of the Spanish Police in uncovering the falsification of the artifact's ownership documents.

General Supervisor of the Antiquities Repatriation Department at the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities Shaaban Abdel-Gawad mentioned that the recovered artifact, likely dating back to the New Kingdom during the reign of King Thutmose III, was first identified in 2022 while on display at the TEFAF Maastricht fair in the Netherlands. Dutch authorities seized the piece and initiated legal proceedings after investigating its record of ownership.

The decision to return the artifact was communicated by Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof to President Abdel Fattah El Sisi during the official opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) in November.