The stunning Abu Simbel (FILE PHOTO)
Wed 11 January 2023:
Three people have been detained by Egyptian officials for attempting to steal a 10-ton monument of Ramses II that has stood for millennia.
The suspects were caught using manual digging tools and a crane at a quarry south of the city of Aswan, the Egyptian Public Prosecution reported on Facebook on Tuesday.
They are suspected of planning to lift the colossus out of the ground and to “excavate antiquities in the area”, the prosecutor’s office said, adding that it had “ordered three defendants be held in custody for four days pending investigations” and asked the police to “quickly investigate others who were involved … in the crime”.
The Antiquities Authority in Aswan has proven the “antiquity [of the statue] and attributed it to Ramses II, with a weight of approximately 10 tonnes”, the statement added.
Investigation into the suspects’ cell phones showed that they had exchanged videos via social messaging applications showing excavating operations and of what appeared to be ancient statues.
LOOTED ANCIENT EGYPTIAN ‘GREEN COFFIN’ RETURNED TO CAIRO BY US
One of the most well-known pharaohs of the 19th dynasty, Ramses II, ruled for 67 years. He was renowned for being an excellent builder and warrior who oversaw the construction of numerous temples around Egypt.
Numerous artefacts have been stolen from Egypt by both private persons and former foreign colonial powers.
About 29,000 antiques that had been illegally stolen abroad have been returned to the country in the last ten years.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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