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Return of Antiquities to Rightful Countries

In July, 1999, Jordan returned to Iraqi authorities more than 1,000 Mesopotamian antiquities seized during a smuggling crackdown (Culture). They included cruciform tablets, statues, incantation bowls, and cylinder seals. An Iraqi archeologist said they filled in gaps in their knowledge of ancient languages and deeds of Mesopotamian monarchs. Also among the returned items was a three-foot-high statue of a Sumerian monarch, but it was impossible to tell which king it depicted because the looters had chopped off its head. The pieces were retrieved by Jordanian police when they stopped a plane about to take off with the stolen antiquities.

Another return by Jordan occurred in August of that year, when they returned to Egypt 28 artifacts seized from thieves at the Red Sea port of Aqaba in April of that year (Culture). Egyptian officials hinted that the smugglers were Egyptians with a history of art smuggling. The pieces were estimated to be worth tens of millions of dollars, and had been looted from Egyptian archeological sites in the spring. The artifacts included the 66 lb head of a statue of the god Serapis, six turquoise and brown magic charms, and 21 shawabtis.

In July of 2004, the Australian Ministry for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs delivered a speech on receiving from Sweden artifacts and ancestral remains so they could be returned to rightful custodians, the Aboriginal people of the Kimberley in Western Australia, Camperdown in Victoria, Urandangle in Queensland, and Bermangul in New South Wales Vanstne).

The ancestral remains had been taken to Sweden by a Swedish anthropologist, Dr Claes Hallgren, who wrote a book in which he described smuggling the remains out of Australia (Vanstone). This book prompted considerable debate in Sweden about the ethics of keeping the remains, and led to their return to their rightful owners. The Kimberley Aboriginal Law and Culture Center accepted respons...

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Return of Antiquities to Rightful Countries. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 18:54, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1705901.html