Repatriation: Nefertiti again

http://www.drhawass.com/blog/press-release-national-committee-meeting

Press release

The National Committee for the Return of Stolen Artifacts, headed by Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), met yesterday to discuss the procedures needed to make a formal request for the return of the Bust of Nefertiti now on display at the Neues Museum in Berlin.

Hawass announced that a committee will be formed to prepare a legal brief supporting Egypt’s request for the Bust of Nefertiti. The committee will be headed by Ambassador Nabil El-Arabi, former judge at the International Court of Justice.

During yesterday’s meeting, Dr. Hawass made a detailed presentation of the latest developments in this case, including the recent discussion with Dr. Friederike Seyfried, Director of the Aegyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung in Berlin.

Earlier this month Dr. Seyfried met with Dr. Hawass and presented him with copies of all of the key documentation held by the Berlin Museum concerning this iconic piece. This includes the protocol of 20 January, 1913, written by Gustav Lefébvre, the official who signed the division of finds on behalf of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, and excerpts from the diary of Ludwig Borchardt, the excavator of the Bust.

Dr. Hawass also updated the committee on Egypt’s latest efforts to retrieve other artifacts. A number of ministries and government authorities are represented on the National Committee for the Return of Stolen Artifacts