Egyptian Art Ravaged

Back in 2011, the political and civil unrest in Egypt led to the destruction and theft of numerous artworks (reported here).

With the continuing turmoil over there, it appears that the same thing is happening once more. Russia Today reports:

As Egypt plunges deeper into the political turmoil, looters take advantage of the situation – and the latest robbery of the Malawi Museum in the city of Minya, 300km from Cairo, has been the biggest of its kind in the Egyptians’ living memory.  

Looters got away with more than 1,000 objects, including a prized 3,500-year-old limestone statue, ancient beaded jewelry, gold and bronze Greco-Roman coins, pottery and bronze-detailed sculptures of animals sacred to Thoth, one of the ancient Egyptian deities represented with the head of an ibis. 

The building was initially vandalized last Wednesday, with looting and burning going on for almost a week now. Local teenagers burned and destroyed mummies and other objects of art which were too heavy for robbers to carry.  

This is reportedly the biggest museum theft in Egyptian history. It is terrible to hear, yet again, about the destruction of these invaluable artworks.

Source: Russia Today, 20 August 2013