In a recent New York Times science article the Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme council of Antiquities Zahi Hawass calls for the return of the Rosetta Stone, the bust ofNefertiti and other artifacts in the possession of European and American art museums. Egypt, Italy, and Turkey have demanded the return of ancient art objects as part of their cultural and national heritage.

Several museums the Louvre and Metropolitan have returned some of their objects. James Cuno the director of the Art Institute of Chicago doesn’t agree. He believes that museums who legitimately acquired these objects years ago should keep them. The modern governments of Italy and Egypt didn’t exist 300 years ago and certainly not 2000 years ago. Cuno in his book Who Owns Antiquities advocates the return of the concept of partage where archaeologists give some of their finds to the host countries and get to take some back home to their museums.

You have probably seen Zahi Hawass on many of the History Channel and Discovery Channel programs about Egypt. He’s a bright educated guy. 

Interestingly enough when I was doing research on the Tomb of Alexander the Great fiasco in the mid 90’s Hawass sang a different tune. He then said that it was fine that Western museums kept Egyptian art as ambassadors to the world. After all he said that Egypt barely had the resources to store and exhibits all the artifacts they have as it is.

How many artifacts does Egypt need? They already have the Pyramids, the entire treasure from Tutankhamen’s tomb, the many tombs in the Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Karnak, and the Sphinx.

How far do countries have to go to return antiquities to the countries of origin? Should Sicily have to return their Greek temples to the land where the culture came from? Does Libya have to return their Roman temples to Italy? The next thing you know Greece will demand the return of the Elgin Marbles.