Stolen sarcophagus lid returned to Egypt from US
An ancient sarcophagus lid, smuggled out of Egypt and put on display at a US museum, has been returned to its home country
READING LEVEL: GREEN
An ancient wooden sarcophagus* lid that was smuggled* out of Egypt and displayed at a US museum has been returned to its home country.
The Egyptian government announced the recovery of the “Green Sarcophagus”, which dates back almost 2700 years, saying it was part of efforts to “protect Egypt’s heritage”.
The sarcophagus lid, which is almost 3m long and 90cm wide, was among 17 artefacts* recently recovered from the US, according to Egypt’s Tourism and Antiquities* Minister Ahmed Issa.
The sarcophagus lid was looted* from the Abusir necropolis*, south of Cairo, then transported to the US in 2008, eventually making its way to the Houston Museum of Natural Science in 2013.
Over the past decade, Egypt has recovered about 29,000 antiquities found to have been taken abroad illegally.
The secretary-general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mostafa Waziri, said the sarcophagus was likely to have belonged to a nobleman*.
He said it dated back to the Late Period of Ancient Egypt, and was named the Green Sarcophagus because of the colour of the face etched on it.
Only the lid was stolen because the whole coffin weighed about 500kg, making it one of the largest wooden sarcophagi from Ancient Egypt, Mr Waziri said.
In addition to the latest recovered artefacts, Egypt has unveiled more than 300 sarcophagi and 150 bronze statuettes* over the past two years, some of them dating back more than 3000 years.
Authorities hope the recovery of such artefacts will help revive* Egypt’s vital tourism sector, which has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic and past unrest.
GLOSSARY
- sarcophagus: a coffin used in ancient times
- smuggled: moved illegally into or out of a country
- artefacts: man-made objects of historical interest or significance
- antiquities: objects from long ago
- looted: stolen
- necropolis: a large cemetery in an ancient city
- nobleman: a man who comes from a family of high social rank, usually with lots of money and/or power
- statuettes: small statues
- revive: restore to life, or give new strength or energy to
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QUICK QUIZ
- Why is the sarcophagus known as the Green Sarcophagus?
- When was it smuggled out of Egypt?
- Which US museum put the sarcophagus lid on display?
- Why was only the sarcophagus lid stolen?
- How many antiquities has Egypt recovered in the past decade?
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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Find out more
What do you know about Ancient Egyptian burial customs? Use your research skills to write a list of five of the most interesting facts that you can find.
Time: allow 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, History
2. Extension
Do you think other museums around the world should return all items that were taken from other countries? Write arguments FOR and AGAINST this question.
Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, History
VCOP ACTIVITY
Creative vocabulary
Find a bland sentence from the article to up-level. Can you add more detail and description? Can you replace any “said” words with more specific synonyms?
Have you outdone yourself and used some really great vocabulary throughout your writing? Firstly, well done. Secondly, let’s ensure everyone can understand it by adding a glossary of terms. Pick three of your wow words and create a glossary for each word to explain what it means.