A 3,400-year-old statue of King Ramses II, stolen from the Ramses II temple in Abydos, has been returned to Egypt after being smuggled out of the country more than three decades ago
The statue is now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo but not yet on display, it will be restored by the antiquities ministry
The artefact was spotted for sale in London in 2013, and after moving through several countries, was handed over by Switzerland to the Egyptian embassy in Bern and brought back to Egypt recently
King Ramses II, also known as Ramses the Great, was one of ancient Egypt’s most powerful pharaohs and ruled from 1279 to 1213 BC. The black granite head is part of a group of statues depicting him seated alongside Egyptian deities.
