A 3,000-YEAR-OLD gold bracelet from the reign of Pharaoh Amenemope has been stolen from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and subsequently melted down for scrap, authorities confirmed, in a theft that has stunned Egypt’s antiquities community just weeks ahead of a major international exhibition.
The artefact, described as scientifically significant, was a gold band adorned with lapis lazuli beads and dated back to Egypt’s 21st Dynasty (1070–945 BC). It vanished earlier this month from a locked metal safe in the museum’s conservation laboratory, shortly before it was due to be loaned to Italy for the ‘Treasures of the Pharaohs’ exhibition in Rome.
According to Egypt’s Ministry of the Interior, investigations led to the arrest of a museum restoration specialist and three alleged accomplices, including a silver trader and a gold dealer.
“The bracelet was stolen on 9 September while the restoration specialist was on duty,” AFP cited police saying in a statement.
The bracelet was reportedly sold to a gold dealer for 180,000 Egyptian pounds (about US$3,735), and later resold to a worker at a gold foundry for 194,000 pounds (around US$4,025). Authorities said it was then melted down and mixed with other scrap gold.
All suspects are now in custody and have reportedly confessed to the crime. Security camera footage released by authorities shows what appears to be a bracelet being handed over in exchange for cash before being cut in two. However, the item in the footage appears to lack the distinctive lapis lazuli inlays seen in official museum photographs.
The artefact had been discovered during excavations in Tanis in the eastern Nile Delta, in the tomb of King Psusennes I, where Amenemope had been reburied after his original resting place was looted.
“It’s not the most beautiful, but scientifically it’s one of the most interesting,” said Jean Guillaume Olette-Pelletier, an Egyptologist who has worked at the Tanis site.
He explained that while the design was relatively simple, the bracelet was made from a high-quality gold alloy crafted to resist deformation. In ancient Egyptian belief, gold symbolised the “flesh of the gods”, while lapis lazuli — imported from present-day Afghanistan — represented divine hair.
The theft has reignited concerns over the security of Egypt’s cultural heritage, particularly in light of previous high-profile incidents.
One of the most notorious cases was the theft of Vincent van Gogh’s *Poppy Flowers* from a Cairo museum, first stolen in 1977, recovered a decade later, and stolen again in 2010. It remains missing.
Last month, an Egyptian national was sentenced in the United States for attempting to smuggle nearly 600 looted artefacts onto the international market.
Following Egypt’s 2011 revolution, the country saw a wave of looting at archaeological sites and museums amid the political unrest. Many of the stolen objects have since resurfaced in private collections and auction houses abroad.
The latest incident comes as Egypt prepares for the long-awaited opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum on 1 November, a sprawling modern facility near the Giza Pyramids intended to showcase the nation’s most treasured antiquities and mark a new chapter in cultural preservation. - September 19, 2025
