New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art Returns Artifact to Egypt

Officials at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art returned an artifact to the Egyptian government on Thursday. The red granite fragment was on loan to the museum from an unnamed private owner. As museum staff inspected the artifact, which has never been displayed on the premises, they realized that the fragment was the corner of the base of a shrine enclosure meant to contain the statue of a deity. The shrine was dedicated to Amun, the chief deity of Karnak (Ipet-Isut), by Amenemhat I.

Dorothea Arnold, the Chairman of the Museum's Egyptian Art Department recognized the piece, "For a long time, I puzzled about the object to which this fragment belonged. I finally pieced it together when I came across a photograph showing the Naos in Karnak which is missing a corner in an article by Luc Gabolde in the journal Egypt Afrique et Orient ... We decided that, in these circumstances, the appropriate thing to do was to alert the Egyptian authorities and to make arrangements with the owner so that we could return the fragment to Egypt." The MET purchased the granite block, which was acquired last October on the antiquities market, in order to repatriate it.

This was not the first time that the MET returned "ill-gotten" objects to Egypt. 8 years ago the museum returned a 19th dynasty relief displaying the head of a goddess. The item was recognized by a Dutch Egyptologist, who had studied a chapel dedicated to Seti I at Memphis (originally Men-Nefer). Similar to the latest repatriated relief, the Seti I relief was purchased by the museum to facilitate its return.

Most media outlets hailed the relief's return as a victory for Zahi Hawass, the very visible head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities. Hawass has lead a public battle to return many of Egypt's most noted artifacts on foreign soil, including the Rosetta Stone (British Museum) and the disputed bust of Queen Nefertiti (Neues Museum in Berlin). After refusing to return a golden burial mask of a noblewoman, Hawass cut ties with the Saint Louis Art Museum. He next lobbied France's Louvre to return 5 painted wall fragments. The Louve relented after Hawass cut ties with the museum by halting their excavations and cancelling a lecture by a former staff member. Hawass has still remained "chilly" to France's Minister of Culture after the return of the items.

Regular readers of The Udjat should know that I am certainly no fan of Zahi Hawass (read one of my posts on the topic here). He has worked diligently to deny the African origins of the Ancient Egyptians. I am also routinely annoyed by his obligatory inclusion in virtually any documentary by the History Channel on Kemet. He very seldom adds anything of value to the discussions. I must give Hawass credit, however, for his dogged commitment to the return of Egypt's ancient artifacts. I regularly ask who "owns" the artifacts and legacy of Kemet. While I don't think that the region's current Arabic inhabitants are this lofty civilization's heir, I do think that the wholesale rape of these historic treasures by foreign nations is a great tragedy. Our current fixation is on a slab of red granite from an important shrine. I'd like to know when we'll begin to discuss the "ownership" of mummies by these same museums. After all, these are actually human bodies; individuals who never thought they would ever be removed from their resting places. How would you feel if the body of a cherished uncle, or ever a grandparent was exhumed for public display. Do you think the Vatican (or any other Christian country) would allow the exhumation of the body of an early Pope? What's the difference? Who speak for Ancient Africans? Currently ... no one.

Okay. I think you've heard enough of my ranting. I'm sure you're probably thinking that without all of these artifacts in a variety of countries around the world, we would know much less about the early civilization that paved our way. That's probably true. However, I think I really want to hear much more honest public discourse about these facts. Public discourse which includes the descendants of these wonderful forbearers. Even though they are now among the most downtrodden inhabitants of the planet. Up you might race, you can accomplish what you will! Shem em Hetep (Go forth in peace)!

Related Articles:
LA Times - http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/10/monster-mash-13.html
NY Times - http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/10/27/world/AP-ML-Egypt-Met.html
MET Press Release (Dorthea Arnold Quotation)- http://www.metmuseum.org/press_room/full_release.asp?prid={768AF8B3-20A5-4EB6-820F-2DECCBC8854D}
Fragment Photo Credit - Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities/Associated Press

Obama: Ancient Egyptian Glyph "Looks Like Me"

During his recent visit to Egypt, President Barack Obama toured the Pyramids and the Tomb of Qar with Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, Zahi Hawass. Obama is seeking to repair the United States' relationship with Muslims worldwide after decades of policies bolstering the state of Israel and two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In a genuinely unscripted moment in the tomb, Obama astutely noticed the Metu Neter glyph, "hr", which means "face". Most media outlets covered the humorous moment as Obama exclaimed "That looks like me! Look at those ears!" However the outlets have not explored the fact that the Ancient Egyptians chose to represent such a fundamental word with an image of a man with very clear African features.

Just last year when Nfr-Ka Ma'at and I travelled to Egypt, one of our older students noticed the glyph and commented on its appearance. "Why would they make the face so African if they weren't actually reflecting on themselves?" I wonder if Obama would have made his comment if the glyph was clearly a European with protruding ears? Can you imagine what Hawass must have been thinking? You can't tell me he hasn't already pondered this. In response to African American protesters calling for acknowledgement that the Black African heritage of the Pharaoh Tutankhamun in 2007, Hawass stated "Tutankhamun was not [B]lack, and the portrayal of ancient Egyptian civilisation as black has no element of truth to it." To make his comments even more confusing, Hawass continued, "Egyptians are not Arabs and are not Africans despite the fact that Egypt is in Africa." I'm quite sure Hawass was both surprised and disquieted by Obama's impromptu response to seeing his image ... our image ... etched in stone for all to remember.

Take a look at a picture of the glyph for yourself at the far right. Note the image's broad nose, wide lips and even what seems to be rows of tightly curled locks! Who were the Ancient Egyptians? Why do you continue to ask this question? Our ancestors knew we would have been forced into lands, that we would have been forced not to speak our names. They etched our images in stone for eternity. Shem em Hetep (Go Forth in Peace)!

ARTICLES ON OBAMA'S COMMENTS ON THE KEMETIC GLYPH FOR FACE:

CBS News - http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/06/04/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry5062724.shtml

MSNBC - http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/06/04/1953704.aspx

ARTICLE ON HAWASS RESPONDING TO AFRICAN AMERICAN PROTESTERS AT HIS SPEECH ON TUTANKHAMUN:

Independent Online (Quote taken from this article)- http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=31&art_id=nw20070925175335472C333850

Who Owns Ancient Egypt's Magnificent Artifacts?

This past April 454 ancient artifacts were returned to Egypt from the United Kingdom's Myers Museum. The items included ancient bronze coins and pottery which were probably smuggled from Egypt between 1972 and 1988; after the 1970 banning of the trafficking of antiquities by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

A specific listing of the items were announced by Hussein Al-Afuni, the Director of the Egypt's Red Sea antiquities department; they included 12 bronze coins, 4 scarabs, 94 beaded necklaces, 99 fragments of pottery with colored drawings, and 109 funerary figures. While 5,000 artifacts have been returned to Egypt through the UNESCO program since 2002, the trafficking of Ancient Egyptian artifacts continues to be a major concern. In December of 2008, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement returned 79 artifacts to the Ma'adi Museum in Cairo. The artifacts were among 370 items which were stolen from the museum in 2002 and ended up on the private antiquities market. With all of the articles that have been returned to Egypt, there are probably tens of thousands of items in museums, on public display, and in private collections.

As a native New Yorker, I think of all the items in our city alone. The collections of the Brooklyn Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET) are among the best in the world. In fact, a large section of the Temple of Dendur was meticulously dismantled block by block and shipped to The MET to be situated in the middle of an indoor moat in their Sackler Wing. While the temple was legally given to The MET, many other antiquities were presented as gifts during foreign/colonial rule or simply smuggled. Consider that the most ubiquitous architectural monument of Ancient Egyptian art, the tekhen (known by the Greek name obelisk), is actually more prevalent outside of Egypt. While there are 29 known tekhenui (plural of tekhen), 20 of them have been shipped to many major cities around the world including London, New York, and Paris.

The Egyptian government's continuing demand for the return of many Kemetic artifacts leads us to one very important question; "Who owns the magnificent artifacts of Ancient Egypt?" Initially this question might seem rudimentary. Ancient Egyptian artifacts must belong to the people of Egypt ... right? Well what if we focused on the fact that the current government of Egypt is primarily comprised of individuals most would consider "Arabic" who entered the country during the Arab and Turkish invasions. Ethnically, these people are probably quite dissimilar to the indigenous Africans who peopled Kemet (Ancient Egypt) during the time of dynastic Egypt. After the decline of the Ancient Egyptian Empire, it was conquered by the Persians, Greeks, Romans and others.

Some of our readers probably think that linking the current Egyptian regime to foreign invasions is unfair. After all, we must acknowledge that while the majority of Egypt's current occupants are not indigenous to the nation, they are certainly not "colonial" rulers. They live in Egypt and view themselves as Egyptian. I recall having conversations with Egyptian friends during my trips about their ethnicity. In the United States, we would certainly call them "Arabs", but they always state that they are not Arabs, they are Egyptians. Their national identity tends to be very different than other nations bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Identity politics and self-determination are complex matters. They make this debate even more challenging.

While most would probably agree that most of Egypt's antiquities should probably remain on Egyptian soil, our question is really about the cultural and ethnic legacy of Ancient Egypt. Are these artifacts the birthright of Egypt's current Arab occupants, the much maligned Nubians, other indigenous Africans, the countries who currently own them, Diasporan Africans, or others? Be sure to watch the video of Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, attached to this post. Regular readers of The Udjat are aware that I am certainly not a fan of Hawass, but he does discuss (overtly and subtlety) some of the major issues in this debate. My personal belief is that these cultural prizes are the particular birthright of indigenous Africans and their relatives in the African Diaspora, but that they are also shared by all of humanity. Do you agree? What do you think? Please weigh in and let's get a dialogue going! Shem em Hetep (Go Forth in Peace)!

ARTICLES ON RETURN OF EGYPTIAN ANTIQUITIES FROM MYERS MUSEUM:

Al-Ahram Weekly - http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2009/946/eg3.htm

Bloomberg Online - http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aTp8L4YyrY6I&refer=muse

Survey Results - GlowDay.com

Statues of Amenhotep III Discovered

Recently the Egyptian government announced the discovery of two large statues of 18th century Nsw-Biti (Pharoah) Amenhotep III. Amenhotep III ruled Kemet nearly 3,400 years ago—during what could be considered the nation's political, economic, and artistic zenith. The statues are described as a large seated carving in black granite and a image of the king in the form of a sphinx (Heru em Ankhet). Amenhotep III was arguably one of the most important rulers of Ancient Egypt.

As the 9th King of the 18th dynasty, Amenhotep III and his wife Queen Tiye, fathered heretic king Ankhenaten and possibly also the Pharaoh Tutankhamen. Many famous statues Amenhotep III are still in existence including the massive dual statues erroneously known as the Colossi of Memnon and several statues found buried in a ceremonial pit at the Temple of Luxor.

I believe the most notable point in this discovery is the undeniable African heritage of Amenhotep III. The Pharaoh's visage very recognizable due to his pronounced African features and pursed lips. Clearly the creators of the "Arabic-looking" Tutankhamun model wouldn't want us to make this connection: Amenhotep III is either the father or grandfather of the boy king. Zahi Hawass are you out there?

Seems to me Amenhotep III is important for many reasons, both historical and contemporary. Perhaps this archaeological find leaves us with at least one fundamental lesson here: the truth is always beneath just a few layers of sand. I don't know about you, but I'm absolutely excited about what we'll find! Shem em Hetep!

Cleopatra’s tomb: Found at last?....So What!

Zahi Hawass is obsessed with finding Cleopatra’s tomb. She wasn’t even a queen during the time of the true Ancient Kemetic Dynasties. She is most likely part Ptomlemy, which means she is related to those conquered Ancient Kemet. All of this attention is being used to distract us from the fact that Ancient Kemet was ruled by Africans. Zahi’s goal is to continue the myth that Kemet was ruled by Europeans. Not even his own people (Arabs)! Talk about love for the conqueror. In his article, he associates Cleopatra with the “Egyptian Goddess, Isis”. When will we stop honoring the conqueror, Isis is the greek name for Ast, Osiris is the greek name for Ausar. As a linguist, I am deeply offended by those who use misnomers. And people, please stop using the term “cartouche” as Zahi continues to do. The term “cartouche” is a French term referring to the bullet cartridge of a gun. To the French, the Kemetic name holder resembled the cartridge. The Ancient Kemites referred to the name holder as “Shen”. It is a symbol of eternal life, not a symbol of death! It was used in ancient writings (known as Metu Neter- divine utterances, not “hieroglyphs”) to declare that your name will live on into eternity. We need to recognize the Ancient Kemites for who they were-- African people with African names. The Greeks destroyed monuments and created false images of their own. Let the Greeks honor their own people. Cleopatra is irrelevant to the history of the ancients. She is a biracial invader. The only thing that makes her famous is her complexion. It allows Europeans to continue to claim our heritage. Come on Zahi…let’s dig a little deeper and further back into the real history!

Articles on Cleopatra tomb:

Dispatch Online Article
http://www.dispatch.co.za/article.aspx?id=310728

San Francisco Chronicle Article
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/22/MNPH175IVL.DTL

Time Article
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1893329,00.html (make sure to click on pictures of Cleopatra through the Ages)