The authorities went quickly but not enough. The stolen gold bracelet at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo on September 9, 2025 was melted, according to a press release from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. Four suspects were arrested and confessed.
The theft dates from the preparation of the exhibition “Treasures des Pharaoles” planned in Rome in October: a restaurateur stole the gold bracelet in the catering laboratory. She then gave it to a goldsmithery store in the Sayyeda Zainab district, which sold it for 3,200 euros to the owner of a jewelry workshop. He then sold it for 3,400 euros to a worker from another workshop. The 600 grams of gold were melted with other jewelry before the authorities’ intervention.
This jewel, composed of a gold strapping decorated with a pearl of Lapis-Lazuli, had been discovered in 1940 by French archaeologists Pierre Montet and Georges Goyon during the excavation of the tomb of Amenemopé, in the royal necropolis of Tanis. The pharaoh, which reigned between 993 and 984 BC. AD under the XXI dynasty, was buried alongside two other tombs containing a total of 2,500 artefacts. The bracelet was one of the 170,000 objects preserved by the Egyptian Cairo Museum, founded in 1858.
The flight has caused indignation in Egypt, where ancient heritage benefits from a strong symbolic value. The Egyptian archaeologist and activist for the return of the Egyptian heritage Monica Hanna called to temporarily suspend exhibitions abroad in order to strengthen security measures. Lawyer Malek Adly believes that the case must serve as a warning as to the need to improve the protection of the collections. Hussein Abdel Bassir, director of the Museum of Antiquities of the Alexandria Library, shares this position. Some specialists also highlight the precariousness of restaurateurs working conditions, the main suspect having mentioned financial difficulties.
In its press release, the ministry recognized the absence of surveillance cameras in the laboratory and announced an upcoming strengthening of security, without further details. An inventory of objects present in the workshop is underway. The investigation continues: the restaurateur and the owner of the goldsmith’s store are in pre -trial detention, while the other two suspects were released on deposit.
This recalls the disappearance in 1977 of the table Vase and flowers From Vincent Van Gogh to the Mahmoud Khalil museum, found and then stolen in 2010 again. He is still not reappeared.
