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Egypt Arrests Four After 3,000-Year-Old Pharaoh’s Bracelet Is Stolen and Melted

Officials blame lax procedures at Cairo’s Egyptian Museum.

FILE - Tourists visit the Egyptian museum in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)
FILE - The Egyptian museum in Cairo is illuminated marking the "Launching of the Interactive Mobile Application to Promote Egyptian Antiquities" project in Cairo, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)
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Overview

  • Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy said the bracelet linked to Amenemope was taken from the museum’s restoration lab on Sep. 9.
  • The Interior Ministry reported four arrests, including a restoration specialist, after suspects confessed and the sale proceeds were seized.
  • Authorities say a museum worker passed the piece to a silver shop owner, then a gold workshop, before a worker melted it to make other jewelry, with payments around $3,800–$4,000.
  • Officials said the lab lacked security cameras, prosecutors are continuing the investigation, and Egyptians expressed outrage over the loss.
  • The ministry circulated the bracelet’s image to border antiquities units, formed an inventory committee, and cautioned that viral photos do not show the missing artifact.