27 Italian, Egyptian artifacts seized from New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art
According to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, dozens of ancient artefacts that investigators think were plundered have been taken from the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Using three search warrants, the agency took 27 items from the Met. They will be sent to their home nations, according to a spokeswoman for District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
"We have two repatriation ceremonies next week, one with Italy and one with Egypt," a spokeswoman for the organization told CNN. "Fifty-eight artefacts will be returned to Italy, including 21 from the Met. Sixteen to Egypt, six from the Metropolitan."
"It should come as no surprise to collectors, art museums, and auction houses that they may be in possession of unlawfully plundered artefacts from recognized traffickers," Bragg said.
The endeavor to restore cultural items to their original nations after they were sold illegally to individual collectors or institutions is continuing.
The Met repatriated three African art pieces to Nigeria in 2021, including a pair of 16th-century Benin brass plaques.