LONDON: Egypt announced on Sunday the reclamation of 13 artifacts that ended up in the UK and Germany as part of Cairo’s efforts to protect Egyptian heritage and combat the illicit trafficking of cultural property. The ministries of foreign affairs and tourism, in coordination with British and German authorities, recovered the artifacts that date back to different eras of ancient Egyptian civilization. The 10 pieces that arrived in the UK include a limestone funeral plaque, a small amulet, a bronze crown fragment, a beaded funeral mask, and several black stone funeral amulets. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the London Metropolitan Police had confiscated the artifacts after verifying their illegal exit from Egypt via an international network specialized in smuggling antiquities. German authorities in the city of Hamburg informed the ministry of their intention to return several artifacts preserved in the city museum after confirming that these items left Egypt illegally. The three pieces include a skull and a hand from a mummy, as well as an amulet that symbolized life in ancient Egyptian civilization. Egyptian authorities continue to recover smuggled artifacts from various countries and combat the trafficking of such items. Last week, they thwarted an attempt to smuggle a shipment containing 2,189 ancient pieces at Nuweiba Port in South Sinai. Courtesy: arabnews