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Negotiations for the repatriation of Nefertiti


In 1913, as a result of a mistake made by both the representative of the Antiquities Service and Professor Borchardt, director of the German Archaeological Institute, the head of Queen Nefertiti was sent to Berlin following the excavation discoveries at Amarna. When Egypt realised the value of the statue and the circumstances in which it was seized by Germany a few decades later, there was an uproar in 1923 over export conditions, which largely prevented renewed German excavations until 1929. The Egyptian Antiquities Authority made a new application for an excavation licence in 1925, deeming it expedient to demand the return of the head as a condition before any further excavations were allowed. From the initial negotiations and attempts to retrieve the bust of Queen Nefertiti, the German government replied that it did not agree with the Egyptian government, claiming that the licence was valid, and that in 1911 Dr. James Simon, through Mr. Borchardt, participated in the discovery and then donated the bust to the Berlin Museum. Since then, the Egyptian government has been negotiating and


In 1913, as a result of a mistake made by both the representative of the Antiquities Service and Professor Borchardt, director of the German Archaeological Institute, the head of Queen Nefertiti was sent to Berlin following the excavation discoveries at Amarna. When Egypt realised the value of the statue and the circumstances in which it was seized by Germany a few decades later, there was an uproar in 1923 over export conditions, which largely prevented renewed German excavations until 1929. The Egyptian Antiquities Authority made a new application for an excavation licence in 1925, deeming it expedient to demand the return of the head as a condition before any further excavations were allowed. From the initial negotiations and attempts to retrieve the bust of Queen Nefertiti, the German government replied that it did not agree with the Egyptian government, claiming that the licence was valid, and that in 1911 Dr. James Simon, through Mr. Borchardt, participated in the discovery and then donated the bust to the Berlin Museum. Since then, the Egyptian government has been negotiating and

Figure.16: The previous caricature on the left was inspired by the 1929 visit of king Fuad to Germany, during which the king requested that the bust be returned to Egypt. However, the German public opinion saw it as an opportunity to humiliate one of Britain’s former colonies that still has formidable ties to the empire. The request was denied afterwards in 1934 by Hitler himself saying that the queen will stay prisoner in Germany, which shows that the whole situation is just another card to inflict pain on the affiliation of the Egyptian kingdom with its former colonisers. Cited from: Donald M. Reid, Contesting Antiquity in Egypt: Archaeologies, Museums, and the Struggle for Identities from World War I to Nasser (2019)


Figure.16: The previous caricature on the left was inspired by the 1929 visit of king Fuad to Germany, during which the king requested that the bust be returned to Egypt. However, the German public opinion saw it as an opportunity to humiliate one of Britain’s former colonies that still has formidable ties to the empire. The request was denied afterwards in 1934 by Hitler himself saying that the queen will stay prisoner in Germany, which shows that the whole situation is just another card to inflict pain on the affiliation of the Egyptian kingdom with its former colonisers. Cited from: Donald M. Reid, Contesting Antiquity in Egypt: Archaeologies, Museums, and the Struggle for Identities from World War I to Nasser (2019)

The year 1930 witnessed the case of returning the bust of Nefertiti in German and Egyptian newspapers, and the confirmation of the return of the statue in the newspapers.[1] German newspapers reported the continuation of the ongoing negotiations between the Egyptian Antiquities Authority and antiquities men in Germany to return the statue of Queen Nefertiti's head and replace it with other Egyptian antiquities. One of the most important messages related to the newspapers was when Vinassa, Head of the Bern School of Fine Arts, sent a letter dated April 1930 to Hermann Ruffenacht, Swiss Minister Plenipotentiary in Berlin, claiming that after German newspapers reported that the bust of Nefertiti was to be returned to Cairo and exchanged with two other statues, she wanted to arrange a short exhibition in Bern so that Europeans could view it before its return to Cairo.


The year 1930 witnessed the case of returning the bust of Nefertiti in German and Egyptian newspapers, and the confirmation of the return of the statue in the newspapers.[1] German newspapers reported the continuation of the ongoing negotiations between the Egyptian Antiquities Authority and antiquities men in Germany to return the statue of Queen Nefertiti's head and replace it with other Egyptian antiquities. One of the most important messages related to the newspapers was when Vinassa, Head of the Bern School of Fine Arts, sent a letter dated April 1930 to Hermann Ruffenacht, Swiss Minister Plenipotentiary in Berlin, claiming that after German newspapers reported that the bust of Nefertiti was to be returned to Cairo and exchanged with two other statues, she wanted to arrange a short exhibition in Bern so that Europeans could view it before its return to Cairo.

Figure.17:King Fuad I of Egypt with German President Paul von Hindenburg in a dining hall, Berlin, 10 June 1929. Retrieved from Great Egypt, https://www.greategypt.org/search/label/Royalty

Once in power, Hitler declared that the Nefertiti statue would never return to Egypt because it was said that he "was in love with it", which is why this Egyptian masterpiece was still in German hands when the Allied armies entered Germany. The bust of Nefertiti was a cultural treasure robbed of Egypt and its rights for its return are indisputable, especially when negotiations with Egypt were on the verge of success after the visit of the late King Fuad I to Berlin in 1929.When Hitler wanted to turn Berlin into Germania, he envisioned a museum starring Nefertiti alone under a central dome, raising the moral issue of holding Nefertiti under Nazi rule, which is the main reason why it was not returned at that time.

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