U.S. seizes 14 ancient Egyptian artifacts smuggled into the country

The U.S. government has taken possession of 14 ancient Egyptian artifacts worth millions of dollars after a federal court in Maryland ruled they had been illegally smuggled into the country, according to prosecutors.

The items include amulets, stone figurines, a vase, and a limestone funerary statue appraised at about $6 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland. Authorities believe the statue originated from an archaeological site in Saqqara or Giza, near the ancient city of Memphis in Egypt.

According to court filings, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers discovered the artifacts in shipments between August 2020 and April 2021 while inspecting parcels at international airports in Anchorage, Cincinnati, and New York.

The shipments were falsely labeled as “home décor,” “stone garden statue,” or “decoration” and were bound for private collectors, including one in Edgewater, Maryland.

“These ancient artifacts are more than just relics of the past; they are irreplaceable pieces of global cultural heritage that tell the story of human civilization,” said Acting HSI Special Agent in Charge Evan Campanella.

In recent years, the Justice Department and U.S. law enforcement agencies have pursued several cases involving stolen or smuggled antiquities, often working with foreign governments to repatriate cultural treasures.

According to archeologists, Egypt has long faced looting at ancient sites, with international demand fueling black-market networks that move artifacts across borders using falsified paperwork.