"Live Science" magazine revealed new details about the sale of a sculpture depicting the head of pharaoh Tutankhamun, set to be auctioned on July 4 for $5.1 million (4 million sterling pounds).
As the diplomatic row between Egypt and the auction house, Christie's, in London, rages, new investigations by the magazine revealed the real source of the statue.
The magazine reported that Egypt believes that the sculpture was looted from Karnak Temple after 1970. So Cairo’s embassy in the U.K. demanded that the sculpture be repatriated to Egypt.
Meanwhile, Christie's claimed that it has documents confirming its ownership of the statue.
The auction house said that the statue wasn’t looted from Egypt but it was owned by Prinz (Prince) Wilhelm von Thurn und Taxis (who lived from 1919 to 2004), then he sold it in 1973 or 1974 to Josef Messina, the owner of Galerie Kokorian & Co, Vienna.
However, Egypt has threatened to take legal action if the auction is held.
The magazine initiated investigations on the life of Prinz (Prince) Wilhelm von Thurn und Taxis, the magazine also talked with his friends and relatives who are still alive.
Viktor von Thurn und Taxis (Wilhelm's son) and Daria von Thurn und Taxis (Wilhelm's niece) told the magazine that Wilhelm never owned the sculpture.
Daria believes that the sculpture may have been owned by Wilhelm's cousin Prince Raimondo Torre e Tasso.
Gudula Walterskirchen, a historian and journalist who knew Wilhelm well, said that Wilhelm didn't have an artifact collection.
The magazine confirmed that all the documents show no signs that Wilhelm ever owned the sculpture, because he was not as rich as the rest of his family.
The only artifact owned by the Austrian prince was a Chinese bottle from the 18th century to the early 20th century and was sold after his death in 2004, the magazine said.
Commenting on these investigations, the auction house said that it is collecting all the documents relating to the life of the late prince to search for the source of the sculpture.
The magazine reported that the prince in 1970 (when he supposedly owned the sculpture) was living and working in a "small bachelor apartment" in Vienna, according to a 1970 New York Times article.
Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass, told Live Science: "I think for Christie's to put this head on sale, they have no ethics at all”.
“I think that the sculpture was looted from the Karnak temple after 1970,” Hawass added
“Egypt will take all actions to stop the auction.
Contributed by Bassant Ahmed
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