Smuggling of 3 Porcelain Artifacts Thwarted in Alexandria Port

Experts of the Archaeological Unit in Alexandria Sea Port succeeded in thwarting an attempt of smuggling three pieces of porcelain and glass out of the country.

Hamdi Hammam, head of the Central Directorate for the Archaeological Ports and Units in the Egyptian Ports, explained that as soon as the experts of the unit in the Alexandria port received a notification from the customs officers that there were some pieces inside one of the containers being exported abroad and whose antiquities were suspected, a higher committee was immediately formed.

The then newly committee was headed by Dr. Aladdin Mahmoud, representative of the Museum of Islamic Art for archaeological affairs, went to the scene to inspect the pieces.

Hammam asserted that the examination proved the authenticity of the pieces, which is a porcelain lantern with inscriptions from the nineteenth century, a porcelain pear-shaped vessel with a round mouth from the nineteenth century, and another decorative glass vessel without a spout dating back to early Islamic times.

The committee confiscated the objects for the benefit of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in accordance with the Antiquities Protection Law No. 117 of 1983, and its amendments.

The pieces were deposited in one of the museum stores of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Contributed by Ahmed Moamar