To the Museums of the World - April 9th, 2002
Ministry of Culture 
Supreme Council of Antiquities
Secretary General Office
As you know, the antiquities trade continues to flourish despite all attempts to prevent it. We are now trying to actively combat these activities and would like to enlist your help in this vital endeavor. To this effect we have created a new sub-department within the Supreme Council of Antiquities, the Department of Stolen Artifacts under the direction of Mr. A. K. Abou Shaneb. This department will be responsible for locating stolen objects, facilitating their retrieval and working toward their eventual repatriation.
We encourage your active participation and assistance in this program of restricting this illicit trade. We expect that your museum will be most circumspect when acquiring any new Ancient Egyptian pieces, which do not have known provenance, from dealers or auctions. Antiquities that are illegally exported from Egypt will be subject to the most strenuous efforts by the Supreme Council of Antiquities with a view to their retrieval and return to Egypt.
