Egypt to restore "Eye of Amenhotep III"

Egypt State Information Service

The Swiss President Pascal Couchepin and Culture Minster Farouk Hosni singed Wednesday 9/1/2007 a memo of understanding on the protection and retrieving monuments which illegally went out of Egypt. Especially as Switzerland is a signatory of UNESCO agreement on the protection of monuments.

The Swiss President said his country gave back to Egypt one thousand pieces of antiquities.

The Swiss President added that his visit to Egypt was made for signing a memo of understanding for retrieving by Egypt of the stolen antiquities in a bid to sign the final agreement in this concern by the two countries in April next.

Meantime the secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities said that Egypt will restore from Switzerland a smuggled eye of a statue of king Amenhotep III from Switzerland, said.

In a press conference on Wednesday 9/1/2008 with visiting Swiss President Pascal Couchepin, Dr. Zahi Hawwas said the artefact will arrive in Egypt in the coming months.

Attended by Minister of Culture Farouq Hosni, the press conference was held to initially sign a "declaration of intent" between the two countries for returning Egyptian cultural treasures.

Hawwas said that the final form of the declaration would be signed in Geneva in April.

As Switzerland signed the convention of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Geneva decided to return the cultural treasures to Egypt, Hawwas said.

Amenhotepo III was the ninth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty.