Zahi Hawass

A saga, similar to that of the illegally removed Parthenon Sculptures housed in the British Museum, has been unfolding for 100 years regarding one of the most significant works of ancient Egyptian art. This is the priceless and uniquely beautiful bust of Queen Nefertiti, which has been “imprisoned” in Germany since 1924, despite repeated requests for its return or even its loan.

After a prominent archaeologist said he would launch a campaign to bring the Mona Lisa back to Italy, one of the foremost Leonardo da Vinci experts said the painting should, in fact, remain in France.

Archaeologists in Egypt have unearthed a sphinx statue "with a smiley face and two dimples" near the Hathor Temple, one of the country's best preserved ancient sites, the tourism and antiquities ministry announced on March 6.

It is the latest in a series of discoveries revealed over the past few months.

For decades, Egyptians have dreamed of bringing back some of the glories of their ancient civilization scattered across museums and private collections across the world.

Archaeologists hailed on April 8the discovery of "the largest" ancient city found in Egypt, buried under sand for millenia, which experts said was one of the most important finds since unearthing Tutankhamun's tomb.

Famed Egyptologist Zahi Hawass announced the discovery of the "lost golden city", saying the site was uncovered near Luxor, home of the legendary Valley of the Kings.

A city that has been lost in sands and was founded more than 3,400 years ago has been unearthed in Luxor, south Egypt, Zahi Hawass, head of the Egyptian archeological mission that is responsible for the discovery, said Thursday, Al Balad newspaper reports.

Egypt's former antiquities minister and noted archaeologist Zahi Hawass on Jan. 17 revealed details of an ancient funerary temple in a vast necropolis south of Cairo.

Hawass told reporters at the Saqqara necropolis that archaeologists unearthed the temple of Queen Neit, wife of King Teti, the first king of the Sixth Dynasty that ruled Egypt from 2323 B.C. till 2150 B.C.

A remarkable ancient Egyptian tomb has been discovered in the necropolis of Draa el-Naga, near Egypt’s famous Valley of the Kings.

The remains of an Egyptian pyramid built around 3,700 years ago have been discovered near the well-known "bent pyramid" of King Snefru, the antiquities ministry announced on April 3. 

The pyramid from the 13th dynasty was found in Dahshur's royal necropolis, some 30 kilometers south of Cairo, it said.

With a shaky economy following years of unrest and a huge drop in tourists, Egypt is struggling to preserve its fabled archaeological heritage. 

From Alexandria on the Mediterranean to the Great Pyramid of Giza, the last of the Seven Wonders of the World, and Aswan to the south, the North African country is home to impressive ancient monuments.