Stolen Ancient Carving Returned to Iraq After 22 Years by Met Police

An Assyrian artifact, depicting a winged genie, stolen from the renowned archaeological site of Nimrud in the 1990s, has been returned to Iraq after 22 years in police custody in London, The Telegraph reported. The 9th-century BC carved panel, measuring about five feet wide and four feet long and weighing around 52 stone, was excavated in the early 1970s from the Northwest Palace at Nimrud, the ancient capital of the Assyrian Empire. This significant site, located on the Tigris River in modern-day Iraq, was heavily damaged and looted by Islamic State militants in 2014.

The British Museum played a crucial role in the repatriation of this artifact. Dr. St John Simpson, a senior curator at the museum, emphasized its importance, noting its perfect provenance and symbolic value, especially following the devastation of the site by ISIS. He stated, "As a sculpture excavated by an Iraqi archaeologist at a capital of Assyria that was badly destroyed by Islamic State, it has added symbolic value."

The panel's journey to the British Museum began in the autumn of 2002 when it was identified and seized by the Metropolitan Police during an undisclosed investigation. Although the delay in returning the artifact to Iraq remains unclear, the relief was finally handed over to the Iraqi Embassy in London last week. Such repatriation efforts were underscored by Iraq's ambassador to the UK, Mohammed Jafar Al-Sadr, who highlighted the panel’s "immense historical significance", amplified by the destruction of Nimrud’s palace.

The initial major excavations of Nimrud were carried out in the mid-19th century by English politician and historian Austen Henry Layard. Many artifacts, including some from Nimrud, are housed in the British Museum and other institutions worldwide. The precise details of how the winged genie relief was acquired in London are not disclosed. However, British Museum staff, acting as expert witnesses, facilitated the return of the artifact, with the Met Police Art & Antiquity Unit also in attendance during the handing-over ceremony.

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