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Egyptian officials are frantically searching for an ancient limestone painting taken from an ancient tomb — the latest in a series of high-profile artifact thefts.
Mohamed Ismail, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, announced the suspected theft on Sunday. The painting was stolen from the Saqqara necropolis, per The Associated Press.
The open-air museum is "one of the most important cemeteries" in Memphis, some 15 miles south of Cairo, the council's website said.
The limestone relief was in the tomb of Khentika, a high-ranking figure during the sixth dynasty of the Old Kingdom period.
The painting dates back to around 2,300 B.C., making it at least 4,200 years old.
The missing relief, dating to Egypt's Sixth Dynasty, was reportedly taken from the Saqqara necropolis near Cairo. (Sui Xiankai/Xinhua via Getty Images)
The tomb, found in the 1950s, was sealed by officials in 2019.
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Citing Egyptian media, the AP reported that the painting was discovered missing in May, but its disappearance was not announced until this week.
Saqqara, part of Egypt's ancient capital of Memphis, is one of the country's richest archaeological zones. (Sui Xiankai/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Details about the painting are limited.
Egyptian media indicated the painting showed the ancient Egyptians' three seasons: the flooding season Akhet, the planting season Peret and the harvest season, Shomu.
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Khentika's tomb is a mastaba, one of the few in Egypt to have a curse inscribed on its facade. Mastabas were rectangular, flat-roofed structures with sloping sides built over underground burial chambers.
The inscription warned intruders they could face the wrath of the gods if they trespassed, the AP reported.
Located about 15 miles south of Cairo, Saqqara is a vast burial ground stretching across the desert plateau. (Ahmed Gomaa/Xinhua via Getty Images)
The announcement comes weeks after officials announced that a pharaoh's priceless bracelet was stolen the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
The bracelet, which belonged to Pharaoh Usermaatre Amenemope, was melted down.
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Egypt isn't the only country hit by recent artifact thefts. In Wales, thieves recently stole Bronze Age gold jewelry from St. Fagans National Museum in Cardiff.
Speaking to Fox News Digital in September, threat management expert Spencer Coursen said that poverty in Egypt creates "an environment in which opportunistic crime thrives."
The open-air museum at Saqqara draws tourists, researchers and conservators from around the world. (Sui Xiankai/Xinhua via Getty Images)
"Pickpocketing in crowded markets, taxi overcharging and aggressive sales tactics are much more common than armed robbery or assault," noted Coursen.
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"Egypt also has unique risks tied to regional instability and terrorism, particularly in the Sinai Peninsula and occasionally in major cities."
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The Associated Press contributed reporting.
