Over 2,500 Archaeologists Demand British Museum Return Rosetta Stone to Egypt

More than 2,500 archaeologists, including many from the UK, have signed a petition demanding the British Museum return the Rosetta Stone to Egypt. The petition, launched by Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass and co-founded by archaeologist Monica Hanna, calls the stone's confiscation "an act of invasion of Egyptian property and cultural identity" and a direct result of colonial violence. It also urges Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly to formally request the return of the stone and 16 other illegally removed artifacts. The British Museum had claimed no formal request had been made. The Rosetta Stone, a 2,200-year-old granodiorite stele inscribed in ancient Greek, Demotic, and hieroglyphs, was discovered by French troops in 1799 near Rashid (Rosetta) during Napoleon's Egyptian campaign. It was ceded to England under the 1801 Capitulation of Alexandria. In 1822, Jean-François Champollion used it to decipher hieroglyphs. The repatriation campaign follows similar demands for the Parthenon Marbles and an Easter Island Moai. A dedicated website, repatriaterashid.org, supports the effort.