Between 2020 and 2021, U.S. authorities seized 13 ancient Egyptian artifacts at JFK Airport, including a 5,200-year-old vase, according to legal documents filed this month.
Homeland Security Investigations agent Aaron Klein’s declaration revealed that the 14 items were confiscated for smuggling. These included a faience amulet of the goddess Hatmehyt from Egypt’s Late Period (664-332 BCE); a wooden canopic jar cover from the New Kingdom Period (19th Dynasty or later, around 1300 BCE); a Cypriot vessel; two painted limestone shabtis; a painted limestone bed figurine from the New Kingdom Period (1549-1075 BCE); two phallic figurines (664-30 BCE); a pre-Dynastic vase (3500-3200 BCE); and a limestone jar with lug handles (3000-2600 BCE). Additionally, an ancient limestone funerary statue, valued at $6 million, was seized in Anchorage, Alaska.
Klein’s 22-page statement named six individuals and companies, including three shipping companies in Thailand and Hong Kong, two U.S.-based eBay users, and a Canadian art gallery owner. Experts, including a historian of Egyptian art, a U.S. museum curator, and a British museum curator, helped identify some of the items. The document was filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland on September 23, 2024.