Egyptian authorities have formally requested the repatriation of the mummified remains of an ancient priest named Nekht from the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow. The request follows the recent removal of the 4,000-year-old mummy from public display due to concerns over "lack of informed consent from the deceased individual." Glasgow Life, the charitable organization that manages the city's cultural assets, confirmed it has received the request and will follow its established repatriation process.
The remains of Nekht, who is believed to have lived between 1985 and 1797 BC, were excavated in Middle Egypt and donated to Glasgow in 1923. The mummy had been on display at Kelvingrove for decades.
The potential return of Nekht's remains to Egypt comes amid broader calls for the repatriation of ancient artifacts, particularly following the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) near Cairo last year. GEM houses over 100,000 items, including artifacts from the tomb of Tutankhamun.
Separately, museum chiefs at Kelvingrove are also planning to remove from display the bones of a Scottish child and adult from the Bronze Age. These remains, discovered in a Bronze Age grave, are intended to be moved to a specialized, restricted-access storage facility. The Hunterian Museum at Glasgow University has also removed the mummified remains of Lady Shep-en-hor from public view.
The decisions to remove human remains from display have drawn criticism from some figures. Chris McGovern, chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, warned that repatriating Nekht's remains would set a "dangerous precedent" and "impoverish Scottish education." He argued that museums should prioritize education over what he described as "woke ideology." Scottish Conservative culture spokesman Murdo Fraser echoed these sentiments, stating that hiding historical artifacts in response to modern sensitivities is misguided and that museums should educate rather than "pander to increasingly ridiculous calls for censorship."
The International Council of Museums (Icom) revised its code of ethics in June, recommending that museums "uphold the inherent dignity of human remains" and collaborate with descendant communities when making decisions about their collections.