Looted Libyan Artifacts Returned by US

The Libyan Antiquities Authority holds a ceremony for the repatriation of the artifacts returned by the US Department of Homeland Security, including the marble antiquity of "The Veiled Head of a Lady" and other looted artifacts at the Royal Palace in Tripoli, Libya, March 31, 2022. REUTERS/Nada Harib
The Libyan Antiquities Authority holds a ceremony for the repatriation of the artifacts returned by the US Department of Homeland Security, including the marble antiquity of "The Veiled Head of a Lady" and other looted artifacts at the Royal Palace in Tripoli, Libya, March 31, 2022. REUTERS/Nada Harib
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Looted Libyan Artifacts Returned by US

The Libyan Antiquities Authority holds a ceremony for the repatriation of the artifacts returned by the US Department of Homeland Security, including the marble antiquity of "The Veiled Head of a Lady" and other looted artifacts at the Royal Palace in Tripoli, Libya, March 31, 2022. REUTERS/Nada Harib
The Libyan Antiquities Authority holds a ceremony for the repatriation of the artifacts returned by the US Department of Homeland Security, including the marble antiquity of "The Veiled Head of a Lady" and other looted artifacts at the Royal Palace in Tripoli, Libya, March 31, 2022. REUTERS/Nada Harib

Libyan authorities said on Thursday they had received nine ancient artifacts including funerary stone heads, urns and pottery that were returned by the United States after being smuggled out of the North African country.

All the pieces had been illegally excavated and shipped to the United States, but they were identified by archaeologists working with the Manhattan District Attorney's office in New York and have been returned to the Museum of Libya in Tripoli.

"They were not stolen from museums and were not recorded with us," said Libyan government antiquities department head Muhammad Faraj Muhammad.

"But because they are of a distinctive style, the retrieval process was rather simple," he added.

The grandest pieces returned to Libya were the four funerary heads, marble busts including one whose sculptor had added a delicate stone veil that seemed to flow across the face, Reuters reported.

The pottery included patterned jars. All the pieces are now in the museum located in the central Tripoli palace of King Idris, who was ousted in 1969, and which has been closed to the public since the 2011 uprising.

Once a major province of the Roman empire and home to spectacular coastal ruins, Libya has a wealth of archaeological sites and its museums boasted an array of ancient treasures.

However, during the years of chaos that have followed the 2011 NATO-backed uprising some of its museums were looted and numerous sites were pillaged by treasure hunters digging in the ground.

After major antiquities looting following the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and in Syria during the war after its own 2011 uprising, militant groups raised money by trading in antiquities, drawing greater involvement from police.

"The process to return cultural antiquities is incredibly complex. It requires massive partnership. In this case, there was a partnership with the US authorities," said Antonia Marie de Meo, the director of the UN's interregional crime and justice research institute.



Faint Glow in Saturn… Did a Mystery Object Crash into the Gas Giant on Saturday?

New image captured by a NASA employee and amateur astronomer appears to show a space object crashing into Saturn for the first time. Photo: NASA
New image captured by a NASA employee and amateur astronomer appears to show a space object crashing into Saturn for the first time. Photo: NASA
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Faint Glow in Saturn… Did a Mystery Object Crash into the Gas Giant on Saturday?

New image captured by a NASA employee and amateur astronomer appears to show a space object crashing into Saturn for the first time. Photo: NASA
New image captured by a NASA employee and amateur astronomer appears to show a space object crashing into Saturn for the first time. Photo: NASA

Astronomers have called for help to identify a mystery object that may have hit Saturn on Saturday in what could be the first recorded instance of a space object crashing on to the gas giant.

Studies suggest large objects- measuring over a kilometer across – strike Saturn once every 3,125 years on an average, according to The Independent.

Although data shows seven or eight small space rocks hit the planet every year, none have been spotted in the act by astronomers so far.

Compared to rocky planets where cosmic collisions leave impact craters, gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn don’t reveal such signs.

But a new image captured by a Nasa employee and amateur astronomer Mario Rana appears to show a space object crashing into Saturn for the first time.

Since gas giants have outer layers made of hydrogen and helium, strikes by asteroids or comets can quickly fade out.

Rana is part of the DeTeCt project, which analyzes images of Jupiter and Saturn using computer software. Videos taken of Saturn by the astronomer last Saturday show a faint glow in the left side of the footage, which seems like an impact event.

The Planetary Virtual Observatory and Laboratory, or PVOL, a consortium of professional and amateur astronomers, has called for experts in the field to attempt to confirm or refute the potential impact on Saturn.

“Marc Delcroix reports a potential impact in Saturn captured in a few frames in a video observation obtained by Mario Rana. The potential impact would be very faint and is unconfirmed,” PVOL said in a statement.

“The very short impact flash occurred on Saturn on 5 July 2025, between 9am and 9.15am UT. It is very important to get other videos of Saturn taken during that time frame.”

PVOL has urged astronomers who may have also captured observations from this time to contact Delcroix and submit their data.

Leigh N Fletcher, a planetary science professor at the University of Leicester, also called for amateur space observers to share any potential videos they may have of the impact.

“Amplifying the call from Marc Delcroix and co over the weekend: the team are looking to verify/refute a potential impact on Saturn on 5 July, 9am to 9.15am UT,” Dr Fletcher wrote on BlueSky.

“Videos taken by amateur observers at that time might hold the key.”