PARIS (AP).-
Fragments of an ancient wall painting that caused a feud between Egypt
and the Louvre Museum are heading home. France returned the ancient artwork to
Egyptian officials after President Hosni Mubarak inspected one of the fragments
following a visit with his French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy. The
pockmarked slab in sepia and blue tones, from a 3,200-year-old tomb near the
ancient temple city of Luxor, shows an offering from a nobleman to a servant.
French Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand said in a statement that the
handover “is testament to France’s desire to … fight against the illegal
trafficking of cultural goods, which France is itself a victim of, as well as
the excellence of French-Egyptian cooperation in the realm of archaeology.”