Customs officers at Cairo airport have seized three ancient Coptic icons that someone attempted to smuggle to the United States.
Customs chief Mohamed al-Shahat said that personnel was suspicious of a parcel that was being shipped to the United States. “We found three ancient Coptic icons in it,” he said.
The icons were confiscated and sent to the Ministry of Antiquities.
Ahmed al-Rawy, head of the Central Administration of Archaeological Units, said that the first icon is 24 x 30 cm, made of wood, the second 21 x 16 cm, also made of wood, and the third 18 x 20 cm, made of metal and placed in a wooden frame.
The first bears inscriptions of Christ sitting on a cloud, the second shows two women standing opposite each other, holding a cross and palm fronds, with halos over their heads, and the third shows the Virgin Mary carrying Jesus, with a halo and a crown over her head.
