An elderly Australian woman dubbed the «Indiana Joan» and the real tomb raider, after she showed a local newspaper some items from his collection of antiquities. 95-year-old Joan Howard of Perth had made a nuisance of myself, giving an interview to the West Australian.
Seeing pictures of artifacts in the article, a group of Egyptian archaeologists said that Howard got them illegally.
Being the wife of a diplomat, the young woman had the opportunity to travel a lot. During visits to Egypt, Palestine, Syria and other countries in the Middle East, she participated in archaeological excavations as a volunteer. Indiana Jones in a skirt returned home without a trophy — she has brought ancient coins, ornaments and the burial mask of Egypt, figurines and arrowheads axes of Neolithic times.
According to the West Australian, the Howard collection is estimated at 1 million. However, not all agree that ancient items belong to her legally.
Archaeologist and founder of the task force the Legacy of Egypt Monica Hanna accused the lady of stealing artifacts and requires justice. It was joined by a representative of the Supreme Council for antiquities Shaaban Abdel Gawad, after which Egypt’s foreign Ministry asked the Australian authorities to initiate an investigation.
