British Museum Chairman George Osborne stated today that "around 2,000 artifacts, including gold jewelry and gemstones, have been stolen from the museum over a long period of time, but recovery efforts are already underway." In an interview with BBC Radio, Osborne noted that "the museum's collections are not fully cataloged or adequately recorded, a situation not uncommon for large institutions that have accumulated their collections over hundreds of years." He added, "We believe it concerns about 2,000 items... but I must say that this is a very preliminary figure and we are still actively searching."
Osborne highlighted that "we have already started to recover some of the stolen items," without providing any details on what has been recovered or how the recovery is occurring. The museum is one of London's most famous tourist attractions, and its treasures include the Rosetta Stone, which features inscriptions in hieroglyphics and other ancient writings.
