Reply #19: This hasn't worked for the Egyptians.

[onager]

They've been trying to get back the bust of Nefertiti (from Germany) and the Rosetta Stone (from Britain) for decades. Along with many other antiquities that were stolen or given away.

The longtime ruler of Egypt in the 19th century, Mohammed Ali, liked to give away priceless antiquities, especially when he was trying to get loans from Western nations. Those loans eventually led to Egypt becoming a British colony for 70 years.

I'm writing from Alexandria, Egypt, about 30 km from Rosetta (or Rashid, to most Egyptians). A reproduction of the Rosetta Stone is displayed at Ft. Julien, where the original was found. Multi-lingual placards note, rather frostily, that the British grabbed the original and won't give it back.

A more amazing sight at Ft. Julien: walking up a stone stairway built by Napoleon's soldiers. Look down at your feet, and you'll notice you are treading on ancient hieroglyphics. The French soldiers just grabbed anything lying around and used it for building materials when they were reinforcing the fort.

They might have done that with the Rosetta Stone, but fortunately somebody noticed the Greek letters on it and pulled it out of a scrap heap.