Ka Nefer Nefer, Shamed US Government Throws in Towel

The SLAM Bumper sticker, more relevant now than ever before

The shame-faced US Department of Justice will take no further legal action over Egyptian mask in St Louis Art Museum after botched legal moves. Monday was the deadline for the department to ask for a rehearing of the June 12 decision by the 8th U.S. Court of Appeals.

“The Department of Justice will take no further legal action with respect to the mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer,” U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan said in response to questions from the Post-Dispatch on Monday, the deadline for the Department of Justice if it wished to prolong the court battle. Museum officials couldn’t be reached immediately for comment. According to court filings, both sides are still discussing payment of the museum’s legal fees.

On March 31, 2012, U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey dismissed the government’s forfeiture lawsuit, saying that the Department of Justice failed to claim or prove that the mask was actually stolen. While Judge Autrey knew not how to make sense of the object being documented as in two places at once, thus casting doubt on one or other of the conflicting stories (and not considering why one side would have to have a false story and why and totally unwilling to adjudicate between them in a court of law), the rest of us can come to our own conclusions.  Sleep well Judge Henry, the akh of the Justified before Osiris, Ka Nefer Nefer is not, you should hope you never meet her.



Robert Patrick, 'Ancient Egyptian mask likely to stay at St. Louis Art Museum after feds give up legal fight', Post Dispatch, 28th July 2014.