Dr Hawass first demanded the return of the stone in July 2003. After a series of negotiations, the British Museum sent Cairo a replica of the stone in November 2005. The museum said yesterday it would not return the original item.

SCA Chief Hawass wants the British Museum to lend the Rosetta Stone to Cairo. "I am not asking for all the objects in the British Museum to come back, only for the unique objects to come back to Egypt," he said. However, he said: “Its original place should be in Egypt. We can give the British Museum an artefact in its place.” He promised to return the relic after Egypt’s Grand Museum opens in 2013.

Three child mummies from the British Museum have been virtually unwrapped by X-ray scanners. Using a CT scanner, scientists have been able to peer through the multiple layers of tightly wrapped linen.

The collections of the Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan at the British Museum are now accessible through an online database.

Lots of articles about the opening of Tutankhamun exhibition in London and the exhibition itself:
http://www.eadt.co.uk/content/eadt/features/story.aspx?brand=EADOnline&
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2210531,00.html

Magnificent as the Tutankhamun exhibition opening in London is, Nigel Tisdall argues that only a visit to Egypt and the museums there can do justice to the ancient glory of the pharoahs.

As Tutankhamun’s treasures come to London, the British Museum’s director examines our lasting fascination with pharaohs.