A spokesman at the British Museum said museum directors received a request from Egypt to borrow the Rosetta stone for the opening ceremony of Grand Egyptian Museum. Esmi Wilson said the museum secretary is studying this request, as there are reports saying the Egyptian government wants the stone back permanently.

Egypt's head of antiquities will drop a demand for the permanent return of the Rosetta Stone if the British Museum agrees to loan it out, he says. A spokeswoman of the meuseum said no official request had been made by Egypt for the permanent return of the stone, but the loan had been discussed and would be considered by the museum's trustees "fairly shortly".