The General Authority for Antiquities and Museums revealed important details about a rare Yemeni golden artifact and its transformation into the personal property of a German diplomat.

The Authority stated in a statement received by the Yemeni News Agency (Saba) a copy of it, that the story of the piece dates back to the late nineties and early millennium, when Dr. Paul Alan Yule, a specialist in Near Eastern antiquities and Semitic studies, headed a German archaeological mission to Dhofar, the capital of the Himyarite Kingdom in Yemen under the supervision of the University of Heidelberg and carried out excavation work in the years 1998, 2000 and 2002.

The statement explained that during the mission's work, artifacts of great historical importance were discovered, including a cemetery dating back to the second century AD, and a stone platform dating back to the third and fifth centuries AD, indicating that these discoveries have drawn the curtain on an important aspect of the history of the Himyarite Kingdom, which was one of the most prominent kingdoms in the Arabian Peninsula before Islam.

He pointed out that the results of the mission's work were published on the university's website, along with pictures of the artifacts found in Dhofar, including a golden necklace "winged angel" dating back to the era of the Himyarite Kingdom.

The statement said, "It is noteworthy that the site shows that it is part of the collection of Werner Daum, the German diplomat known for his interest in Yemeni culture, and author of the book Yemen: 3000 Years of Art and Civilization in Arabia Felix." He pointed out that despite the circulation of inaccurate information on news sites about the piece by activists on social media (such as claiming that the piece dates back to Marib), its information displayed on the Heidelberg University website shows that the golden necklace was part of Dhofar antiquities, which makes its presence in the Daum collection raise questions about how it was transferred from its original location.

The authority wondered in its statement, saying: Is there a link between the German archaeological mission that worked in Dhofar and Werner Daum?!!

It added: "This issue opens the door to deeper questions: Were the archaeological missions that worked in Yemen only for scientific purposes?!"

The statement indicated that Yemen, with its rich heritage and ancient history, was the target of many international archaeological missions in light of weak oversight and the absence of strict legislation in some periods.

In the same context, the head of the General Authority for Antiquities and Museums, Ibad Al-Hayal, explained to the Yemeni News Agency (Saba) that the state of antiquities in Yemen was like the state of the Yemeni state, corruption, loss of independence, and submission to foreigners.

He mentioned that Werner Daum was a diplomat who served as Deputy Head of Mission of the German Embassy in Sana'a in the 1970s.

Al-Hayal pointed out that this is one of the controversial and interesting stories surrounding the transfer of Yemeni artifacts from their original sites to private collections or international museums, which the Authority is working to explore.

The Authority called on anyone who has any information about the looted artifacts and sites to contact it through social media pages or via email: info@goam.gov.ye