Family in court over sale of fake statue to council

A family of four from Bolton are due in court charged in connection with the sale of a fake Egyptian statue, which - if real - would be worth around £1 million.

The Amarna Princess, believed to be around 3,300 years old, was bought by Bolton Council for the "bargain" price of £440,000 in September 2003.

However, experts determined the 20-inch sculpture was a fake last year.

George Greenhalgh, 84, his wife Olive, 82, and their sons, George Jnr, 52, and Shaun, aged in his 40s, are accused of running a family firm selling bogus antiques.

The four, who live together in The Crescent, Bromley Cross, were arrested last Saturday.

They are due to appear in front of Bolton Magistrates this morning.

The Amarna Princess is said to represent one of the daughters of Pharaoh Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti, the mother of King Tutankhamun.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police's Art and Antiques Unit removed the artefact from the council premises last March after concerns were raised about a Syrian sculpture that had arrived at the British Museum in London.

The council paid for the antique by securing a grant of £360,000 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, as well as £75,000 from the National Art Collections Fund and £2,500 from the Friends of Bolton Museum and Art Gallery.

The ancient relic, said to date back to 1350BC, went on display in the town's museum after first being featured in an exhibition at the Hayward Gallery in London, which was opened by the Queen.

Copyright Press Association 2007.

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