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Man repatriates 19 antiquities after reading Guardian articleExclusive: John Gomperts returned ancient objects worth up to £80,000 he had inherited from his grandmotherAn American man has returned 19 antiquities to the four countries they came from after reading reports in the Guardian about the repatriation of looted antiquities.John Gomperts, who lives in Washington, realised that the ancient pieces worth up to £80,000 – including two 7th- and 8th-century Cypriot vases – that he had inherited from his grandmother could have come from illicit excavations because they have no collecting history.He wanted to do the right thing legally and ethically by returning the items to Italy, Greece, Cyprus and Pakistan respectively. After an agreement with his two siblings, he has returned them.But with no idea how to repatriate antiquities, he was initially worried that he could be in trouble with the authorities for having potentially looted the artefacts in his possession.
Royal Mail down: Tracking unavailable as outage exceeds 24 hoursRoyal Mail, UK's leading mail delivery service, has been experiencing ongoing outages with its online tracking services down for more than 24 hours at the time of writing.On Wednesday night, the Click & Drop website was also seen persistently experiencing payment issues—no matter what payment method was used (credit card, debit card, PayPal) and how many times the transaction was attempted.
Celtic ruler's 2,000-year-old ring kept in cupboard for 28 yearsA "jaw-dropping" gold ring thought to have been worn by a Celtic leader 2,000 years ago is to be auctioned off - after spending nearly three decades in a collector's cupboard.The Iron Age jewellery, unearthed in a North Yorkshire field in 1994, is expected to fetch up to £30,000.The ring dates back to 100BC, decades before the Roman invasion of Britain.A chieftain of the Corieltauvi tribe, which ruled parts of the Midlands and Yorkshire, is thought to have worn it. A metal detectorist found the ring in Knaresborough in the 1990s and sold it to its current owner for a few hundred pounds.
Rats 'have rhythm and can dance to Lady Gaga'The rodent has innate tempo in the brain, scientists discoverRats have rhythm, and will bop to Queen, Lady Gaga and even Mozart, scientists have discovered. Accurately moving to a musical beat was thought to be a skill largely unique to humans, with only a handful of animals - such as cockatoos - demonstrating synchronisation to music with training.
MoJ staff offered ‘route out’ amid concerns over Dominic Raab behaviourExclusive: Some civil servants may have still been traumatised by his previous stint there, sources sayThe Guardian has spoken to multiple sources in the MoJ who claimed that Raab, who first held the post between September 2021 and September 2022, when he was sacked by Liz Truss, had created a “culture of fear” in the department.They alleged that his behaviour when dealing with civil servants, including some in senior roles, was “demeaning rather than demanding”, that he was “very rude and aggressive” and that he “wasn’t just unprofessional, he was a bully”.
Police issue no fines over Covid lockdown party at Tory HQScotland Yard will take no action against Shaun Bailey and Conservative aidesThe Metropolitan Police has decided against any action over a Covid lockdown party at Conservative Party headquarters.Former Tory mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey – believed to be in line for a peerage – and Tory aides were seen posing together for a photo while London was under strict rules.Several of them wore festive hats, and one was in a Christmas jumper as they raised glasses next to buffet food despite a ban on indoor socialising in December 2020.But Scotland Yard said in a statement on Friday that officers found “insufficient evidence to disprove the version of events provided by attendees”.The Times initially reported that a “raucous” party took place in the basement while Tier 2 restrictions were in place.After pictures of the festive gathering were published in the Mirror in December last year, the Met then launched an investigation.But the force concluded that the “photo by itself is not sufficient evidence on which to assess that an offence had been committed”.