Stuff The British Stole · ABC Australia and CBC

The Head in the Library

·41 min·4 clips
A mummified Egyptian head has been sitting in an Australian high school library for over 100 years—how did it get there?
Marc Fennell investigates an Egyptian mummified head stored for over a century in Grafton High School's library, exploring its mysterious origins tied to British Empire looting. Through interviews with teachers, students, and experts, the episode delves into debates over repatriation, ethical display, and the head's role in education, culminating in a CT scan that confirms its authenticity.

As heard by us

A library mummy becomes a careful, uneasy mystery about where it came from and how to do right by it.

A school library in Grafton sits at the center of a quiet mystery about a mummy's head and how it left Egypt. The piece is strongest when it keeps to plain, human questions: who took it, who kept it, and what the gold flecks near the eyes might mean.

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Why you'd press play

You want a mummy mystery that starts in a school library and stays uneasy.

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