A London court on Tuesday ordered a former curator at the British Museum accused of stealing hundreds of artefacts to provide the museum with a list of all items he is suspected of taking and to return those still in his possession.
The museum, one of the most visited in the world, reported in August that hundreds of items had been stolen from its collection or were missing, highlighting internal organisational failings and leading to the exit of its director.
Peter Higgs, the museum's curator of Ancient Greek collections and the acting head of the Greece and Rome department, was sacked after the alleged thefts came to light.
He is currently under police investigation but has not been charged. The British Museum has brought a civil lawsuit against Higgs and it said he had filed a defence which showed he intended to dispute the claim.
Higgs was not represented at the hearing at London's High Court on Tuesday, but lawyers acting for him in relation to the criminal investigation were present. They declined to comment.
The British Museum, which holds treasures such as the Rosetta Stone and the Parthenon marbles, has said the stolen items included gold rings, earrings and other pieces of jewellery dating back to ancient Greek and Roman periods.
The museum's lawyer Daniel Burgess said in court documents: "While the full extent of the thefts is unknown, it is presently believed that over 1,800 items were stolen or damaged and that many hundreds of them were sold or offered for sale by (Higgs)."
Burgess added that Higgs tried to "cover his tracks by, among other things, using false names, creating false documents and manipulating records held on the Museum's IT systems".
The British Museum has had 356 items returned so far, Burgess said.
Judge Heather Williams granted the museum an order requiring Higgs to return items he may still have and provide information about the whereabouts of missing items or their proceeds.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
India To Induct 5.5-Gen Stealth Fighter Jet AMCA By 2035: DRDO Chairman
UK Boy Finds Rare 2,000-Year-Old Gold Bracelet While Walking His Dog British Museum Sets Up Public Hotline For 2,000 Missing Artefacts 2,000 Items Stolen From British Museum Found Online, Recovery Underway: Report Vandalism At Kolkata Hospital Where Doctor Was Raped, Tear Gas Fired 150 mg Semen In Kolkata Doctor's Body, Suspect Gang-Rape: Parents To Court Starbucks' Indian-Origin CEO, Recently Fired, Never Worked Past 6 pm Google Says Iran Hackers Target Trump, Kamala Harris Campaigns "Malicious Campaign": Top Kolkata Cop Blames Media For Hospital Vandalism 1.4 Million Afghan Girls Banned From Schools Since Taliban Return To Power Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.