Belgium: The trial of a man accused of killing four people at the Jewish Museum of Brussels has started. Frenchman Mehdi Nemmouche is accused of shooting two tourists, a receptionist and a volunteer in 2014. He faces a life sentence if convicted.
Brazil: Rio de Janeiro’s National Museum has opened its first exhibition since it was gutted by fire last year at its sister museum, the Palace of the House of Money. On display there, among fossils discovered in the Antarctic, is a pterodactyl bone.
Egypt: The ministry of antiquities has secured €3m of international funding to redevelop the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The plan is supported by five international museums including London’s British Museum and the Egyptian Museum of Berlin.
Germany: Four men have gone on trial for stealing a gold coin the size of a manhole cover from Berlin’s Bode Museum in March 2017. Authorities believe the 100kg Canadian “Big Maple Leaf” – once recognised as the world’s biggest gold coin – has been melted down.
US: Institutions such as the Smithsonian museums in Washington and New York have lost thousands of visitors after closing their doors due to the longest government shutdown in US history. The Smithsonian’s 19 museums were still shut as Museums Journal went to press.
Compiled by Rob Sharp. Sourced from the Guardian, Egypt Today, France24, BBC and Tempo.co
