An 83-year-old man and his family are due in court in connection with the sale of a fake Egyptian statue thought to be worth £1 million.

George Greenhalgh, his wife Olive, 82, and their sons, George Jnr, 52, and Shaun, 47, who live together at The Crescent, Bromley Cross, Bolton, are accused of running a family firm selling bogus antiquities.

Bolton council bought the Amarna Princess, believed to be around 3,300 years old, for a "bargain" £440,000 in September 2003.

But officers from the Metropolitan Police's Art and Antiques Unit removed the 20-inch artefact in March 2006 after concerns were raised.

George Greenhalgh Snr, Olive Greenhalgh and Shaun Greenhalgh are all accused of conspiring to defraud the arts and antique world with the sale of fake and forged work as genuine between 1989 and 2006.

They are also charged with knowingly handling fake art and antiques and the money made from selling them.

George Greenhalgh Snr, Sean Greenhalgh and George Greenhalgh Jnr are charged with involvement in handling the cash made from selling the Amarna Princess.

The ancient relic, said to date back to 1350BC, is believed to represent one of the daughters of Pharaoh Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti, the mother of King Tutankhamen.

It went on display in the town's museum after first being featured in an exhibition at the Haywood Gallery in London, which was opened by the Queen.