Antiquities authority drops proposal for Menkaure pyramid after review prompted by international outcry

Egypt has scuttled a controversial plan to reinstall ancient granite cladding on the pyramid of Menkaure, the smallest of the three great pyramids of Giza, a committee formed by the country’s tourism minister said in a statement.

Mostafa Waziri, the secretary general of the supreme council of antiquities, announced the plan last month, declaring it would be “the project of the century”.

But news that the ancient monument could be altered quickly drew an international outcry, prompting Egypt’s antiquities authority to review the project. The pyramids are the only one of the seven wonders of the ancient world that still remain.

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    1•9 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Mostafa Waziri, the secretary general of the supreme council of antiquities, announced the plan last month, declaring it would be “the project of the century”.

    But news that the ancient monument could be altered quickly drew an international outcry, prompting Egypt’s antiquities authority to review the project.

    Over the centuries, pilfering, weathering and collapse caused many layers to disappear, leaving only seven in modern times, although numerous fallen granite blocks remain strewn around the pyramid’s base.

    Zahi Hawass, a former minister of antiquities who headed the committee, said it would be impossible to determine where each block had originally been.

    “What I want to say is don’t worry, the pyramids of Giza are safe, and nothing will happen to them,” Hawass told Reuters.

    The seven-member committee gave initial consent to excavate Menkaure pyramid’s boat pits, akin to the Pharaonic bark pits found alongside Khufu’s pyramid adjacent to Menkaure’s, but only after a “clear and detailed scientific study”.

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