Egypt plan to renovate Giza pyramid with granite is criticised

Restoration work being carried out by the Egyptian government in collaboration with Japan on one of the pyramids at Giza has sparked outrage as it has been revealed that the famous ancient landmark will be encased in granite blocks.

The project, which is expected to last three years, has been condemned by both experts and social media users alike, despite being hailed by the head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mostafa Waziri, as “the project of the century”.

According to the official, the renovations of the Pyramid of Menkaure, the smallest of the three pyramids in Giza, will be done in a way that will allow tourists to see the almost 5,000-year-old structure as it would have looked in ancient times. When first built, the pyramid is said to have been encased in granite, but over time it has lost part of its covering.

In a video shared on Facebook, Waziri can be seen in front of the pyramid – the final resting place of pharaoh Menkaure — with workers excavating sand from a section of the structure’s base, which appears to have been covered in granite blocks already.

However, Egyptologist Monica Hanna told Independent Arabia, “When are we going to stop the absurdity in the management of Egyptian heritage? Interfering with the nature of the monument can cause visible problems and major damage.”

So, Egypt is going to ‘put back’ the granite casing on the pyramid of Menkaure. Maybe I’m crazy, but this reeks of a grab for tourist dollars while completely ignoring archaeologists and irretrievably harming a cultural artifact. Just me? 🤷‍♂️ https://t.co/XbfntAmzTf

— Chapps (@chapps) January 30, 2024

Nevertheless, Salima Ikram, an Egyptologist at the American University in Cairo, believes that the project could work “as long as the stones used are the ones found around it, and not adding new ones that do not belong to the pyramid.”

Renowned Egyptologist and former minister of antiquities Zahi Hawass told Al-Ahram Weekly that documenting the fallen blocks of the Menkaure Pyramid was a good idea that should be done by a scientific committee including specialists on the matter. “But I recommend not removing any of the Pyramid’s fallen casing blocks from their present location and preserving the character of the Pyramid as it has been for centuries.”

READ: Egypt: Construction underway for walkway between Pyramids, Grand Egyptian Museum