When Egyptian authorities released a video last week outlining plans to resurface the Pyramid of
Menkaure
, the smallest of the three main pyramids at Giza, with the granite blocks that once lined part of its exterior, The initial reaction was quick... and harsh.
Some archaeologists criticized the idea.
One Internet comment that was widely picked up by news organizations compared it to trying to "right the Tower of Pisa."
Others worried that covering the pyramid's well-known limestone walls with new cladding would have the effect of turning the historic
Giza
plateau into an ersatz
Disneyland.
A camel waits at a viewing platform next to the (L to R) Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops), the Pyramid of Khafre (Kephren), and the Pyramid of Menkaure (Menkheres) at the Giza Pyramids Necropolis on the outskirts of the southwest of the Egyptian capital on March 13, 2020. (Photo by Mohamed el-Shahed / AFP)
The initiative was announced by Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, who called it the "project of the century" in a video posted on social media on January 25.
He said the project, led by a coalition of Egyptian and Japanese experts, would begin with at least a year of study and that an
international team
would then decide whether to proceed with restoring the granite blocks that once covered roughly the lower third of the pyramid. .
Waziri did not return emails and phone calls seeking comment.
In an interview with satellite television channel Ten on Tuesday night, he rejected criticism that has emerged on the internet as "social media gossip that has no basis in truth."
Some online critics seemed to be under the impression that the smooth granite blocks visible in videos and photos of the pyramid - which contrast sharply with the more familiar textured limestone above - were new.
But several Egyptologists said they appeared to be the surviving granite blocks of the pyramid, which have been there for centuries and can be seen in photographs dating back to
1907
.
The pyramid debate reflects a constant tension in the conservation field: trying to return ancient structures to their former splendor or minimizing intervention as much as possible.
"Both schools of thought elevate something," says Leslie Anne Warden, associate professor of art history and archeology at Roanoke College in Virginia, who stresses that Egypt is by no means the only country grappling with these questions.
"One is more tourism-oriented. If you go to Giza as a foreigner, you might expect to be transported to the ancient world.
"The other school says it's glossing over much of what happened and prioritizing a narrative."
Monument
The Pyramid of Menkaure was built to house the tomb of King Menkaure, who ruled Egypt more than 4,000 years ago.
It is the only one of the three main pyramids at Giza that was faced with several levels of
Aswan granite
, a red stone that comes from quarries located more than 550 miles south of Giza.
Scholars believe that the pyramid was never completed after the king's death.
Over the centuries, many of the granite stones fell or were removed from the site for various reasons, according to Morgan Moroney, associate curator of Egyptian, classical and Near Eastern art at the Brooklyn Museum in New York.
Even in ancient times, he said, people reused them to build monuments or nearby houses.
Earthquakes, erosion and vandalism wore them down over the centuries.
Salima Ikram, director of the Egyptology unit at the
American University in Cairo
, is cautiously optimistic about the new project.
"It is very useful to scan and document the pyramid and the blocks on the ground," he says.
If the team reversibly put the fallen blocks back into place, he said, it would be "eminently sensible."
But he warned of the danger of restoring any block if its origin is unclear and suggested further studies would be needed to confirm the pyramid could still support the weight of more granite facings.
Ibrahim Mohamed Badr, an associate professor in the department of restoration and conservation of antiquities at Misr University of Science and Technology in Giza, was skeptical about which stones from the site - many of them unpolished - could be confirmed as originals from the pyramid.
"The ancient Egyptians would have polished the blocks when installing them in the pyramid," he explains.
"Any attempt to fix and polish them would be a
blatant interference
in the work of the ancient Egyptians, who did not complete this pyramid."
The Ministry of Antiquities did not respond to a request for comment or confirm the project's budget.
Waziri told al-Mehwar television that the initial phase of the project - which begins at a time of high debt and inflation in Egypt - was being financed entirely by his Japanese partners.
"We will not pay a cent," he said.
The Menkaure project is part of a broader investment in Giza's infrastructure, including new restaurants and visitor facilities.
The Grand Egyptian Museum, which reportedly cost $
1 billion
and has been in the works for two decades, will open later this year.
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