Egyptian pyramid renovations fuel outrage: ‘Why not wallpaper?’

Shared video footage of labourers setting rows of granite blocks at the base of the Menkaure pyramid has caused some dismay among those who oppose altering the structures.

Egypt’s Menkaure pyramid is already starting to look different as workers attempt to give the ancient structure a facelift by lining the pyramid in large granite blocks.

For Mostafa Waziri, the head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, renovating Egypt’s Pyramid of Menkaure is “the project of the century” — but his opponents have insisted the ordeal is nothing short of horrifying.

On Friday, Waziri shared video footage of labourers setting rows of granite blocks at the base of the pyramid in front of a curious crowd of onlookers. In the video, Waziri is seen explaining the process to those watching on.

According to Agence France-Presse, the renovation project was enacted in an attempt to resurrect the pyramid’s original appearance, as it was once encased in an external layer of granite that has been lost over time.

The video shared by Waziri has already attracted outrage from both members of the international archeological community and people who oppose altering the iconic pyramids.

“Impossible!” Egyptologist Monica Hanna wrote, as per AFP. “The only thing missing was to add tiling to the pyramid of Menkaure! When are we going to stop the absurdity in the management of Egyptian heritage?”

Hanna said the international archaeological community should “mobilise immediately” in response to the renovations.

Other laymen critics of the project chided in the comments of Waziri’s post that he may try to correct the leaning Tower of Pisa’s famous tilt next.