A tour guide was arrested after vandalizing the Pyramid of Unasa historical monument between 4,400 and 4,500 years old located in Saqqara, near Cairo, Egyptand declared World Heritage for the UNESCO.
The Egyptian Ministry of the Interior launched an investigation following a complaint filed by a local antiques inspectoras reported The CSR Journal. The event was recorded and spread on social networks by Mahmoud Etman.
«The man had chalk and was drawing on the pyramid, and when I spoke to him politely and told him that was wrong, he said, ‘Are you in your right mind, honestly?'» Frankly, I didn’t know how to answer him, and he tells me, as I heard on the video, that you are They are added stones. The professor who tells me he is a doctor,» he wrote on his X profile along with the video.
According to the Egyptian ministry, cited by The CSR Journalthe guide He drew marks with chalk on the outside stones of the pyramids to explain their characteristics to a group of tourists.
After being arrested, the man acknowledged his actions and apologized, stating that it was his first day of work after four years and that this emotion led him to make an «unforgivable mistake.»
Media like Need To Know y Daily Mail They did not release the name of the guide. However, and according to El Shaiit would be Rami Al-Amirwho faces charges under article 45 of the Antiquities Law of 1983, which prohibits writing or inscribing antiquities. The penalty ranges from one year in prison to fines of 500,000 Egyptian pounds.
The pyramid of Unas: an archaeological treasure
The pyramid of Unas, located in the necropolis of Saqqara 25 kilometers from Cairo, stands out as the first funerary monument decorated with the Texts of the Pyramids. These inscriptions represent the oldest religious textual corpus of humanity.
He Pharaoh Unaslast sovereign of the 5th dynastyruled Egypt for three decades in the Old Kingdom, approximately between 2375 and 2345 BC. C.. Its funerary complex, although ruinous in appearance on the outside, houses a funerary chamber with 228 blue hieroglyphic formulas. The purpose of these writings was to assist the monarch in his journey to the Hereafter to ensure his eternal life.
The original structure reached a height of 43 meters with a base of 57.5 meters. The core of the building consists of limestone blocks, while the interior houses a descending hallway that leads to an antechamber and the sarcophagus room. This room has a ceiling decorated with five-pointed stars and contains a basalt sarcophagus covered in alabaster.
A notable element of the complex is its processional road 700 meters long. The reliefs on its walls show diverse scenes: from the transportation of granite materials and hunting parties to representations of a time of famine suffered during that period.
Gaston Maspero He was the first researcher to enter the chambers in 1881. After a twenty-year closure for the installation of ventilation and humidity control systems, the pyramid reopened its doors to the public in May 2016. This reopening seeks to preserve the inscriptions and promote tourism in the region.
