Now this has become the world’s top news from Egypt : King Tutankhamun’s golden and blue fake beard of the mask was broken during a cleaning process at the Egyptian Museum and the museum’s conservators hurriedly glued the beard back on with epoxy resin, damaging the artifact.It is all over the news more than El-Sisi’s speech in Davos and to be honest this is expected , we are speaking about King Tut who is more famous worldwide than Egypt’s rulers in modern age altogether. I am more than furious
Now the story began earlier this week when London based Al-Araby Al-Gadid published an alarming investigative report that King Tut’s beard and how it was damaged last October thanks to one of the conservators. The report added that other conservators in the Egyptian museum discovered the matter and reported it to the minister of antiquities El-Damaty who ignored that matter. The report including a shocking photo for the fake beard.
In return the conservators who reported the matter were punished and were transferred to the Coptic Museum. The General director of the Egyptian museum denies that anything happened to the mask.
Not many people paid attention to that report because it is published in London Based Qatari owned Al-Araby Al-Gadid which is close to the Muslim Brotherhood or was close to the MB as there have been changes in the new website following the reconciliation with Qatar.
On Thursday AP reported the matter in its report which became a top news in all over the world in all languages.
The story was developing on Thursday rapidly.
Thursday afternoon Egyptian Museum General Director Mahmoud El-Halwagi told Ahram Online that a committee assigned to inspect the mask’s condition and would report its findings to the ministry within two days. Youm 7 claimed that the ministry of antiquities knew about that disaster on Wednesday and that it commissioned a group of German scientists and conservators to inspect the mask. The ministry denied that report later. In a statement to Pro-regime Al-Qahera Wal Nas minister El-Damaty of antiquities claimed the photo spread in the media was taken last year and that there is nothing wrong with the Statue now !!
This is what we know from news .
Now The 10 years old King’s golden mask has a hole on the chin where the pin of the beard enters. Check the photo below from AL-Maussar Magazine cover from year 1936.
According to Egyptologist Monica Hanna it seems that there is permanent damage as the internal parts used to fix the beard without a need for adhesive are badly damaged apparently. Hanna explained the whole affair in a set of tweets.
Monica Hanna who is a member in heritage grassroots movement Egypt’s Heritage Task Force announced that the Movement would report what happened to the prosecutor general demanding an investigation.
Personally I want UNESCO to come and inspect what the hell happened to Tut’s mask.
Hanna also added on twitter that she knew from sources that once again the conservators in the museum would inspect and dissemble the statue next Monday. Already Sunday is a national holiday commemorating the 25th January revolution.
Of course Egyptians reacted to the news on social media and aside from the anger and disgust at what happened. Some of them restored to sarcasm to express their anger.
The Pro-Sisi/Mubarak tweeps are claiming that the so-called twitter activists are the ones who are spreading those rumors and that you can see and take photos of King Tut tomorrow in the museum normally !! A fact : Photography is not allowed inside the museum. They are repeating the pathetic talk of the officials who are hiding a disaster. Amazingly those tweeps were crying a river over the Egyptian identity and our Egyptian heritage during Morsi’s rule.
I do not think museums and universities all over the globe will agree to return back ancient artifacts they took from Egypt illegally after this disaster.
I do not know what to say but what happened to King Tut’s mask is just a symbol what is happening to Egypt now. They claim that they are fixing where as they are damaging it permanently. I feel more than sad.
Now the story began earlier this week when London based Al-Araby Al-Gadid published an alarming investigative report that King Tut’s beard and how it was damaged last October thanks to one of the conservators. The report added that other conservators in the Egyptian museum discovered the matter and reported it to the minister of antiquities El-Damaty who ignored that matter. The report including a shocking photo for the fake beard.
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| The photo taken for the mask and the glue published in Al-Araby Al-Gadid |
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| An inside memo with the incident "Monica Hanna" |
On Thursday AP reported the matter in its report which became a top news in all over the world in all languages.
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| A File photo for the beard in the mask in the museum released by AP from August 2014 |
Thursday afternoon Egyptian Museum General Director Mahmoud El-Halwagi told Ahram Online that a committee assigned to inspect the mask’s condition and would report its findings to the ministry within two days. Youm 7 claimed that the ministry of antiquities knew about that disaster on Wednesday and that it commissioned a group of German scientists and conservators to inspect the mask. The ministry denied that report later. In a statement to Pro-regime Al-Qahera Wal Nas minister El-Damaty of antiquities claimed the photo spread in the media was taken last year and that there is nothing wrong with the Statue now !!
This is what we know from news .
Now The 10 years old King’s golden mask has a hole on the chin where the pin of the beard enters. Check the photo below from AL-Maussar Magazine cover from year 1936.
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| King Tut without a beard |
Personally I want UNESCO to come and inspect what the hell happened to Tut’s mask.
Hanna also added on twitter that she knew from sources that once again the conservators in the museum would inspect and dissemble the statue next Monday. Already Sunday is a national holiday commemorating the 25th January revolution.
Of course Egyptians reacted to the news on social media and aside from the anger and disgust at what happened. Some of them restored to sarcasm to express their anger.
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| The Manual "David Habchy" |
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| Tut at the barber shop "Sameh Abdel-Khalek" |
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| Egyptians fix Sphinx' Nose "@Noory" |
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| The operation to fix Tut's beard by epoxy succeed "In reference to KoftaGate" { @Offthehookpain} |
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| King Tut : Fuck "Muna Abdurrahman" |
I do not think museums and universities all over the globe will agree to return back ancient artifacts they took from Egypt illegally after this disaster.
I do not know what to say but what happened to King Tut’s mask is just a symbol what is happening to Egypt now. They claim that they are fixing where as they are damaging it permanently. I feel more than sad.
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| The child king's mask without a beard |
I'm not even Egyptian and I'm madder than Zeinobia. This is far from the first time this has happened. You may remember when a building full of Egypt's most precious historical documents was fire-bombed and 100% was destroyed. I said then and I say again now, Egypt must swallow her pride and ship Tut and everything that isn't nailed down and send it to the British Museum, or one of the many first-rate museums in Israel, where competent first-world curators can take care of it until Egypt grows up.
ReplyDeleteThis incident personifies the acclaimed Egyptian Civil Servant profile for their incompetence, laziness and dishonesty
ReplyDeletehe would've benefited from a good beard trimmer...
ReplyDelete