Egypt: World Stands by, and Waits

"Egypt's unrest is a crisis for art:Is the world going to stand by and watch the destruction of Egyptian antiquities that are our global inheritance?" asks Jonathan Jones (Guardian, Tuesday 20 August 2013 - incidentally, with a link to this blog).

British government travel advice is to avoid much of the country except for the Red Sea resorts. This development has been reported with no mention of culture as if the issue were purely about holidays. In fact, it reveals a crisis for art. [...] If the pyramids of Giza are not safe for tourists, how safe is the pharoah's solar boat, a wooden astral craft excavated next to the pyramids and displayed beside them? If holidaymakers are being told to avoid Cairo, is there a risk to the mesmerising, irreplaceable artefacts in its museum? [...] This is not speculation. It has been reported that a museum in Minya on the Upper Nile has already been looted in the current unrest. [...] The military-backed government may have its own reasons for promoting this story (it blames the Muslim Brotherhood) but photographs of the damage and theft make it clear something destructive has happened. [...] It is time for the Art Fund, the British Museum and any other body that takes responsibility for cultural heritage to speak up for the antiquities of Egypt. This is too important to wait until the worst happens. We can start by recognising that the pyramids and sarcophagi and statues of ancient Egypt are not just for tourists but part of a global inheritance, to be kept safe for all future generations.

Yes, the British Museum, let it speak up against artefact hunters ripping objects out of the soil for collection and sale. With England's pro-artefact hunting Portable Antiquities Scheme an integral part of it, that would at best be hypocrisy. But yes, let them speak out and do what they can to help the beleagured Egyptian conservation services in this difficult task. And the US? SAFE is busily promoting its important 'Say Yes to Egypt' campaign, and is anything stirring in government circles? In antiquity dealers' associations? The grandly-named American Cultural Property Research Institute for example, what is it doing to help? The AIA?

Vignette: The sun goes down on Egyptian heritage