Since the topic of antiquities being destroyed was being discussed, I thought about this old article. People are interested in the past; and when you destroy these antiquities, you are destroying a link to the past. Even though I am not Egyptian like the children mentioned in this article, I used to like go to the section of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York as a kid with my class to view the Egyptian section of the Museum, which is still available for museum visitors. I believe they have something now called the Temple of Dendur. How people could be barbaric enough to want to destroy these old things is beyond me. Will they next be calling on the Sunnis to destroy all the old churches in Europe such as Notre Dame?
Extremist calls for destruction of Egyptian antiquities
By Ben Wedeman, CNN
updated 12:53 AM EST, Tue November 13, 2012
Morgan Al-Gohary said that if he were in power, he wouldn't hesitate to destroy the Sphinx and pyramids.
Cairo (CNN) -- I took a long stroll through the cavernous Egyptian Museum, just off Tahrir Square, this month. It was the first time I went though the museum without breathless Egyptologists yanking me around, impatient children or a looming deadline.
The place was packed, not with tourists, but mostly with Egyptian schoolchildren. They were led around by amazingly patient guides explaining the most minute of details about every little bit and piece on display. A few of the schoolchildren weren't listening very closely, but most were paying attention. They clearly did feel a connection, at some level, with these ancient pharaonic artifacts. And not surprisingly. They must have recognized, in those ancient faces, their ancestors.
Certainly, if you look closely at some of the more lifelike statues, you will see faces identical to the faces you see every day here. There are some in Egypt, however, who seem hell bent on repudiating, indeed destroying, the link between Egypt's distant past and its messy present.
Morgan Al-Gohary, a jihadi sheikh with a history of radicalism, appeared on the private Egyptian TV channel Dream TV 2 Saturday evening and declared that if he and his ilk ever came to power, they would not hesitate to destroy the Sphinx and the pyramids. He's no stranger to the notion of vandalizing ancient artifacts, boasting to the show's host, Wael Al-Abrashi, that while in Afghanistan, he took part along with the Taliban in the demolition of the Bamyan Buddhas in March 2001.
Extremist calls for destruction of Egyptian antiquities - CNN.com
Extremist calls for destruction of Egyptian antiquities
By Ben Wedeman, CNN
updated 12:53 AM EST, Tue November 13, 2012
Morgan Al-Gohary said that if he were in power, he wouldn't hesitate to destroy the Sphinx and pyramids.
Cairo (CNN) -- I took a long stroll through the cavernous Egyptian Museum, just off Tahrir Square, this month. It was the first time I went though the museum without breathless Egyptologists yanking me around, impatient children or a looming deadline.
The place was packed, not with tourists, but mostly with Egyptian schoolchildren. They were led around by amazingly patient guides explaining the most minute of details about every little bit and piece on display. A few of the schoolchildren weren't listening very closely, but most were paying attention. They clearly did feel a connection, at some level, with these ancient pharaonic artifacts. And not surprisingly. They must have recognized, in those ancient faces, their ancestors.
Certainly, if you look closely at some of the more lifelike statues, you will see faces identical to the faces you see every day here. There are some in Egypt, however, who seem hell bent on repudiating, indeed destroying, the link between Egypt's distant past and its messy present.
Morgan Al-Gohary, a jihadi sheikh with a history of radicalism, appeared on the private Egyptian TV channel Dream TV 2 Saturday evening and declared that if he and his ilk ever came to power, they would not hesitate to destroy the Sphinx and the pyramids. He's no stranger to the notion of vandalizing ancient artifacts, boasting to the show's host, Wael Al-Abrashi, that while in Afghanistan, he took part along with the Taliban in the demolition of the Bamyan Buddhas in March 2001.
Extremist calls for destruction of Egyptian antiquities - CNN.com
