I was informed by Dr, Mohamed Abdel Maksoud, head of antiquities in Lower Egypt, that the committee who reviewed the storage magazine at Qantara East has finished their report. Qantara East is the magazine that I wrote about in my first website post during the revolution. I mentioned that a group of armed men attacked the storage magazine and stole many boxes. This magazine is located in the Sinai desert, and it was very easy for the criminals to steal many objects without any resistance from the unarmed guards. The committee has reported that 800 objects were stolen from the Qantara East storage magazine.

I do not want anyone reading these words to be afraid; the majority of the items missing are pottery and amphorae. There is also one unfinished limestone statue missing, and some coins. Luckily, the room containing the boxes for the Port Said Museum, Taba Museum, and the Sharm el-Sheikh Museum was not broken into. The Port Said Museum is currently closed for renovations, and 60 boxes of antiquities were being stored at Qantara East. Taba Museum is also closed for restoration work, and the Sharm el-Sheikh Museum is under construction, and it will contain artifacts from all over Egypt from the pharaonic, Coptic, and Islamic periods. I am very happy to report that all of the objects from these museums are safe, and Mohamed Abdel Maksoud has brought them to the Egyptian Museum, Cairo for safe keeping. 

The other thing that people need to know is that despite the fact that Egypt is quiet again and things seem to be going back to normal for everyday people, archaeological sites are under attack. Site guards are unarmed and the full force of police has not yet returned, so many people are encroaching on archaeological land by building houses, cemeteries, or using it for agricultural purposes. In addition to these problems, there are many reports of illegal excavations.

At Lischt, a famous site containing the Middle Kingdom pyramid of Amenemhat I, looters have broken into tombs many times, and there are illegal excavations taking place at night. I have heard rumors that in one village a statue measuring 1.5m high was found, and in another village inscribed blocks have been found. In Dahshur, antiquities inspectors were able to recover two large blocks with colored scenes from the funerary temple of Amenemhat I. They are also struggling to prevent people from moving onto archaeological land and digging illegally at night. I received a report on Saturday from inspectors saying they had found looters inside of a tomb! In Saqqara, I had previously reported that magazines and tombs had been broken into. Now, eight acres of land near the Mastaba el-Faraun and the pyramid of Merenre I has been overtaken by people. At Abusir a new cemetery has been built over twelve acres in an area containing 1st and 2nd Dynasty tombs. What upsets me the most is what is happening at Giza. The site is being taken over by camel and horse drivers; they are even attacking tombs. I do not know I anyone can stop people from damaging these sites.