Egyptian tour guide arrested for drawing on 4,000-year-old Pyramid of Unas

In the video capturing the incident, the man was seen leaning toward a lower section of the pyramid while a group of tourists stood nearby listening. He is then seen attempting to wipe the markings away with his hand; however fails to erase.

An Egyptian tour guide has been arrested for drawing a stick-figure on a 4,000-year-old ancient pyramid pic.twitter.com/T4s2WOgrhn

— Dexerto (@Dexerto) February 28, 2026

The incident has drawn significant attention on social media, with a user commenting, “Let my man go. He was just adding on to it for future generations to admire.” Another user wrote, “people have been going to see the pyramids for 4000 years and they have been untouched then this idiot comes and does this.”

“arrested for adding the newest hieroglyph to a wall literally covered in hieroglyphs,” a third user reacted.

In a statement posted on X, Egypt’s Interior Ministry said the guide “damaged an antiquity by drawing on the outer casing of one of the pyramids” while explaining the site to tourists. Although early reports referenced the broader Giza area, local media later identified the monument as the Pyramid of Unas in Saqqara.

The ministry said an investigation was launched after the video went viral, prompting an antiquities inspector to file a report with the Saqqara Tourism Police Station that led to the suspect’s identification.

Authorities arrested the guide, who confessed to the act during questioning, according to the ministry. “Legal measures have been taken,” the ministry added, noting that specialists have since removed the markings from the ancient structure, the report added.

Built for Pharaoh Unas in the 24th century BC, the pyramid is historically significant for containing the earliest known Pyramid Texts, religious inscriptions carved into the interior walls. The more than 200 spells are considered the oldest known collection of funerary texts and are regarded as a foundational source for later ancient Egyptian religious writings.