http://www.theage.com.au/news/travel/egypt-to-copyright-pyramids/2007/12/26/1198345080146.html
Egypt to copyright pyramids Rayad Abou Awad, Cairo December 27, 2007 EGYPT plans to pass a law requiring payment of royalties whenever its ancient monuments, from the pyramids to the Sphinx, are reproduced. The law is a potential blow to themed resorts from Las Vegas to Tokyo. Zahi Hawass, the controversial head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, said this week that the move was necessary to pay for the upkeep of the country's thousands of pharaonic sites. The law will also bar exact copies of historic monuments. "If the law is passed, then it will be applied in all countries of the world so that we can protect our interests," Dr Hawass said. A ministerial committee had agreed on the law, which should be passed in the next parliamentary session. "It is Egypt's right to be the only copyright owner for these monuments in order to benefit financially so we can restore, preserve and protect Egyptian monuments," Dr Hawass said. However, the law "does not forbid local or international artists from profiting from drawings and other reproductions of pharaonic and Egyptian monuments from all eras - as long as they don't make exact copies", he said. Asked about the potential impact on the monumental Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, he said the resort was "not an exact copy of pharaonic monuments despite the fact it's in the shape of a pyramid". Dr Hawass' comments came after the opposition daily al-Wafd published an article on Sunday calling for the Las Vegas hotel to pay a slice of its lodging and gambling profits to the city of Luxor. AFP
