When I went to Egypt in 1993 it was truly the trip of a lifetime. As an artist who also loves mythology, I was in heaven in a place like Egypt. What I didn't realize until I got there, was how far the most famous sites were from one another—The Pyramids, Abu Simbel, Karnak, King Tut's tomb. We saw it all.
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.—Percy Bysshe Shelley
Which is why it is so hard to look at the images coming out of Egypt over the last 24 hours. Mummies defiled, exhibit cases shattered. This is not the way to protest President Mubarak's policies and government. Egypt and its treasures have a long history of being ransacked, mostly by Egyptians themselves. It is a shame the tradition is being continued with this latest attack on its culture coming from within.
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