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Archaeologists worry new roads could damage pyramids

The construction of two highways near the ruins of the ancient city of Memphis has alarmed archaeologists, who fear that traffic on the new roads will damage the archaeological treasures in the area and expose them to theft.

A picture taken on April 13, 2020, shows a view of the Great pyramid of Khafre (Chephren) seen through the scaffolding on the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), which is currently under construction, in Giza on the southwestern outskirts of the capital Cairo. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images)
A picture taken on April 13, 2020, shows a view of the Great Pyramid of Khufu (Chephren) seen through the scaffolding on the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is currently under construction, in Giza on the southwestern outskirts of the capital Cairo. — KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Work is in full swing for the construction of two motorways near the ruins of the ancient city of Memphis, the capital of the Old Kingdom of Egypt. The new roads are part of an infrastructure plan to develop the area around the Giza Plateau in Giza ahead of the much anticipated inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum in 2021.

One of the roads will cross the desert south of the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the only survivor of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The other route will pass between the limestone step pyramid of Djoser and the Dahshur area south of Cairo.

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