Egypt pyramid: Plans to renovate Giza put on hold

A plan to add granite blocks to the outside of a pyramid in Egypt has been stopped, according to the country's tourism minister.

The project to cover the smallest of the three great pyramids of Giza was announced in January by Mostafa Waziri, the secretary general of Egypt's supreme council of antiquities.

Originally the Menkaure pyramid was covered in granite, but over time most of this covering was lost.

But the plan to restore the granite blocks has been met with some online criticism and since then Egypt's antiquities authority has stopped work on the monument.

Built around 2500 BC, the 62 metre-tall structure was created to honour the pharaoh Menkaure who ruled during ancient Egypt's fourth dynasty.

Unlike other pyramids in Egypt, part of Menkaure was once covered in granite blocks. However, over the years the pyramid has been "gradually whittled away by erosion and vandalism".

The plan was to use some of the remaining granite blocks scattered around the pyramid to rebuild it, but this has drawn concern from some archaeologists about whether it is needed, or if enough research has been done before undertaking the work.

The Menkaure Pyramid Review Committee said this week they 'objected' to the current plan to put the granite blocks back on the pyramid.

Planned renovation work on the pyramid is now being stopped so that further research can be done.

"What I want to say is don't worry, the pyramids of Giza are safe, and nothing will happen to them," said Zahi Hawass, a former minister of antiquities and part of the review committee.

The pyramids of Giza in northern Egypt are the last of the seven wonders of the ancient world that still remain.