Tuesday March 19th, 2024
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Video: Zahi Hawass Freaks Out and Storms Out Of Debate

Leaked footage shows the former head of Egypt's antiquities throw a fit at British journalist and theorist Graham Hancock ahead of a planned debate last week.

Staff Writer

A video of everyone's least favourite, yet somehow most beloved Egyptologist Zahi Hawass has just been leaked showing the former head of Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities engage in a feisty war of words with British writer and journalist Graham Hancock ahead of a planned debate at The Mena House Hotel on April 22nd 2015.

Before the debate began, Hancock - who specialises in unconventional theories involving ancient civilisations - went through his presentation, when a specific photo of Robert Bauval, the man who put forward the Orion Correlation Theory about the Giza pyramids, riled up Hawass. Immediately, the 67-year old launched into a string of insults aimed towards Hancock and his wife.

"This man Robert Bauval is a thief and I do not want to talk about him and I do not want his name to be mentioned," shouts Hawass at the beginning of his arrogant yet highly entertaining rant, before asking Hancock to simply go away.

For more than 20 years Hawass and Bauval have been at odds about his particular theory, and more recently accusations have been thrown back and forth between the two following the scandal concerning two Germans who, after being allowed access, allegedly extracted samples from Khufu's pyramid for analysis but it seemed more like vandalism.

Hancock and Hawass continue to argue over the course of two minutes before Hawass storms out announcing he will not participate in the debate or attend Hancock's presentation. He did however still stay for his own discussion and Q & A. 

Our favourite parts are Hawass' particular offence to the word 'shame'. Priceless. This is the best thing to happen to archaeology since Tut's tomb.