View source for Zahi Hawass

{{Short description|Egyptian Egyptologist (born 1947)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = {{small|[[Order of the Republic (Egypt)|ORE]]}}
| name                = Zahi Hawass
| native_name         = زاهي حواس
| image               = Hawass.jpg
| caption             = <!-- -->
| order               = 1st
| title               = [[Ministry of State of Antiquities|Minister of Antiquities]]
<!-- -->| term_start1         = January 31, 2011
| term_end1           = March 3, 2011
| president1          = [[Hosni Mubarak]]
| primeminister1      = [[Ahmed Shafik]]
| predecessor1        = ''Office created''
| successor1          = Mohamed Ibrahim Ali
<!-- -->| term_start2         = April 5, 2011
| term_end2           = July 17, 2011
| primeminister2      = [[Essam Sharaf]]
| successor2          = Mohamed Said
<!-- -->| birth_date          = {{birth date and age|1947|5|28}}
| birth_place         = [[Damietta]], [[Kingdom of Egypt|Egypt]]
| death_date          = 
| death_place         = 
| restingplace        = 
| restingplacecoordinates = 
| birthname           = 
| nationality         = Egyptian
| party               = 
| spouse              = Fekrya Hawass
| children            = 2
| alma_mater          = [[University of Pennsylvania]] ([[Master of Arts|MA]], [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]])<br />[[Cairo University]]<br/>[[Alexandria University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])
| occupation          = 
| profession          = [[Egyptology|Egyptologist]]
| cabinet             = 
| committees          = 
| portfolio           = 
| signature           = 
| signature_alt       = 
| website             = {{URL|hawasszahi.com}}
| footnotes           = 
}}
'''Zahi Abass Hawass''' ({{langx|ar|زاهي حواس}}; born May 28, 1947) is an [[Egyptians|Egyptian]] [[archaeology|archaeologist]], [[Egyptology|Egyptologist]], and former [[Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (Egypt)|Minister of Tourism and Antiquities]], a position he held twice. He has worked at archaeological sites in the [[Nile Delta]], the [[Western Desert (Egypt)|Western Desert]] and the [[Upper and Lower Egypt|Upper Nile Valley]].

==Early life==
Hawass was born in a small village near [[Damietta, Egypt]]. Although he originally dreamed of becoming an attorney,<ref name="RiseFall">{{cite web|url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-rise-and-fall-and-rise-of-zahi-hawass-72874123/?all|title=The Rise and Fall and Rise of Zahi Hawass|first=Joshua|last=Hammer|access-date=May 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116050551/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-rise-and-fall-and-rise-of-zahi-hawass-72874123/?all|archive-date=November 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> he obtained a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree in Greek and Roman Archaeology from [[Alexandria University]] in 1967. In 1979, Hawass earned a diploma in [[Egyptology]] from [[Cairo University]].<ref name="Bio">{{cite web|url=http://www.drhawass.com/wp/bio/|title=DR ZAHI – Dr Zahi|website=drhawass.com|access-date=May 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325080837/http://www.drhawass.com/wp/bio/|archive-date=March 25, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> He then worked at the Great Pyramids as an inspector—a combination of administrator and archaeologist.

When he was 33 years old, Hawass was awarded a [[Fulbright Fellowship]] to attend the [[University of Pennsylvania]] in [[Philadelphia]] to study Egyptology,<ref name="RiseFall"/> earning a [[Master of Arts]] degree in the subject and also one in Syro-Palestinian Archaeology in 1983, and his PhD in Egyptology in 1987<ref name="RiseFall"/><ref name="Bio"/> from the [[University of Pennsylvania]]'s [[Graduate Group in the Art and Archaeology of the Mediterranean World]] (AAMW), concentrating on "The Funerary Establishments of [[Khufu]], [[Khafra]] and [[Menkaura]] During the [[Old Kingdom]]."<ref>{{cite web | author = AAMW | date = 2009 | title = Art and Archaeology of the Mediterranean World (AAMW) Alumni: Dissertations related to Mediterranean and Near Eastern Art and Archaeology (since 1898) | url = http://www.sas.upenn.edu/aamw/alumni | location = Philadelphia, PA, USA | publisher = University of Pennsylvania, School of Arts and Sciences | access-date = January 25, 2016 | quote = Zahi Abass Hawass / The Funerary Establishments of Khufu, Khafra and Menkaura During the Old Kingdom / 1987 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110527153605/http://www.sas.upenn.edu/aamw/alumni | archive-date = May 27, 2011 | url-status = live }}</ref>

==Career==
{{BLP sources section|date=January 2016}}

=== Archaeology and early government career ===
Hawass was Associate Director of Excavation at [[Hermopolis]] in 1968 and [[Tarrana]] 1970–74. Since 1975, he has been Excavation Director and Restoration Director at various sites throughout Egypt, predominantly [[Giza Plateau|Giza]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.drhawass.com/wp/bio/ |title=DR ZAHI |website=drhawass.com |access-date=March 23, 2021 |archive-date=March 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310042446/https://www.drhawass.com/wp/bio/ }}</ref>

From 1969 to 1975, Hawass was Inspector of Antiquities for a multitude of archaeological expeditions, for instance the Yale Expedition at [[Abydos, Egypt]] in 1969, and [[Abu Simbel]] between 1972 and 1974.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.guardians.net/hawass/background.htm |title=Dr. Zahi Hawass |website=guardians.net }}</ref>

He sporadically taught Egyptian archaeology and history and culture at universities in Egypt and the [[United States|USA]] between 1988 and 2001, most notably at the [[American University in Cairo]], the [[University of California, Los Angeles]] and [[Alexandria University]]. Hawass has described his efforts as trying to help institute a systematic program for the preservation and restoration of historical monuments, while training Egyptians to improve their expertise on methods of excavation, retrieval and preservation.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Hawass|first=Zahi|title=A New Era for Museums in Egypt|journal=Museum International|date=May 2005|issue=1–2| volume=57|pages=7–23|doi=10.1111/j.1468-0033.2005.00505.x|s2cid=162438360}}</ref>

==== Giza ====
[[File:President Barack Obama tours the Pyramids and Sphinx with Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities.jpg|thumb|Zahi Hawass and [[Barack Obama]], June 2009]]
Hawass was Inspector of Antiquities for Giza 1972–74, First Inspector until 1979 and Chief Inspector in 1980. Starting in 1987, he held the position of Director General of the Giza monuments, which included the sites of Giza, [[Saqqara]], [[Memphis, Egypt|Memphis]], [[Dahshur]], [[Abusir]] and [[Bahariya Oasis]].

After the discovery of [[Gantenbrink's Door]] in 1993, he left the position –  according to Hawass, a resignation<ref>[http://www.egypttoday.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=6785] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090113210932/http://www.egypttoday.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=6785|date=January 13, 2009}}</ref> – but was reinstated several months later, following a change in leadership and the transformation of the [[Egyptian Antiquities Organization]] into the [[Supreme Council of Antiquities]].

He was promoted to Undersecretary of the State for the Giza Monuments in 1998.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://guardians.net/hawass/release7-98.htm |title=Dr. Hawass Promoted |website=guardians.net }}</ref>

Hawass continues to be involved in archaeological projects at Giza and other sites in Egypt. {{As of|2017}}, he headed the science committee overseeing the [[ScanPyramids]] project.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-11-egypt-archaeologist-criticises-pyramid-void.html |title=Egypt archaeologist criticises pyramid void 'discovery' |website=phys.org |date=November 5, 2017 }}</ref>

=== Politics ===
In 2002, Hawass was appointed as the Secretary General of the [[Supreme Council of Antiquities]]. When US President [[Barack Obama]] visited Cairo in June 2009, Hawass gave him personal tours of ancient Egyptian archaeological sites.<ref>Knoller, Mark (June 4, 2009). [https://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-checks-out-sphinx-and-pyramids/ "Obama Checks Out Sphinx And Pyramids"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191212003744/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-checks-out-sphinx-and-pyramids/|date=December 12, 2019}}. [[CBS News]]. Retrieved September 6, 2019.</ref> Facing mandatory retirement, he was promoted by President [[Hosni Mubarak]] to the post of Vice Minister of Culture at the end of 2009.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Zahi-Hawass|title = Zahi Hawass &#124; Biography & Facts| date=September 9, 2024 }}</ref><ref name="vice-minister">{{cite web|title=Dr. Hawass Named Vice Minister of Culture of Egypt &#124; drhawass.com - Zahi Hawass|url=http://www.drhawass.com/blog/dr-hawass-named-vice-minister-culture-egypt|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724162948/http://www.drhawass.com/blog/dr-hawass-named-vice-minister-culture-egypt|archive-date=July 24, 2014|access-date=August 12, 2010}}{{third-party inline|date=January 2016}}</ref>

====2011 protest vandalism====
On January 29, 2011, in the midst of the [[2011 Egyptian protests|Egyptian protests of that year]], Hawass arrived at the [[Egyptian Museum]] in [[Cairo]] to find that a number of cases had been broken into and a number of antiquities damaged, so police were brought in to secure the museum.<ref name="Joffe">{{cite journal | last = Joffe | first = Alex | date = 2011 | title = Arts Link: Egypt's Antiquities Fall Victim to the Mob | format = online | issue = February 1 | url = https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703833204576114580200904212 | access-date = January 25, 2016 | journal = [[The Wall Street Journal]] | quote = Subtitle: A definitive answer to the question: Should the Elgin Marbles be returned to Greece? | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171124203814/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703833204576114580200904212 | archive-date = November 24, 2017 | url-status = live }}</ref> According to [[Andrew Lawler]], reporting for ''[[Science (journal)|Science]]'', Hawass said that he "faxed a colleague in Italy that 13 cases were destroyed. My heart is broken and my blood is boiling".<ref name="Lawler">{{cite magazine | last = Lawler | first = Andrew | date = 2011 | title = Archaeologists Hold Their Breaths on Status of Egyptian Antiquities | format = online | issue = January 31 | url = https://www.science.org/content/article/archaeologists-hold-their-breaths-status-egyptian-antiquities | access-date = January 25, 2016 | magazine = [[Science (magazine)|Science]] | location = Washington, DC, USA | publisher = [[American Association for the Advancement of Science|AAAS]] | quote = "The current political upheaval in Egypt has put the country's famed antiquities, from its museums to archaeological sites, under siege. / On 29 January, a small band of looters entered Cairo's Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, slicing the heads from two mummies, smashing display cases, and damaging other artifacts, according to media reports and Zahi Hawass, the director of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. Hawass, who a source says has been promoted to the new position of Minister of Antiquities as part of a cabinet shakeup yesterday, faxed a colleague in Italy that 13 cases were destroyed. "My heart is broken and my blood is boiling," the U.S.-trained archaeologist lamented." | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181119222750/https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2011/01/archaeologists-hold-their-breaths-status-egyptian-antiquities | archive-date = November 19, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref>

Hawass later told ''[[The New York Times]]'' that thieves looking for gold broke 70 objects, including two sculptures of the pharaoh [[Tutankhamun]] and took two skulls from a research lab, before being stopped as they left the museum.<ref name="Taylor">{{cite news | last = Taylor | first = Kate | date = 2011 | title = Middle East: Antiquities Chief Says Sites Are Largely Secure | format = online | issue = February 1 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/02/world/middleeast/02antiquities.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 | newspaper = The New York Times | quote = "A vast majority of Egypt's museums and archaeological sites are secure and have not been looted, Zahi Hawass, Egypt's chief antiquities official, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday. He also rejected comparisons between the current situation in Egypt and scenes of chaos and discord that resulted in the destruction of artifacts in Iraq and Afghanistan. / 'People are asking me, "Do you think Egypt will be like Afghanistan?" ' he said. 'And I say, "No, Egyptians are different — they love me because I protect antiquities." ' " | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181122135521/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/02/world/middleeast/02antiquities.html | archive-date = November 22, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref>

====Minister of Antiquities====
Hawass was appointed to the position of Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs, a newly created cabinet post, by Mubarak on January 31, 2011, as part of a cabinet shake-up during the 2011 protests.<ref name="Lawler" /><ref name="Taylor" /><ref name="hawass-update" />{{dead link|date=January 2016}} A press release including a statement from Hawass stated that he "will continue excavating, writing books, and representing his country,"<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sca-egypt.org/eng/pdfs/Press_release_01-02-2011.pdf |title=Supreme Council of Antiquities – Principal Mission |access-date=January 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130411225841/http://www.sca-egypt.org/eng/pdfs/Press_release_01-02-2011.pdf |archive-date=April 11, 2013 }}</ref> ensuring that archaeological sites in Egypt were being safeguarded and looted objects returned.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} Regarding the Egyptian Museum looting, he said: "The museum was dark and the nine robbers did not recognise the value of what was in the vitrines. They opened thirteen cases, threw the seventy objects on the ground and broke them, including one Tutankhamun case, from which they broke the statue of the king on a panther. However, the broken objects can all be restored, and we will begin the restoration process this week."{{quote without source|date=January 2016}}<ref name="hawass-update">[http://www.drhawass.com/blog/state-egyptian-antiquities-today-update] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121183910/http://www.drhawass.com/blog/state-egyptian-antiquities-today-update|date=January 21, 2013}}</ref> Hawass rejected comparisons with the [[looting of antiquities in Iraq]] and [[Destruction of art in Afghanistan|Afghanistan]].<ref name="Taylor" />

On February 13, Mahmoud Kassem of ''Bloomberg'' reported Hawass as saying that "18 artifacts, including statues of King Tutankhamun", were stolen from the Egyptian Museum in January; Kassem, paraphrasing Hawass, continues: "The missing objects include 11 wooden shabti statuettes from Yuya, a gilded wooden statue of Tutankhamun carried by a goddess and a statue of [[Nefertiti]] making offerings".<ref name="Kassem">{{cite journal | last = Kassem | first = Mahmoud | date = 2011 | title = Egyptian Museum Says Two King Tut Statues Missing | issue = February 13 | url = https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2011-02-13/egyptian-museum-says-two-king-tut-statues-missing-update1- | access-date = January 25, 2016 | journal = Bloomberg Business | quote = The Egyptian Museum reported that 18 artifacts, including statues of King Tutankhamun, are missing after a break-in last month, said Zahi Hawass, the head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. / The police and army are following up on the disappearances with people in custody, Hawass said on his website. The missing objects include 11 wooden shabti statuettes from Yuya, a gilded wooden statue of Tutankhamun carried by a goddess and a statue of Nefertiti making offerings, according to Hawass. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180926014434/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2011-02-13/egyptian-museum-says-two-king-tut-statues-missing-update1- | archive-date = September 26, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref>

Egyptian state television reported that Hawass called upon Egyptians not to believe the "lies and fabrications" of the [[Al Jazeera Arabic|Al Jazeera]] and [[Al Arabiya]] satellite television channels.<ref name="Fahim">{{cite news | last = Fahim | first = Kareem | date = 2011 | title = Middle East: State TV in Egypt Offers Murky Window Into Power Shift | format = online | issue = February 1 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/02/world/middleeast/02antiquities.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | quote = "As hundreds of Egyptian protesters filled Tahrir Square on Monday, many calling for their president to go into exile, one of the two state-owned television stations had its cameras focused elsewhere, capturing the steady flow of traffic on a Cairo bridge. … The channel announced that Zahi Hawass, the chairman of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, had called on Egyptian citizens not to believe the 'lies and fabrications' of Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya channels. Mr. Hawass was back on the air on Monday, when he was appointed to Mr. Mubarak's cabinet." | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181122135521/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/02/world/middleeast/02antiquities.html | archive-date = November 22, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref> Hawass later said: "They should give us the opportunity to change things, and if nothing happens they can march again. But you can't bring in a new president now, in this time. We need Mubarak to stay and make the transition".<ref name="Taylor"/> On March 3, 2011, he resigned after a list was posted on his personal website of dozens of sites across Egypt that were looted during the 2011 protests.<ref name="Taylor-resigns">{{cite news | last = Taylor | first = Kate | date = 2011 | title = ArtsBeat: Egyptian Antiquities Chief Says He Will Resign | format = online | issue = March 3 | url = http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/03/egyptian-antiquities-chief-resigns/ | access-date = January 25, 2016 | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110714223752/http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/03/egyptian-antiquities-chief-resigns/ | archive-date = July 14, 2011 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Hawass blog 3-3-11">[http://www.drhawass.com/blog/status-egyptian-antiquities-today-3-march-2011] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140716132836/http://www.drhawass.com/blog/status-egyptian-antiquities-today-3-march-2011|date=July 16, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last = Vergano | first = Dan | date = 2011 | title = ScienceFair: Egyptology: Zahi Hawass Confirms Resignation | format = online | issue = March 6 | url = http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/03/zahi-hawass-resigns/1 | access-date = January 25, 2016 | journal = USA Today | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190106050029/http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/03/zahi-hawass-resigns/1 | archive-date = January 6, 2019 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last = El-Aref | first = Nevine | date = 2011 | title = Hawass Loyalists Call for Him to Stay On | format = online | issue = March 6 | url = http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/03/zahi-hawass-resigns/1 | access-date = January 25, 2016 | journal = USA Today | quote = Demonstrations of Egyptian Archaeologists Call for Egypt's New Prime Minister to Persuade Zahi Hawass to Remain Minister for Antiquities. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190106050029/http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/03/zahi-hawass-resigns/1 | archive-date = January 6, 2019 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>[http://www.drhawass.com/blog/why-dr-hawass-resigned] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141202224008/http://www.drhawass.com/blog/why-dr-hawass-resigned|date=December 2, 2014}}</ref>

Hawass was reappointed Minister of Antiquities by then-Prime Minister [[Essam Sharaf]].<ref>{{cite news | last = Taylor | first = Kate | date = 2011 | title = ArtsBeat: Egyptian Antiquities Minister Returns Less Than a Month After Quitting | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | format = online | issue = March 30 | url = http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/30/egypts-antiquities-minister-rehired-less-than-a-month-after-leaving/ | access-date = January 25, 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110814053219/http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/30/egypts-antiquities-minister-rehired-less-than-a-month-after-leaving/ | archive-date = August 14, 2011 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | author = People's Daily Online Staff | date = 2011 | title = Egypt's Minister of State for Antiquities Sworn In | journal = People's Daily Online | issue = April 5 | url = http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90777/90855/7340542.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121016061738/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90777/90855/7340542.html | archive-date = October 16, 2012 | url-status = live }}</ref> On March 30, 2011, a [[twitter|tweet]] was posted, stating: "I am very happy to be the Minister of Antiquities once again!"<ref>{{cite web | author =  Hawas, Zahi | date =  2011 | title =  Dr Zahi Hawass (@ZahiHawass) [6:47 AM – 30 Mar] | url =  https://mobile.twitter.com/ZahiHawass/status/53090946283352064?p=v | publisher =  self | access-date =  January 25, 2016 | quote =  "Verbatim and complete: I am very happy to be the Minister of Antiquities once again! | archive-url =  https://web.archive.org/web/20161129074907/https://mobile.twitter.com/ZahiHawass/status/53090946283352064?p=v | archive-date =  November 29, 2016 | url-status =  live }}</ref> but resigned on July 17, 2011,{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} after Sharaf informed him he would not be continuing in the position.<ref>[http://bikyamasr.com/wordpress/?p=36599] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130407094518/http://bikyamasr.com/wordpress/?p=36599|date=April 7, 2013}}</ref> According to opinion report from an Egyptian commentator in ''[[The Guardian]]'', Hawass was "sacked".<ref>{{cite journal | last = Diab | first = Osama | date = 2011 | journal = [[The Guardian]] | title = Opinion, You Told Us: Sacking Zahi Hawass Is a Sign of Egypt's Ongoing Revolution | format = online | issue = July 22 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jul/22/sacking-zahi-hawass-egypt-revolution | access-date = January 25, 2016 | quote = He may liken himself to Indiana Jones, but the minister of antiquities epitomised all that was wrong with Mubarak's Egypt. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305180515/http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jul/22/sacking-zahi-hawass-egypt-revolution | archive-date = March 5, 2016 | url-status = live }}</ref>{{dubious|date=January 2016}}{{better source needed|date=January 2016}}

=== Claimed discoveries ===
[[File:Egypt.ZahiHawass.01.jpg|thumb|Hawass at a [[book signing]] in [[Mexico City]], August 2003.]]
As his [[biography]] at the National Geographic Explorers webpage notes, he states that he is{{blockquote|responsible for many recent discoveries, including the tombs of the pyramid builders at Giza and the Valley of the Golden Mummies at Bahariya. At Giza, he also uncovered the satellite pyramid of Khufu. In 2005, as part of the National Geographic Society-sponsored Egyptian Mummy Project to learn more about patterns of disease, health, and mortality in ancient Egypt, he led a team that CT scanned the mummy of King Tutankhamun. His team is continuing to CT scan mummies, both royal and private, and hopes to solve some of the mysteries surrounding the lives and deaths of such important figures as [[Hatshepsut]] and [[Nefertiti]].<ref name = NatlGeograph>{{cite web | author = National Geographic Staff [Z. Hawass] | year = 2016 | title = Explorers, Bio: Zahi Hawass, Archaeologist, Explorer-in-Residence, 2000–2011 | website = [[National Geographic Society]] | format = online | url = http://www.nationalgeographic.com/explorers/bios/zahi-hawass | access-date = 25 January 2016 | quote = World-renowned archaeologist Zahi Hawass serves as minister of state for antiquities and director of excavations at Giza, Saqqara, and the Bahariya Oasis. / He is responsible for many recent discoveries, including the tombs of the pyramid builders at Giza and the Valley of the Golden Mummies at Bahariya. At Giza, he also uncovered the satellite pyramid of Khufu. In 2005, as part of the National Geographic Society-sponsored Egyptian Mummy Project to learn more about patterns of disease, health, and mortality in ancient Egypt, he led a team that CT scanned the mummy of King Tutankhamun. His team is continuing to CT scan mummies, both royal and private, and hopes to solve some of the mysteries surrounding the lives and deaths of such important figures as Hatshepsut and Nefertiti. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131021163550/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/explorers/bios/zahi-hawass/ | archive-date = October 21, 2013 }}</ref>}}

==Appearances==
[[File:ICE XII Kairo 2019-11-03b.jpg|thumb|Speaking at the International Congress of Egyptologists in Cairo, November 2019]]

Hawass has appeared on television specials on channels such as the ''[[National Geographic Channel]]'', the ''[[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]]'' and the ''[[Discovery Channel]]''.<ref>[http://www.history.com/minisites/lostpyramid] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320211424/http://www.history.com/minisites/lostpyramid|date=March 20, 2009}}</ref> Hawass has also appeared in several episodes of the U.S. television show ''[[Digging for the Truth]]'', discussing [[Mummy|mummies]], the pyramids, Tutankhamun, [[Cleopatra VII|Cleopatra]] and [[Ramesses II]]. He also appeared on ''[[Unsolved Mysteries]]'' during a segment on the curse of Tutankhamun's tomb. In 2010, Hawass appeared on a [[Reality television|reality-based]] television show on The History Channel called ''[[Chasing Mummies]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.history.com/shows/chasing-mummies/bios/dr-zahi-hawass |title=History Channel: ''"Chasing Mummies"'' Archaeologist Profile: Dr. Zahi Hawass |publisher=History.com |access-date=October 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121002163155/http://www.history.com/shows/chasing-mummies/bios/dr-zahi-hawass |archive-date=October 2, 2012 }}</ref>

Hawass also worked alongside Egyptologist [[Otto Schaden]] during the opening of Tomb [[KV63]] in February 2006 – the first intact tomb to be found in the [[Valley of the Kings]] since 1922.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kv-63.com/ |title=KV-63 |website=KV-63.com |access-date=January 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181011231621/http://www.kv-63.com/ |archive-date=October 11, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In June 2007, Hawass announced that he and a team of experts may have identified the mummy of [[Hatshepsut]],<ref name="DrHawass.com">[http://www.drhawass.com/events/quest-hatshepsut-discovering-mummy-egypts-greatest-female-pharaoh] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141127222950/http://www.drhawass.com/events/quest-hatshepsut-discovering-mummy-egypts-greatest-female-pharaoh|date=November 27, 2014}}</ref> in [[KV60]], a small tomb in the Valley of the Kings.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} The opening of the sealed tomb was described in 2006 as "one of the most important events in the Valley of the Kings for almost a hundred years."<ref>"King Tut's Mystery Tomb Opened", video documentary, [[Discovery Channel]], first aired July 9, 2006</ref>

Hawass was interviewed about his work by [[Keith Floyd]] as part of his television series ''Floyd around the Med'' in the episode "Cairo, Egypt and Aswan to Luxor" (2000).

Hawass was the host of the documentary ''[[Egypt's Ten Greatest Discoveries]]''.

=== Guest on ''The Joe Rogan Experience'' podcast ===
In May 2025, Hawass appeared as a guest on episode #2321 of ''[[The Joe Rogan Experience]]'' [[podcast]]. The host, [[Joe Rogan]], repeatedly encountered resistance from Hawass throughout the discussion. When asking to see pictures, from online or third-party sources, to verify various claims made by Hawass, <i>'It's in my book!'</i> was a response used repeatedly—without further explanation.<ref>{{cite podcast |host=Joe Rogan |date=14 May 2025 |title=Joe Rogan Experience #2321 - Dr. Zahi Hawass |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4dbLZTJjZY |publisher=[[YouTube]] |access-date=15 September 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=14 May 2025 |title=Joe Rogan Experience #2321 - Dr. Zahi Hawass (transcript) |url=https://podcasts.musixmatch.com/podcast/the-joe-rogan-experience-01hp4c6gdxz064yk1cyc1qym1k/episode/2321-dr-zahi-hawass-01jv7wvdx61ph71vzz3y1hcwed |publisher=Musixmatch |access-date=16 September 2025}}</ref> In a comment made after the podcast interview, Rogan said of the discussion that: "This was the toughest podcast I've ever made it through. To everyone that was able to finish it, you deserve a pat on the back."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-05-22 |title=Joe Rogan Reveals His Worst Podcast Guest in 16 Years |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/joe-rogan-reveals-his-worst-podcast-guest-in-16-years/ |access-date=2025-05-24 |website=The Daily Beast |language=en}}</ref>

==Views==
===Return of artifacts to Egypt===
Hawass has repeatedly spearheaded movements to return many prominent and irregularly taken [[Ancient Egyptian]] artifacts back to Egypt from collections in various other countries. Examples of these artifacts include: the [[Rosetta Stone]], the [[Nefertiti Bust|bust of Nefertiti]], the [[Dendera zodiac]] ceiling painting from the [[Dendera]] Temple, the [[Ankhhaf (sculpture)|bust]] of [[Ankhhaf]] (the architect of the [[Khafre]] [[Pyramid of Khafre|Pyramid]]), the faces of [[Amenhotep III]]'s [[WV22|tomb]] at the [[Louvre Museum]], the [[Luxor Obelisk|Luxor Temple's obelisk]] at the [[Place de la Concorde]] and the statue of [[Hemiunu]].

In July 2003, the Egyptians requested the return of the Rosetta Stone from the [[British Museum]]. Hawass, then serving as Secretary General of the [[Supreme Council of Antiquities]] in Cairo, spoke at a press conference saying: "If the British want to be remembered, if they want to restore their reputation, they should volunteer to return the Rosetta Stone because it is the icon of our Egyptian identity".<ref>{{cite news|author=Charlotte Edwardes|author2=Catherine Milner|name-list-style=amp|title=Egypt demands return of the Rosetta Stone|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|date=July 20, 2003|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/1436606/Egypt-demands-return-of-the-Rosetta-Stone.html|access-date=August 12, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190329172613/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/1436606/Egypt-demands-return-of-the-Rosetta-Stone.html|archive-date=March 29, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Henry Huttinger|title=Stolen Treasures: Zahi Hawass wants the Rosetta Stone back, among other things|work=Cairo Magazine|date=July 28, 2005|url=http://www.cairomagazine.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=1238&format=html|access-date=October 6, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051201070256/http://www.cairomagazine.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=1238&format=html|archive-date=December 1, 2005}}</ref> Referring to Egyptian antiquities at the British Museum, Hawass said: "These are Egyptian monuments. I will make life miserable for anyone who keeps them".<ref name="Williams">{{cite news|url=http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-01-26/egypt-relics-chief-pulls-in-revenue-as-he-fights-for-nefertiti.html|title=Egypt Relics Chief Pulls in Revenue as He Fights for Nefertiti|last=Williams|first=Daniel|date=January 27, 2010|work=Bloomberg Businessweek|access-date=August 12, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110201135026/http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-01-26/egypt-relics-chief-pulls-in-revenue-as-he-fights-for-nefertiti.html|archive-date=February 1, 2011}}</ref>

In 2019, Hawass relaunched his [[restitution]] campaign, asking the [[Berlin State Museums]], the British Museum and the [[Louvre|Musée du Louvre]]: "How can you refuse to lend to the new [[Grand Egyptian Museum]] when you have taken so many antiquities from Egypt?" All three museums refused his loan requests.<ref name=Harris>{{cite news|url=https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/08/22/return-rosetta-stone-to-egypt-demands-countrys-leading-archaeologist-zahi-hawass|author=Gareth Harris|date=August 22, 2022|title='Return Rosetta Stone to Egypt' demands country's leading archaeologist Zahi Hawass|work=Art Newspaper}}</ref>

In 2022, Hawass launched another petition, calling once again for the return of the Rosetta Stone, the [[Nefertiti Bust|bust of Nefertiti]] and the Dendera Zodiac ceiling to Egypt.<ref name=Aton>{{cite news|url=https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/what-rosetta-stone-return-egypt-british-museum-1234637096/|author=Francesca Aton|date=August 22, 2022|title=Renowned Egyptian Archaeologist Calls for British Museum to Return the Rosetta Stone|work=ARTNews}}</ref><ref name=Harris />

===DNA testing of Egyptian mummies===
[[File:Zahi-mummies.png|thumb|Hawass examining a [[mummy]] (2018).]]
{{further|List of DNA-tested mummies}}
Hawass has been skeptical of the DNA testing of Egyptian mummies: "From what I understand," he has said, "it is not always accurate and it cannot always be done with complete success when dealing with mummies. Until we know for sure that it is accurate, we will not use it in our research."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tutankhamunexhibition.com/tutankhamun-blog/2010/02/17/dna-identifies-tutankhamuns-parents/ |title=DNA identifies Tutankhamun's parents &#124; King Tutankhamun Ancient Egyptian Blog |access-date=January 26, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160530114926/http://www.tutankhamunexhibition.com/tutankhamun-blog/2010/02/17/dna-identifies-tutankhamuns-parents/ |archive-date=May 30, 2016 }}</ref>

In December 2000, a joint team from [[Waseda University]] in Japan and Cairo's [[Ain Shams University]] tried to get permission for DNA testing of Egyptian mummies, but was denied by the [[Egyptian Government]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=99437&page=1|title=DNA Tests Halted on King Tut's Mummy|date=January 7, 2006|website=ABC News|access-date=May 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171101032113/https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=99437&page=1|archive-date=November 1, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Hawass stated at the time that DNA analysis was out of the question because it would not lead to anything.<ref>[http://www.egyptologyonline.com/using_dna.htm] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091214080708/http://www.egyptologyonline.com/using_dna.htm|date=December 14, 2009}}</ref>

In February 2010, Hawass and his team announced that they had analyzed the mummies of Tutankhamun and ten other mummies and said that the king could have died from a malaria infection that followed a leg fracture.<ref name=RobertsBBC10>{{cite journal | last = Roberts | first = Michelle | date = 2010 | title = 'Malaria and Weak Bones' May Have Killed Tutankhamun | journal = [[BBC News]] | format = online | issue = February 16 | url = https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8516425.stm | access-date = January 25, 2016 | quote = "The Egyptian "boy king" Tutankhamun may well have died of malaria after the disease ravaged a body crippled by a rare bone disorder, experts say. / The findings could lay to rest conspiracy theories of murder. [Announcement of results only; no scientific journal referenced)." | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181008130447/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8516425.stm | archive-date = October 8, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref> German researchers Christian Timmann and Christian Meyer have cast doubt on this theory, suggesting other possible alternatives for Tutankhamun's cause of death.<ref name=TimmannMeyerTMIH10>{{cite journal | author = Timmann, Christian | author2 = Christian G. Meyer | name-list-style=amp | date = 2010 | title= Malaria, Mummies, Mutations: Tutankhamun's Archaeological Autopsy | journal = [[Tropical Medicine and International Health|Trop. Med. Int. Health]] | volume = 15 | issue = 11, November | pages = 1278–1280  | doi = 10.1111/j.1365-3156.2010.02614.x | pmid = 20723182 | s2cid = 9019947 | quote = Abstract: The cause of death of the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun has now for decades been matter of speculation and various hypotheses. A recent article in… JAMA... provided new evidence and suggested malaria, together with Köhler's disease, as the most probable cause of death of the boy king. We are sceptical towards this elucidation of the cause of death… and discuss alternative and differential diagnoses, among them, …sickle cell disease and Gauche's disease. | doi-access = free }}</ref>

In 2012, a study signed by Hawass disclosed that [[Ramses III]] may have had a [[haplogroup]] [[E1b1a]] that most dominant in Sub-Saharan Africa, and it also occurs at moderate frequencies in [[North Africa]], [[West Asia]], and [[Southern Europe]].<ref name=HawassZinkBMJ12>{{cite journal | author = Hawass, Zahi | author2 = Somaia Ismail | author3 = Ashraf Selim | author4 = Sahar N. Saleem | author5 = Dina Fathalla | author6 = Sally Wasef | author7 = Ahmed Z. Gad | author8 = Rama Saad | author9 = Suzan Fares | author10 = Hany Amer | author11 = Paul Gostner | author12 = Yehia Z. Gad | author13 = Carsten M. Pusch | author14 = Albert R. Zink | name-list-style=amp | date = 2012 | title = Revisiting the Harem Conspiracy and Death of Ramesses III: Anthropological, Forensic, Radiological, and Genetic Study | journal = [[The British Medical Journal]] | format = online | volume = 345 | issue = December 17 | article-number = e8268 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.e8268 | url = http://www.bmj.com/content/345/bmj.e8268 | access-date = January 25, 2016 | quote = "quote = "Abstract. Objective: To investigate the true character of the harem conspiracy described in the Judicial Papyrus of Turin and determine whether Ramesses III was indeed killed. / Design Anthropological, forensic, radiological, and genetic study of the mummies of Ramesses III and unknown man E, found together and taken from the 20th dynasty of ancient Egypt (circa 1190–1070 BC). / Results Computed tomography scans revealed a deep cut in Ramesses III's throat, probably made by a sharp knife. During the mummification process, a Horus eye amulet was inserted in the wound for healing purposes, and the neck was covered by a collar of thick linen layers. / Forensic examination of unknown man E showed compressed skin folds around his neck and a thoracic inflation. Unknown man E also had an unusual mummification procedure. According to genetic analyses, both mummies had identical haplotypes of the Y chromosome and a common male lineage. / Conclusions This study suggests that Ramesses III was murdered during the harem conspiracy by the cutting of his throat. Unknown man E is a possible candidate as Ramesses III's son Pentawere. … [Specifically] Genetic kinship analyses revealed identical haplotypes in both mummies… using the Whit Athey's haplogroup predictor, we determined the Y chromosomal haplogroup [to be] E1b1a." | pmid = 23247979 | hdl = 10072/62081 | s2cid = 206896841 | hdl-access = free | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130202141525/http://www.bmj.com//content/345/bmj.e8268 | archive-date = February 2, 2013 | url-status = live | url-access = subscription }}</ref>

A 2020 study by Gad, Hawass, et al. analysed mitochondrial and Y-chromosomal haplogroups from [[Tutankhamun]]'s family members of the 18th Dynasty, using comprehensive control procedures to ensure quality results. The study found that the Y-chromosome haplogroup of the family was [[R1b]]. Haplogroup R1b is carried by [[Egyptians|modern Egyptians]]. Modern Egypt is also the only African country that is known to harbor all three R1 subtypes, including [[Haplogroup R-M269|R1b-M269]]. While mitochondrial linage was found to be on K and H2b, both haplogroups did not originate in Africa yet it exists in both Ancient and Modern Egyptians.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Gad |first1=Yehia Z |last2=Hassan |first2=Naglaa Abu-Mandil |last3=Mousa |first3=Dalia M |last4=Fouad |first4=Fayrouz A |last5=El-Sayed |first5=Safaa G |last6=Abdelazeem |first6=Marwa A |last7=Mahdy |first7=Samah M |last8=Othman |first8=Hend Y |last9=Ibrahim |first9=Dina W |last10=Khairat |first10=Rabab |last11=Ismail |first11=Somaia |date=2021-03-01 |title=Insights from ancient DNA analysis of Egyptian human mummies: clues to disease and kinship |url=https://academic.oup.com/hmg/article/30/R1/R24/5924364?login=false |journal=Human Molecular Genetics |volume=30 |issue=R1 |pages=R24–R28 |doi=10.1093/hmg/ddaa223 |pmid=33059357 |issn=0964-6906}}</ref>

=== On Afrocentrism ===
Hawass has refuted [[Afrocentrism|Afrocentrist]] claims of ancient Egyptian history, and explained "We are not against black people at all, but we are against this group that entered the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir to announce ideas that have no basis in truth and are fantasies", after an Afrocentric travel group was found to be falsifying history in the [[Egyptian Museum]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Independent |first=Egypt |date=2024-06-20 |title=Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass refutes Afrocentric claims about pharaohs |url=https://www.egyptindependent.com/egyptian-archaeologist-zahi-hawass-refutes-afrocentric-claims-about-pharaohs/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Egypt Independent |language=en-US}}</ref> He added, ""There is a very important fact Afrocentrists need to know: the depictions on Egyptian temples from the Old Kingdom to the end of the Late Period show the King of Egypt and in front of him are captives from [[Sub-Saharan Africa|Africa]], [[Ancient Libya|Libya]], Syria, and [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]]," referring to [[Ramesses III prisoner tiles|Ramses III Prisoner tiles]] among other evidence that show the difference between Egyptians and their neighbors.

Following [[Netflix Cleopatra|Netflix's Cleopatra]] controversy, Hawass appeared in a 90-minute documentary "[[Cleopatra]]", released on director Curtis Ryan Woodside's [[YouTube]] channel. In the video  Hawass expounds on the [[Ptolemaic dynasty]]'s last ruler. Hawass stated "Was Cleopatra black? First of all, I have nothing against black people at all, but I am stating the facts -- look at the Macedonian queens, none of them were black".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass releases Cleopatra documentary same day as Netflix film - Screens - Arts & Culture |url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/500588.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230512030032/https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/500588.aspx |archive-date=May 12, 2023 |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Ahram Online |url-status=live }}</ref> Yet he criticized the lawsuit against Netflix over the film stating "We can't make a case against the Netflix platform, because we will definitely lose as they have the right to broadcast as long as it is a matter of freedom of opinion, and we can make a movie that overshadows everything they did.. but our case against them will not be successful." he also pointed out, "Two years ago, [[Mostafa Waziri]] (the Supreme Council of Antiquities) and I worked with the Netflix platform on the archaeological discoveries in [[Saqqara]], and the film has been translated into 129 languages and will be released soon. They broadcast all the work."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Independent |first=Egypt |date=2023-06-05 |title=Hawass criticizes lawsuit against Netflix over Queen Cleopatra film |url=https://www.egyptindependent.com/hawass-criticizes-lawsuit-against-netflix-over-queen-cleopatra-film/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Egypt Independent |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2023, after ending his lecture about ancient Egypt in [[Columbus, Ohio]], Hawass asked the audience whether they have any questions. An [[African Americans|African-American]] woman stood up and asked: "Why do you attack us?". He said "When the woman asked me this question, I replied, 'No I didn't attack you, but let's discuss the evidence that refutes the claim of ancient Egypt's [[Ancient Egyptian race controversy|black African origins]]'." He went on to explain and provide evidence that Ancient Egyptian civilization is Egyptian-made not-African made, "African countries and Egypt share the same Nile. But the ancient Egyptian civilization occurred here in Egypt, not in any other African country." "The granite came from [[Aswan]], diorite from [[Nubia]], sandstone from Kom Ombo, alabaster from Het-Nub in Middle Egypt, white limestone from [[Tura, Egypt|Tura]], basalt from [[Faiyum|Fayoum]] and turquoise and copper from [[Sinai Peninsula|Sinai]]. Egypt also has plenty of gold," he explained.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-09-03 |title=How Zahi Hawass refuted Afrocentric claims in US - Egyptian Gazette |url=https://egyptian-gazette.com/egypt/how-zahi-hawass-refuted-afrocentric-claims-in-us/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=egyptian-gazette.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Aliens and the Pyramids ===
Hawass criticized a tweet by US billionaire [[Elon Musk]] claiming that aliens built the pyramids. He stated in a TV interview that studying ancient Egyptian civilization provides a comprehensive understanding of its secrets. "Elon Musk's comment on the pyramids indicates his lack of knowledge about the history of Egyptian civilization," he said. He noted that there are those who spread false rumors about ancient Egyptian civilization to gain attention, stressing: "Anyone who doubts Egyptian civilization, I will confront them. I am holding a stick for anyone who spreads these false rumors."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Independent |first=Egypt |date=2024-07-30 |title=Zahi Hawass slams Elon Musk's tweet claiming aliens built pyramids |url=https://egyptindependent.com/zahi-hawass-slams-elon-musks-tweet-claiming-aliens-built-pyramids/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Egypt Independent |language=en-US}}</ref> Hawass often refers to the [[Diary of Merer|Merer Papyrus]] and Tombs of pyramid builders as the biggest evidence on the fact that the pyramids were built by Egyptian workers.

=== Biblical and Quranic stories ===
Hawass said that the archeology and antiquities do not contain proof that [[Moses]] or Joseph lived in Egypt or the exodus of the Israelites from it. He said, "I am a Muslim who believes that our Master Moses lived in Egypt and that the exodus occurred from Egypt, but on the other hand, is there evidence in the antiquities that prove this? The answer is no".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Zahi Hawass: I believe that Moses lived in Egypt, but there is no archaeological proof {{!}} Sada Elbalad |url=https://see.news/zahi-hawass-i-am-muslim-i-believe-that-moses-lived-in-egypt-but-there-is-no-archaeological-proof-for-that |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=see.news |language=en}}</ref> Hawass also asserted that there is no archeological evidence confirming the identity of the pharaoh who ruled during the arrival of the Prophets Moses and Joseph to Egypt, adding that information currently available on the issue is limited to guesses and speculation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maged |first=Mira |date=2019-12-20 |title=Iconic Egyptologist Zahi Hawass discusses ancient Egypt's 'secrets,' refutes popular myths |url=https://egyptindependent.com/iconic-egyptologist-zahi-hawass-discusses-ancient-egypts-secrets-refutes-popular-myths/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Egypt Independent |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Controversies==

===Relationships with other archaeologists===
Hawass has been accused of domineering behaviour, forbidding archaeologists to announce their own findings and courting the media for his own gain after they were denied access to archaeological sites because, according to Hawass, they were too amateurish.<ref name=nytimes>{{cite news | last = Waxman | first = Sharon | date = 2005 | title = Art & Design: The Show-Biz Pharaoh of Egypt's Antiquities | format = online | issue = June 13 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/13/arts/design/the-showbiz-pharaoh-of-egypts-antiquities.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | quote = "The King Tut exhibition set to open on June 16 in Los Angeles, bringing the boy king's treasures to the United States for the first time in a quarter-century, is in just about every sense a reflection of Zahi Hawass, the man who made the show possible. / Dr. Hawass, who controls Egypt's vast archaeological trove as secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, is part Indiana Jones, part P.T. Barnum – intent on dusting off Egypt's holdings through a mix of entertainment, commerce and archaeology." | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180617165200/https://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/13/arts/design/the-showbiz-pharaoh-of-egypts-antiquities.html | archive-date = June 17, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref> A few, however, have said in interviews that some of what Hawass has done for the field was long overdue.<ref name=nytimes/> Hawass has typically ignored or dismissed his critics and, when asked about it, he indicated that what he does is for the sake of Egypt and the preservation of its antiquities.<ref name = ParkerNYer09>{{cite magazine | author = Parker, Ian | date = 2009 | title = Letter from Cairo, The Pharaoh: Is Zahi Hawass bad for Egyptology? | magazine = The New Yorker | format = print, online | issue = November 16 | pages = 53–63 | url = http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/11/16/the-pharaoh | access-date = January 25, 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160124061340/http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/11/16/the-pharaoh | archive-date = January 24, 2016 | url-status = live }}</ref>

===Views on Jews and Israel===
Hawass has been a long-standing opponent of normalised [[Egypt–Israel relations|relations between Israel and Egypt]].<ref name="Slap">{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1159674.html |title=Egypt antiquities chief: I gave the Zionist enemy a slap in the face |newspaper=[[Haaretz]] |access-date=March 30, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100331133005/http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1159674.html |archive-date=March 31, 2010}}</ref> In January 2009, Hawass wrote in ''[[Asharq Al-Awsat]]'': "The concept of killing women, children, and elderly people&nbsp;... seems to run in the blood of the Jews of Palestine" and that "the only thing that the Jews have learned from history is methods of tyranny and torment—so much so that they have become artists in this field." He explained that he was not referring to the Jews' "[original] faith" but rather "the faith that they forged and contaminated with their poison, which is aimed against all of mankind."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.memritv.org/report/en/3213.htm |title=The Middle East Media Research Institute |publisher=MEMRI |access-date=January 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090904034334/http://www.memritv.org/report/en/3213.htm |archive-date=September 4, 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> In an interview on Egyptian television in April 2009, Hawass stated that "although Jews are few in number, they control the entire world" and commented on the "control they have" of the American economy and the media.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2009/04/20/the-jews-secret-weapon-bickering.aspx |title=The Jews secret weapon bickering |access-date=April 20, 2009 }}{{dead link|date=October 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/2049.htm?auth=5bbfe6252b977abf4f8cb54219acbdb |title=MEMRI: Renowned Egyptian Archeologist Zahi Hawass: Jews Control the Entire World |publisher=Memritv.org |access-date=January 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727080505/http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/2049.htm?auth=5bbfe6252b977abf4f8cb54219acbdb |archive-date=July 27, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.memritv.org/clip_transcript/en/2049.htm |title=Clip Transcript |publisher=Memritv.org |date=February 11, 2009 |access-date=January 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090328023458/http://www.memritv.org/clip_transcript/en/2049.htm |archive-date=March 28, 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> He later wrote that he was using rhetoric to explain political fragmentation among the Arabs, and that he does not believe in a "Jewish conspiracy to control the world".<ref>{{cite web|author=Hawass, Zahi|url=http://www.drhawass.com/blog/clarification-remarks-jewish-history|title=Clarification of Remarks on Jewish History|publisher=drhawass.com|date=2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129064750/http://www.drhawass.com/blog/clarification-remarks-jewish-history |archive-date=November 29, 2014|access-date=September 6, 2019}}</ref>

Nevertheless, Zahi Hawass aided the Egyptian government on renovating an old dilapidated synagogue in what was once a Jewish neighborhood in Old Cairo, stating: "If you don't restore the Jewish synagogues, you lose part of your history."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Slackman |first=Michael |date=September 7, 2009 |title=Private Motive for Egypt's Public Embrace of a Jewish Past |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/07/world/middleeast/07cairo.html |access-date=November 24, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

===Aftermath of 2011 protests===
Criticism of Hawass, in Egypt and more broadly, increased following the protests in Egypt in 2011. On July 12, 2011, ''The New York Times'' reported that Hawass receives an [[honorarium]] each year "of as much as $200,000 from ''[[National Geographic (magazine)|National Geographic]]'' to be an explorer-in-residence even as he controls access to the ancient sites it often features in its reports."<ref name="Times-7-14">{{cite news | last = Taylor | first = Kate | date = 2011 | title = Middle East: Revolution Dims Star Power of Egypt's Antiquities Chief | format = print, online | page = A1ff | issue = July 12 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/13/arts/design/the-showbiz-pharaoh-of-egypts-antiquities.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | quote = Until recently Zahi Hawass, Egypt's antiquities minister, was a global symbol of Egyptian national pride. A famous archaeologist in an Indiana Jones hat, he was virtually unassailable in the old Egypt, protected by his success in boosting tourism, his efforts to reclaim lost artifacts and his closeness to the country's first lady, Suzanne Mubarak. / But the revolution changed all that. / Now demonstrators in Cairo are calling for his resignation as the interim government faces disaffected crowds in Tahrir Square. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180617165200/https://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/13/arts/design/the-showbiz-pharaoh-of-egypts-antiquities.html | archive-date = June 17, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref> The ''Times'' also reported that he has relationships with two American companies that do business in Egypt.<ref name="Times-7-14"/>

On April 17, 2011, Hawass was sentenced to jail for one year for refusing to obey a court ruling<ref name="Taylor2"/> relating to a contract for the gift shop at the [[Egyptian Museum]] to a company with links to Hawass.<ref name="Times-7-14"/> The ruling was appealed and this specific sentence was suspended pending appeal.<ref name="Taylor2"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/04/201141720122512511.html |title=Egypt antiquities chief faces jail time – Middle East |publisher=Al Jazeera English |access-date=October 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110418040716/http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/04/201141720122512511.html |archive-date=April 18, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> The following day, the National Council of Egypt's Administrative Court issued a decree to overturn the court's original ruling, specifying that he would serve no jail time, and would instead remain in his position as Minister of Antiquities. The jail sentence was lifted after a new contract was solicited for the running of the gift shop.<ref name="Times-7-14"/><ref>[http://www.drhawass.com/blog/decision-court-case-against-me] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120103163004/http://www.drhawass.com/blog/decision-court-case-against-me|date=January 3, 2012}}</ref>

===Association with Mubarak===
As Minister of Antiquities, Hawass was closely associated with the government of former President [[Hosni Mubarak]]. His resignation as minister on March 3, 2011, and his re-appointment to the Ministry on March 30, 2011, have been seen as part of the overall events surrounding Mubarak's resignation. It was reported that his re-appointment angered numerous factions, who opposed the appointment of any of the old guard under Mubarak to new positions in the government.<ref name="jpost">{{cite web|url=https://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=214426|title=Breaking News|work=Jerusalem Post|date=March 30, 2011|access-date=October 1, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023085415/http://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=214426|archive-date=October 23, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> The 2011 Egyptian protests resulted in increased criticism of Hawass. Demonstrators called for his resignation, and the upheaval increased attention on his relationship with the Mubarak family and the way in which he has increased his public profile in recent years.<ref name="Times-7-14"/>

===Commercial endeavours===
Hawass has lent his name to a line of men's apparel, described by ''[[The New York Times]]'' as "a line of rugged khakis, denim shirts and carefully worn leather jackets that are meant, according to the catalog copy, to hark "back to Egypt's golden age of discovery in the early 20th century"; the clothing was first sold at [[Harrods]] department store in London, in April 2011.<ref name="Taylor2">{{cite news | last = Taylor | first = Kate | date = 2011 | title = Art & Design: Using History to Sell Clothes? Don't Try It With the Pharaohs | format = online | issue = April 18 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/19/arts/design/egyptian-antiquities-official-defends-fashion-line.html | access-date = 25 January 2016 | newspaper = The New York Times | quote = "Zahi Hawass, Egypt's longtime chief antiquities official, has been criticized in recent months for many things: his closeness to former President Hosni Mubarak, some inconsistent reports on the safety of archaeological sites during the uprising and for his role in a dispute over an Egyptian museum bookstore, for which he now possibly faces jail time. / But the source of the latest controversy to beset Mr. Hawass resembles something straight from the mouth of J. Peterman, the character on 'Seinfeld' based on the clothing catalog retailer of the same name. / Mr. Hawass has lent his name to a men's wear brand: a line of rugged khakis, denim shirts and carefully worn leather jackets that are meant, according to the catalog copy, to hark 'back to Egypt's golden age of discovery in the early 20th century.' " | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170216081002/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/19/arts/design/egyptian-antiquities-official-defends-fashion-line.html | archive-date = February 16, 2017 | url-status = live }}</ref> Critics say the Hawass clothing commercializes Egyptian history, and objected to their understanding that "models had sat on or scuffed priceless ancient artifacts during the photo shoot", an accusation that was denied by Hawass and the clothing manufacturers.<ref name="Taylor2"/> Hawass already sells a line of Stetson hats reproducing the ones he wears, which "very much resemble" the ones worn by [[Harrison Ford]] in the ''[[Indiana Jones]]'' movies.<ref name="Taylor2"/>
[[File:Hawass-aw.png|thumb|Zahi Hawass receives the Grand Prize of the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Culture (2018).]]

== Personal life ==
Hawass is married to Fekrya Hawass, a gynecologist whom he met in 1967. They have two sons, one a physician, the other a restaurateur, both living in Cairo.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Magazine |first1=Smithsonian |last2=Hammer |first2=Joshua |title=The Rise and Fall and Rise of Zahi Hawass |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-rise-and-fall-and-rise-of-zahi-hawass-72874123/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=زيدان |first=إلهام |date=2022-03-02 |title="الحارس.. أيام زاهي حواس".. حكاية الحب الصامت بين عالم الآثار وزوجته قبل الارتباط |url=https://www.elwatannews.com/news/details/5975623 |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=الوطن |language=ar}}</ref>

He was a close friend of actor [[Omar Sharif]] and accompanied him during his final days in 2015. In 2020, Hawass posted on [[Instagram]] remembering his friend: "Yesterday I remembered my dear friend Omar El-Sherif who was born on April 10th. We used to celebrate together and I would sing for him the song by [[Marilyn Monroe]] celebrating the birthday of President JF Kennedy and he would sing the same song to me on my birthday."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Instagram |url=https://www.instagram.com/zahi_hawass/p/B-2cozQB9xq/?img_index=1 |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=www.instagram.com}}</ref>

Hawass was a friend of [[Jehan Sadat]], the former First Lady of Egypt. Hawass and Sadat organized "private tour of the country's pharaonic sites" for guests<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hawass, Sadat organising two-week tours to Egypt |url=https://enterprise.press/stories/2016/08/17/hawass-sadat-organising-two-week-tours-to-egypt/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=Enterprise |language=en}}</ref> for years until her death in 2021. "Her charisma was electrifying to an extent that when she spoke the audience would be so silent you could hear a pin drop" Hawass said remembering her.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-05 |title=Remembering Jehan Sadat |url=https://www.thecairoreview.com/midan/remembering-jehan-sadat/ |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=The Cairo Review of Global Affairs |language=en-US}}</ref>

Hawass is often mistaken for being a [[Coptic Christian]] because of his name, even though he is [[Muslim]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://archive.aawsat.com/leader.asp?section=3&issueno=12756&article=748468#.X6O-SSWIaEd |title=حفل لدخولي الإسلام |website=aawsat.com |language=Arabic |date=October 31, 2013 }}</ref>

==Awards==
Hawass is the recipient of the [[Order of the Republic (Egypt)|Egyptian state award of the first degree]] for his work in the Sphinx restoration project.<ref name=alahram/> In 2001, he was silver medallist offered by the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.festivaldecineglobal.org/drgff2009/pdf/cv_zahi_hawass_en.pdf|title=CV - Dr. Zahi Hawass}}</ref> In 2002, he was awarded the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement's]] Golden Plate and the glass obelisk from US scholars for his efforts to the protection and preservation of Ancient Egyptian monuments.<ref name=alahram/><ref>{{cite web|title= Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement |website=www.achievement.org|publisher=[[American Academy of Achievement]]|url=https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/all-honorees/}}</ref> In 2003, Hawass was given international membership in the Russian Academy for Natural Sciences (RANS)<ref name=alahram/> and, in 2006, he was chosen as one of the world's 100 most influential people by ''[[Time magazine|Time]]''.<ref name=alahram>{{cite journal|author=Nevine El Aref|title=He made it in Time|journal=Al Ahram Weekly|date=May 4–10, 2006|volume=793|url=http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/793/eg10.htm|access-date=January 3, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130508032821/http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/793/eg10.htm|archive-date=May 8, 2013}}</ref> In 2015, he was awarded the Golden Memorial Medal of [[Charles University]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://allafrica.com/stories/201506280408.html|title=Egypt: El Damaty, Hawwas Honored in Praque}}</ref> In 2018, he was awarded by the [[Academia Brasileira de Letras]] for being the only archaeologist who wrote more than 30 books.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.drhawass.com/wp/zahi-hawass-in-brazil/|title=Egypt: El Damaty, Hawwas Honored in PraqueZahi Hawass in Brazil|access-date=October 28, 2021|archive-date=October 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028185240/http://www.drhawass.com/wp/zahi-hawass-in-brazil/}}</ref> In the same year, he received the Presidential Medal of the Republic of [[Kosovo]] in recognition for his entire academic output.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://president-ksgov.net/en/news/president-thaci-is-awarded-an-appreciation-by-the-representatives-of-the-egyptian-community-in-kosovo|title=President Thaçi is awarded an appreciation by the representatives of the Egyptian community in Kosovo|date=June 21, 2018 }}</ref> Also in 2018, he received the grand prize of the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Culture.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/0/289085/Heritage/0/Saudi-Arabia-honours-Egyptian-Egyptologist-Zahi-Ha.aspx|title=Saudi Arabia honours Egyptian Egyptologist Zahi Hawass for his devotion to archaeology}}</ref> In 2022, he received the plaque of honour from the Faculty of Economics and Political Sciences of Cairo.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/4/112940/Egypt%E2%80%99s-Faculty-of-Economics-Political-Science-at-Cairo-University-honors|title=Egypt's Faculty of Economics & Political Science at Cairo University honors Zahi Hawass|newspaper=Egypttoday }}</ref>

Hawass has received many honorary degrees. From outside Egypt, he has received honorary doctorates from the [[University of Pennsylvania]] (2000),<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.festivaldecineglobal.org/drgff2009/pdf/cv_zahi_hawass_en.pdf|title=CV - Dr. Zahi Hawass}}</ref> the [[University of Lisbon]] (2011),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContentP/9/4546/Heritage/Hawass-receives-honourary-doctorate-from-Lisbon.aspx|title=Hawass receives {{as written|hono|urary [sic]}} doctorate from Lisbon}}</ref> the [[Chandrakasem Rajabhat University]] (2011),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://hebdo.ahram.org.eg/Archive/2009/6/24/phot0.htm|title=Encore un doctorat}}</ref> the [[New Bulgarian University]] (2016),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/187115/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/Egyptologist-Hawass-promotes-Egypt-in-Bulgaria.aspx|title=Egyptologist Hawass promotes Egypt in Bulgaria}}</ref> the [[Universidad Católica Santo Domingo]] (2016),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.diariohispaniola.com/noticia/22623/la-buena-vida/ministro-de-cultura-ofrece-cena-de-gala-a-arqueologo-egipcio-zahi-hawass.html|title=Ministro de Cultura ofrece cena de gala a arqueólogo egipcio Zahi Hawass}}</ref> the [[Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola]] (2017)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/273548/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/Hawass-receives-honorary-doctorate-in-Peru,-promot.aspx|title=Hawass receives honorary doctorate in Peru, promotes tourism to Egypt}}</ref> and the [[Russian State University for the Humanities]] (2021).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://see.news/hawass-rewarded-honorary-doctorate-from-rsuh/|title=Hawass Rewarded Honorary Doctorate from RSUH|date=September 30, 2021 }}</ref>
==Honors==
[[File:GOBIERNO PERUANO CONDECORÓ CON LA ORDEN EL SOL DEL PERÚ A MINISTRO DE ANTIGUEDADES DE EGIPTO, ZAHI HAWASS.jpg|thumb|Peruvian President [[Alan García]] decorates Zahi Hawass with the insignia of Grand Cross  of the [[Order of the Sun of Peru]] ([[Lima]], July 4, 2011).]]
*{{Flag|Algeria}}:  Knight (''Achir'') of the [[National Order of Merit (Algeria)]] (2007)<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.festivaldecineglobal.org/drgff2009/pdf/cv_zahi_hawass_en.pdf|title=Zahi Hawass. Curriculum Vitae}}</ref>
*{{Flag|Austria}}: Grand Decoration of Honour in Silver with Star of the [[Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria]] (2010)
*{{Flag|Egypt}}: Grand Cordon of the [[Order of Merit (Egypt)]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.festivaldecineglobal.org/drgff2009/pdf/cv_zahi_hawass_en.pdf|title=Zahi Hawass. Curriculum Vitae}}</ref>
*{{Flag|France}}: Officier of the [[Ordre des Arts et des Lettres]] (2007)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.leparisien.fr/culture-loisirs/seuls-30-des-tresors-de-l-egypte-ont-ete-decouverts-26-07-2007-2008240348.php|title="« Seuls 30 % des trésors de l'Egypte ont été découverts"|date=July 25, 2007 }}</ref>
*{{Flag|Italy}}: Commander of the [[Order of Merit of the Italian Republic]] (2007)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.quirinale.it/onorificenze/insigniti/221913|title=Zahi Hawass}}</ref>
*{{Flag|Japan}}: Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon of the [[Order of the Rising Sun]] (2021)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://egyptindependent.com/japan-grants-khaled-anany-zahi-hawass-the-order-of-the-rising-sun/|title=Japan grants Khaled Anany, Zahi Hawass, the 'Order of the Rising Sun'|date=November 3, 2021 }}</ref>
*{{Flag|Peru}}: Grand Cross of the [[Order of the Sun of Peru]] (2011)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/0/15746/Heritage/0/Hawass-receives-Perus-highest-award.aspx|title=Hawass receives Peru's highest award}}</ref>
*{{Flag|Poland}}: Officier of the [[Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland]] (2020)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://egyptindependent.com/poland-grants-minister-of-antiquities-anany-egyptologist-hawass-order-of-merit/|title=Poland grants Minister of Antiquities Anany, Egyptologist Hawass Order of Merit|date=October 26, 2020 }}</ref>
*{{Flag|Poland}}:  Silver Medal of the [[Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture]] (2010)
*{{Flag|Spain}}: Knight of the [[Order of Arts and Letters of Spain]] (2009)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2009-5221|title=Real Decreto 481/2009, de 27 de marzo, por el que se concede la Orden de las Artes y las Letras de España al Dr. Zahi Hawass}}</ref>

==Works==
{{Main|List of works by Zahi Hawass}}
Hawass has written and co-written many books relating to [[Egyptology]], including ''The Curse of the Pharaohs: My Adventures with Mummies'',{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} and ''King Tutankhamun: The Treasures from the Tomb'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thamesandhudson.com/king-tutankhamun-the-treasures-of-the-tomb-9780500051511 |title=King Tutankhamun: The Treasures from the Tom |website=Thames & Hudson |access-date=November 23, 2007 |archive-date=September 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929051350/https://thamesandhudson.com/king-tutankhamun-the-treasures-of-the-tomb-9780500051511 }}</ref> the latter published to coincide with a major exhibition in the UK.<ref>[http://www.kingtut.org/home] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140401085554/http://www.kingtut.org/home|date=April 1, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | author = Pendry, Cheryl | date = 2008 | title = King Tut and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs: Exhibition: London | journal = PassPorter | format = online | issue = May 29 | url = http://www.passporter.com/articles/king-tut-and-the-golden-age-of-the-pharaohs%20.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 | quote = It's amazing to think how the story of a boy king, who ruled for only about a decade thousands of years ago, still attracts the interest of millions of people, but that's exactly what's happened with Tutankhamun. / Known more fondly these days as King Tut, which may have something to do with a struggle to spell his full name, an exhibition of the wonders found with him in his final resting place is once again touring the world. / When the exhibit first went on tour in the 1970s, the exhibition set records for the numbers of people who passed through the doors at various venues around the world to see it. It was last in London at the British Museum in 1972 – the year I was born – so when I heard it would be returning to the city, I figured this could be our once in a lifetime opportunity to see it. / The exhibition is made up of 11 galleries… Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs is open at the O2 Dome in London from now until August 30, 2008. Its next stop will be in Dallas, Texas, where the exhibition will open on October 3, 2008. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180926014528/http://www.passporter.com/articles/king-tut-and-the-golden-age-of-the-pharaohs | archive-date = September 26, 2018 }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=January 2016}}{{Original research inline|date=January 2016}} He has also written on Tutankhamun for ''[[Ancient Egypt magazine|Ancient Egypt]]''.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}}

Hawass is a regular columnist for ''[[Egypt Today]]''{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} and the online historical community [[Heritage Key]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2010}} He has narrated several videos on Egyptology, including a series on Tutankhamun.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://heritage-key.com/video/death-king-tut-murder-or-accident-feat-dr-zahi-hawass|title=The Death of King Tut: Murder or Accident? (feat. Dr. Zahi Hawass) – Heritage Key|date=November 21, 2009|access-date=May 25, 2017|url-status=deviated|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091121175003/http://heritage-key.com/video/death-king-tut-murder-or-accident-feat-dr-zahi-hawass|archive-date=November 21, 2009}}</ref>

===Main publications===
* ''The Great Book of Ancient Egypt: In the Realm of the Pharaohs'', London, ed. White Star, 2018
* ''Giza and the Pyramids'', London, ed. [[Thames & Hudson]] Ltd, 2017
* ''Scanning the Pharaohs: CT Imaging of the New Kingdom Royal Mummies'', Cairo, ed. [[American University in Cairo Press]], 2016
* ''Newly-Discovered Statues from Giza (1990-2009)'', Cairo, ed. Ministry of Culture, 2011
* ''Highlights of the Egyptian Museum'', Cairo, ed. The American University in Cairo Press, 2011
* ''Inside the Egyptian Museum'', Cairo, ed. he American University in Cairo Press, 2010
* ''Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt'', Washington, D.C., ed. National Geographic Society, 2010
* ''Life in Paradise: The Noble Tombs of Thebes'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2009
* ''King Tutankhamun: The Treasures of the Tomb'', Thames & Hudson, 2008
* ''Old Kingdom Pottery from Giza'', Cairo, ed. Ministry of Culture, 2008
* ''The Royal Tombs of Egypt: The Art of Thebes Revealed'', Thames & Hudson, 2006
* ''Mountains of the Pharaohs: A History of the Pyramids of Egypt'', New York, ed. [[Doubleday Books]], 2006
* ''[[Tutankhamun]] and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs: A Souvenir Book'', London, ed. [[National Geographic Society]], 2005
* ''[[Tutankhamun]]: The Mystery of the Boy King'', London, ed. National Geographic Society, 2005 
* ''The Island of Kalabsha'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2005
* ''How The Great [[Pyramid]] Was Built'', Washington, D.C., ed. Smithsonian Books, 2004
* ''Curse of the Pharaohs: My Adventures With Mummies'', London, ed. National Geographic Society, 2004
* ''Hidden Treasures of Ancient Egypt: Unearthing the Masterpieces of Egyptian History'', London, ed. National Geographic Society, Londres, 2004
* ''The Golden Age of Tutankhamun: Divine Might and Splendor in the New Kingdom'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2004 
* ''Cradle & Crucible: History and Faith in the Middle East, avec [[David Fromkin]] et [[Milton Viorst]]'', London, ed. National Geographic Society, 2004 
* ''Tesoros de las Piramides'', Washington, D.C., ed. Grupo Oceano, 2004
* ''The Treasures of the Pyramids'', London, ed. White Star, 2003
* ''Egyptian Museum Collections Around the World: Studies for the Centennial of the Egyptian Museum'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2003
* ''Secrets from the Sand: My Search for Egypt's Past'', New York, ed. [[Harry N. Abrams]], 2003
* ''Bibliotheca Alexandrina: The Archaeology Museum'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2003
* ''[[Egyptology]] at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century: History, Religion: Proceedings of the Eighth International'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2003
* ''Hidden Treasures of the Egyptian Museum: One Hundred Masterpieces Form the Centennial Exhibition'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2003
* ''Fantasy Literature for Children and Young Adults'' (with Pamela S. Gates), Washington, D.C., ed. [[Scarecrow Press]], 2003
* ''The Mysteries of Abu Simbel: Ramesses II and the Temples of the Rising Sun'', Cairo, ed. American University in Cairo Press, 2001
* ''Valley of the Golden Mummies: The Greatest Egyptian Discovery Since Tutankhamun'', London, ed. Virgin Books, 2000
* ''The Egyptian Monuments: Problems and Solutions'', Berlin, ed. Gruyter, 1995
* ''Silent Images: Women in Pharaonic Egypt'', Cultural Development Fund, Ministry of Culture, 1995
*   ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20160401042200/https://www.gizapyramids.org/static/pdf%20library/hawass_egyptian_kingship.pdf The Program of the Royal Funerary Complexes of the Fourth Dynasty]'', in Ancient Egyptian Kingship (Leiden/New York/Koln: E.J. Brill, 1995), pp.221-262
* ''The Funerary Establishments of Khufu, Khafra and Menkaura During the Old Kingdom'', Pennsylvania, ed. University of Pennsylvania, 1987

==Further reading==
* {{Cite journal | author=Schulz, Matthias | title=Egypt's Avenger of the Pharaohs | year = 2010 | journal = [[Der Spiegel|Spiegel Online International]] | format = online | issue = May 28 | url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,697174,00.html | access-date = January 25, 2016 }}
* {{Cite news |author-link=John Tierney (journalist) |author=Tierney, John |title=Science, ''Findings'': A Case in Antiquities for 'Finders Keepers' |date=November 16, 2009 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |format=online |issue= |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/17/science/17tier.html?_r=1 |access-date=January 25, 2016}}
* {{cite magazine |author=Parker |first=Ian |date=November 16, 2009 |title=Letter from Cairo, The Pharaoh: Is Zahi Hawass bad for Egyptology? |format=print, online |issue= |pages=53–63 |url=http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/11/16/the-pharaoh |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |access-date=January 25, 2016}}

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|http://www.drhawass.com}}
* {{C-SPAN|86328}}
* {{Charlie Rose view|6103}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0369931}}
* [https://www.theguardian.com/life/interview/story/0,12982,1093638,00.html The king of the pharaohs], Tim Radford, ''[[The Guardian]],'' November 27, 2003
* [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/pyramid/excavation/hawass.html Interview with Dr. Zahi Hawass, Director of the Pyramids], ''Pyramid'' on [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]] [[Nova (American TV series)|NOVA]]
* [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/may/19/the-new-egypt-100-days-on Egypt's man from the past who insists he has a future], Jack Shenker in Cairo, ''[[The Guardian]]'', May 19, 2011
* [https://egyptindependent.com/zahi-hawass-supports-petition-to-repatriate-rosetta-stone-and-other-antiquities/ Zahi Hawass supports petition to repatriate rosetta stone and other antiquities], ''Egypt Independent'', February 14, 2023

{{Sharaf Cabinet (Egypt)}}
{{Egyptian Ministers}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawass, Zahi}}
[[Category:1947 births]]
[[Category:21st-century Egyptian politicians]]
[[Category:Alexandria University alumni]]
[[Category:Cairo University alumni]]
[[Category:University of Pennsylvania alumni]]
[[Category:Academic staff of The American University in Cairo]]
[[Category:University of California, Los Angeles faculty]]
[[Category:Antiquities ministers of Egypt]]
[[Category:Art and cultural repatriation]]
[[Category:Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic]]
[[Category:Egyptian archaeologists]]
[[Category:Egyptian Egyptologists]]
[[Category:Egyptian Museum]]
[[Category:Egyptian Muslims]]
[[Category:Grand Crosses of the Order of the Sun of Peru]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres]]
[[Category:Order of Arts and Letters of Spain recipients]]
[[Category:People of the Egyptian revolution of 2011]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of Merit (Egypt)]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Silver Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis]]