Zahi Hawass, archaeologist and Egypt's former tourism and antiquities minister, accidentally broke off a piece of an ancient Egyptian statue while excavating.
The small statue dates back 4,300 years to the fifth dynasty of the old kingdom in ancient Egypt. Hawass was removing the rocks that entombed the statue when he pulled one stone, breaking a piece off the statue's front end.
The video of the mishap quickly went viral and caused minor outrage in Egypt. One Parliament member sent a letter to the current tourism minister accusing him of negligence.
Hawass said he was surprised by the outrage over the small mistake and responded, "When Howard Carter discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun, he removed the mummy's mask, breaking it into 18 pieces. Then, it was put back together."
He insisted that it was a small mishap and was repaired immediately afterwards.
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