Oh, this is lovely. From the New York Times: Egypt to Copyright Landmarks.
Egypt plans to copyright the Pyramids, the Sphinx and various museum pieces and use the royalties from copies to pay for the upkeep of its historic monuments and sites, The Guardian of London reported. Zahi Hawass, the secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said that legislation approved by a ministerial committee will be presented to the Egyptian Parliament, where it was expected to pass. The copyrights would then apply anywhere in the world, he said, although he gave no explanation of how Egypt would pursue infringements. He said the proposed law would apply to full-scale precise copies of museum objects and "commercial use" of ancient monuments. The Egyptian newspaper Al-Wafd recently published a report saying that more people visit the pyramid-shaped Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas each year than Luxor itself. The newspaper suggested that the hotel share some profits with Luxor, Egypt.
Heh. Good luck collecting on that one, eh? This can’t be serious, but it’s a good giggle.