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A Danish photographer has sparked outrage in Egypt by shooting images of him and a woman having sex atop the Great Pyramid of Giza.
 
Egypt's ministry of antiquities on Saturday issued a statement saying the incident "violates public morality".

The ministry has also requested that an investigation is launched by the attorney general.

Andreas Hvid, who posted footage of the shoot to his YouTube page, is known for taking photos from daring heights.

Nude shoots have featured in his previous work, including photographs taken on rooftops overlooking city landscapes.

Hvid has since removed all but one YouTube and social media accounts. The picture that remains shows Hvid and the unidentified woman lying naked in a sexual position on top of the Great Pyramid of Cheops while looking at another pyramid in the background.

"For many years I had dreamed of climbing the great pyramid," Hvid told Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. "The idea of making a 'nude shoot' up there had also existed for some time."

"I'm sad that so many people have become so angry. But I have also received a positive response from a lot of Egyptians, something I think is worth remembering," he added.

Hvid broke regulations at the pyramid by scaling the ancient monument and entering its grounds after visiting hours. Egyptian authorities have said that their first step will be identifying whether any damage was done to the pyramid, which is believed to be more than 4,000-years-old.

Egypt is a mostly conservative country with a Muslim majority, however the Arab country of 100 million people has retained vestiges of secularism through decades of growing religious conservatism.

According to Egyptian law, those convicted of public indecency can face up to a year in prison and fines.