Maybe the take-away is that in different eras statues were broken in different ways for different purposes. Various Egyptian groups broke each other's statues,

Maybe the take-away is that in different eras statues were broken in different ways for different purposes. Various Egyptian groups broke each other's statues, which they fully understood, for instance breaking the left hand of gods understood to be giving things, and the right hand of those receiving things, to prevent them from performing their function. And often digging out the inscription of the name of the king depicted -- which implies they could read it, both when it was a new regime, and when it was grave robbers (who wished to escape retribution in the afterlife). Early Christians feared these and other pagan statues. They thought it more powerful to break just the nose, or to shave statues of Greek gods they could recognise, rather than decapitate or completely destroy them. After the Arab conquest, they were mainly seen as just building material, and seated statues tended to be broken off to make cubic pieces for re-use. With no special regard for their identity, nor attempts to erase names. And, aside, it took about 1000 years they say for Islam to become the majority faith, not just the ruling one.