The Em Hotep blog has just posted another installment of its pyramid building series here.
Pyramid Building: Hemienu to Houdin Thread Continues
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Category Archives: Pyramids
Pyramid Construction on Em Hotep Continues (Sans Aliens)
The Em Hotep blog continues its series on pyramid construction – some nice photos and graphics for illustration.
Pyramid Building Blog
I’m sure you’ll all want to check out the Em Hotep blog. There is a series on how the pyramids were built that is just starting. If you go to the link for the latest entry, “Hemienu to Houdin,” to the right there is an earlier post or two to catch up. Should be interesting, and looks well illustrated.
New Evidence for Concrete Pyramid Blocks
This is pretty cool. At the risk of repeating myself, my view is that there is no *one* theory that accounts for all the pyramid construction methods. I see no reason why Houdin’s internal ramp theory cannot be working alongside a counterweight method, alongside a concrete method.
Can’t wait until some internet “researcher” finds the recipe for concrete in tablets given to humans by extraterrestrials! Those poor, stupid Egyptians. Can’t do anything without their alien nannies.
New Pyramid Theory Update
Here is another description of the new theory contributing to the discussion of how the pyramids were built, sans ET. Scroll down to the bottom for the architect’s paper on his theory (free PDF).
How the Pyramids Were Built: Aliens Not Needed Once Again
What a shock!
Check out this recent post from Archaeology Daily News (you may have to scroll down to see the actual story). Pretty sweet explanation for how correct stone orientation and placement was achieved — very simple and very clever. The architect’s theory featured at the above link argues and demonstrates that the Egyptians invented the building grid. My only question is why this is considered a “new” discovery. I’ve actually been reading through a book I’ll recommend early to all of you interested in Egyptian building that covers the basics of this — with pictures of grid systems and grid marks on the monuments (sorry, no pictures of aliens building or supervising). The book is Building in Ancient Egypt: Pharaonic Stone Masonry, by Dieter Arnold. It’s fascinating. Below are some pictures from the Google Books location for this book (selective, but representative – the pages with photos were not included in the Google Books preview).
Zahi, Pyramids, and Playing to the Camera
I was recently alerted (thanks, Jennifer!) that the Fantasy (er…History) Channel is airing a new series (begins 9/8) called “Chasing Mummies.” Naturally, it features everyone’s favorite camera-shy Egyptologist, Zahi Hawass. The most interesting episode may be the second in the series, entitled “Bats.” Here’s the promo:
It’s time for Leslie, the Executive Producer, to do Zahi a favor, and it requires going where few cameras have been before — to the mysterious caves below the Giza Plateau. Zahi is determined to disprove the theories of the so-called “pyramidiots,” who believe that there are secret underground chambers leading to the Sphinx. Little did anyone know that these caves were home to thousands of bats! If that wasn’t enough for Zahi, he’s also agreed to make an appearance at a local wedding celebration and as viewers have learned, Zahi’s likes to celebrate the dead…not the living!
Hmmm. Zahi going underground into the cave system under the Giza Plateau — you know, into the caves that he initially said didn’t exist (after news of their discovery broke; Zahi: “We know everything about the plateau – amateurs cannot find anything new”). Zahi later said these caves (that I guess came into existence after his opinion) didn’t need discovering (I presume because he didn’t discover them). Ya gotta love him.
More on Pyramid Alignment
A while back I posted on some new peer-reviewed research about the relationship of astronomy and pyramid alignment. The same researcher, Giulio Magli, is back with another article about pyramid alignment. Fascinating – sure beats the paleobabble.
New Scholarly Paper on Archaeoastronomy and Pyramid Alignment
Pretty sweet – thanks to the “Talking Pyramids” blog for this one.
After you’ve read the story at the link above, here are the papers:
The shorter version
The actual journal article
Oldest Pyramids in the World in Bosnia
This has the scent of paleobabble, but I’ll have to let research takes its course (assuming there is any real research going on at the site). I love the way the guy in the article just sort of knows how these Bosnian pyramids (if that’s what they are) were built.
I’ll be on the lookout for a report on the ancient Bosnians being the first to cross the Atlantic, too.