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Egypt pyramids: Scientists may have solved mystery behind construction

www.bbc.com Egypt pyramids: Scientists may have solved mystery behind construction

Scientists say the ancient wonders are likely to have been built along a now-dried up branch of the River Nile.

Egypt pyramids: Scientists may have solved mystery behind construction

Believe it or not, no aliens were likely involved! Just some very smart humans and a massive amount of labor.

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  • That is interesting. But it says:

    The most intact papyri describe several months of work with the transportation of limestone from quarries Tura North and Tura South to Giza in the 27th year of the reign of pharaoh Khufu.[8][9] Though the diary does not specify where the stones were to be used or for what purpose, given the diary may date to what is widely considered the very end of Khufu's reign, Tallet believes they were most likely for cladding the outside of the Great Pyramid. About every ten days, two or three round trips were done, shipping perhaps 30 blocks of 2–3 tonnes each, amounting to 200 blocks per month.[10][11] About forty boatmen worked under him. The period covered in the papyri extends from July to November.[8]

    (Emphasis added) it’s not exactly very specific. Every 10 days a few blocks wouldn’t match the expected construction rate, and there’s no reasoning why they think it was for the Great Pyramid (other than the belief that it’s Khufu’s tomb?)

    • Every 10 days a few blocks wouldn’t match the expected construction rate, and there’s no reasoning why they think it was for the Great Pyramid

      Unless there were other crews, like there almost always is in any construction. The journal also specifically names the pyramid, it'd be odd for the stone they're moving to go to the site of the Pyramid of Khufu, mention the name of the pyramid of Khufu, and then not be used for the pyramid of Khufu.

      • Yeah it does say they were likely transporting cladding, which is also interesting. If, as I’m buying into, the pyramid pre-dated Khufu, work on it to ‘claim’ it would make sense, and “trimming” would be the perfect thing.

        I don’t know of course, but in the current of speculations that’s one I prefer. The great pyramid is just different to the others in interesting ways.

        The Great Pyramid differs in its internal arrangement from the other pyramids in the area. The greater number of passages and chambers, the high finish of parts of the work, and the accuracy of construction all distinguish it. The walls throughout the pyramid are totally bare and uninscribed, but there are inscriptions—to be more precise, graffiti—believed to have been made by the workers on the stones before they were assembled. The most famous inscription is one of the few that mentions the name of Khufu; it says "year 17 of Khufu's reign."

        https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Great_Pyramid_of_Giza

        https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2013/11/27/penalties-imposed-on-two-amateur-german-archaeologists/

        The results from the two ameteurs’ “research” cast doubt on the construction date of the great pyramid and consequently the pharaoh for which it was built. The results suggest that the pyramid was built in an era preceding Khufu’s reign.

        “This is totally false and nonsensical,” said Ahmed Saeed, professor of ancient Egyptian civilisation at Cairo University. He explains that accurate scientific research dates the cartouche within an era after the reign of Khufu.

        He elaborates on the writing of the king’s name in graffiti, maintaining it could have been written by the pyramid builders after construction, which might also explain why the king’s short name and not his official title is inscribed. Alternatively, he suggests the cartouche could have been written during the Middle Kingdom era, due to the style of writing used.

        If it was the guy’s tomb, why isn’t his name anywhere? All the other tombs are positively lousy with art. But not this one. The one - graffiti, not official, not sanctioned - name is hidden in the equivalent of a closet and that is in shorthand even?

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