ArticlesbyRobertBauval(appearedinDiscussionsinEgyptology)

‘AMasterPlanfortheThreePyramidsofGizaBasedontheConfigurationoftheThreeStarsoftheBeltofOrion’inDE13,1989,pp.7–18

‘Investigations on the Origins of the Benben Stone:Was it an IronMeteorite?’ inDE14,1989,pp.5–17

‘TheSeedingoftheStarGods:AFertilityRitualInsideCheops’sPyramid?’inDE16,1990,pp.21–29

‘Cheops’sPyramid:ANewDatingUsingtheLatestAstronomicalData’inDE26,1993,pp.5–7

‘The Upuaut Project: New Findings in the Southern Shaft in the Queen’s Chamber ofCheops’sPyramid’inDE27,1993

‘The Adze of Upuaut: The Opening of the Mouth Ceremony and the Northern Shafts inCheops’sPyramid’(toappearin1994).WithA.Gilbert

‘TheHorizonofKhufu:AStellarNameforCheops’sPyramid’(toappearin1994)

‘LogisticsoftheShaftsinCheops’Pyramid:AReligiousFunctionExpressedwithGeometricalAstronomyandBuilt-inArchitecture’(toappearin1994)

AlsobyAdrianGilbert

TheCosmicWisdomBeyondAstrology

ForMicheleandDee

Contents

ListofPlatesListofLineIllustrationsAcknowledgementsPrologue—TheLastWonderoftheAncientWorld1TheGenesisoftheOrionMystery2TheMountainsoftheStarGods3TheDiscoveryofthePyramidTexts4LetthePyramidTexts‘Speak’5TheGizaPlan6GizaandtheBeltofOrion7TheStarCorrelationTheory8TheBrotherofOsiris9IntermezzoatthePyramids10TheGreatStar-ClockoftheEpochs11TheSeedofthePhoenix12TheRoadsofOsirisEpilogue

Appendix1AstronomicalInvestigationConcerningtheso-calledAir-shaftsofCheops’sPyramid

Appendix2Precession

Appendix3TheSecretChambersoftheSanctuaryofThoth

Appendix4TheSurvivaloftheStarReligion

Appendix5LogisticsoftheShaftsinCheops’sPyramid

Appendix6TheHorizonofKhufu

Appendix7The‘SonsofRa’andtheOsirianRebirthofthePyramidKingsNotesandReferencesBibliography

LineIllustrations

AllillustrationsarebyRobinCook

1Cross-sectionoftheGreatPyramidshowingchambers,passage-waysandshafts

2MapofEgyptlookingsouthalongtheNileValley

3DetailmapofMemphisarea

4Artist’simpressionoftheoriginaltempleofthePhoenixatHeliopolis,withPillarofAtumsurmountedbytheBenbenstone

5TheEgyptianPhoenixorBennuBird

6TheHeliopolitanEnneadofGodsplusHorustheSonofIsisandOsiris

7ThePyramidsoftheIVthDynasty

8Sahu-OrionfollowedbySothis-SiriusandthreestarsintheDailyProcessionoftheHeavens

9CeilingfromtheTombofSenmut(NewKingdom)

10ScenesfromtheBookoftheDead,theweighingoftheheartandpresentationofaworthysoulatthecourtofOsiris

11TheGreatPyramidofGizaincross-section.Alignmentsofshaftstostarsc.2600BCasdiscoveredbyA.BadawyandV.Trimblein1964

12AnalysisoftheGizaLayoutPlan

13ThePyramidsofDashourshowingmeridionaloffset

14RisingoftheHyadesc.2450BC

15OrientationofthefourshaftsintheGreatPyramid

16ThePositionoftheconstellationofOrionthroughtheages

17PositionsofRisingandCulminationofOrionthroughtheages

18Thepatternintheskyaround10400BCmirroredonthegroundbythepyramids

19TheZodiacofDenderah(NewKingdom)

20InternallayoutoftheupperchambersoftheGreatPyramidandassociatedshafts

21TheBenbenthroughtheAges

22GeodesicsystemlinkingBenben‘Beacons’atHeliopolis,LetopolisandGizaandrouteoffuneralprocession

23TheRisingofAlNitakc.2450BC

The‘HorizonofKhufu’,i.e.TheGreatPyramid

24Precession

25Theastro-geometryoftheshaftsandchambersinsidetheGreatPyramid,withtheupperculminationpositionofthestarstakenc.2450BC

26TheHeliacalrisingofOrion’sBeltandthe26.5degreealignment

Acknowledgements

The Orion Mystery is the result of ten years’ research. It is not easy to thank properlyeveryonewhohassokindlyhelpedtoturnthisprojectfromanideaintoreality.Foremostwemustthankourrespectivewives,MicheleBauvalandDeeGilbert,forthepracticalandemotional support they have given us.Without their helpTheOrionMystery would haveremainedamysteryformuchlonger.SpecialthanksgotoDrI.E.S.Edwards(KeeperoftheEgyptianAntiquitiesattheBritishMuseum 1954–1974); Engineer and archaeologist Rudolf Gantenbrink; Professor JeanKerisel (General-Secretary of the Franco-Egyptian Society); Professor Hermann Brück(AstronomerRoyalofScotland1957–1975);ProfessorMaryBrück(LecturerinAstronomyatEdinburgh University); Dr Jaromir Malek (Director at the Griffith Institute, AshmoleanMuseum); ProfessorNicolasMann (Director of theWarburg Institute, London);DrVivianDavies (Keeper of Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum); Dr Alessandra Nibbi(Egyptologist and Editor of DE Publications); Jean-Paul and Pauline Bauval (Malaga);Denis and Verena Seisun (San Diego); Marion Krause-Jach (Berlin); Lyndsay Kent(Birmingham);JohnandJosetteOrphanidis(Cairo);GeoffreyandThereseGauci(Sydney);DrHenriRiad(Cairo);RobinCook(Glastonbury);VivianeVayssieres(London);DavidandChristianeJoury(Riyadh);MichaelandSuePim(Beaconsfield);DavidKeys(London);AliceHarper(London);ErichVonDaniken(Solothurn);HodaHakim(Cairo);OstaSabry(Cairo).WewishtoexpressspecialappreciationtoBillHamiltonandSarahFisherandallatA.M.Heath&CompanyLtd;SarahHanniganandJoMayerandallatHeinemannMandarin.Wewould also like to thank the staffs of the various libraries thatwere consulted: theMitchellLibraryoftheUniversityofSydney;theAshmoleanLibrary,Oxford;theWarburgInstituteLibrary,London;theBeaconsfieldCountyLibrary;TheBritishLibrary.Last,butnotleast,averyspecial‘thankyou’totheRobotUPUAUT2who‘openedtheways’forallofus.Permissionsforquotes/photographs:Wewould like to thank the following individualsandorganisations:PenguinBooksLtdforspecialpermissiontoquotefromJ.B.Sellers’sbook,TheDeathOfGodsInAncientEgypt;Chatto & Windus Ltd for permission to quote from E.C. Krupp’s In Search Of AncientAstronomies;ThamesandHudsonforpermissiontoquotefromR.T.RundleClark’sMythandSymbolsInAncientEgypt;TheEgyptExplorationSocietyforpermissiontoreproduceSirA.Gardiner’s article in JEA 11, 1925; Dr Virginia Trimble for permission to reproduce herarticle inMIFOAWBBand10, 1964; TheOxfordUniversity Press for permission to quotefrom R.O. Faulkner’s The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts; Dr I.E.S. Edwards for specialpermissiontoquotefromallhispublishedmaterialandrelevantletterstothethesis;DrJ.Malek for special permission to quote from a personal letter; Rudolf Gantenbrink forpermission to use his data; The BritishMuseum Press for permission to quote from R.O.Faulkner’sTheBookOfTheDead.

RobertG.BauvalandAdrianG.Gilbert1993

PROLOGUE:TheLastWonderoftheAncientWorld

HismajestyKingCheopsspentallhistimetryingtofindoutthenumberofsecretchambersofthesanctuaryofThothsoastohavethesameforhisown‘horizon’(pyramid)…

—WestcarPapyrus,BerlinMuseum

As for the pyramidofCheops, doweknow everythingabout it, dowe really know it at all?Thearchaeologiststhoughttheyhadconclusivelyexplorediteightyyearsago,then,loandbehold,in1945,bypurechance,thegiganticfuneraryboatswerefoundintact…

—GeorgesGoyon,LeSecretdesBatisseursdesGrandesPyramides

In the centuries before Christ, when Alexandria was preeminent among the cities of theGreek world and its citizens were great travellers, there were seven wonders whosereputation surpassed all others and which everyone wanted to see. Six of these — thegardensofSemiramisatBabylon,thestatueofZeusatOlympia,thetempleofArtemisatEphesus,theMausoleumatHelicarnassus,theColossusofRhodesandthePharoslighthouseatAlexandriaitself—havedisappeared.Onlyoneremainsforustovisit:thepyramidsofEgypt.These extraordinarymonuments,whichmake Stonehenge look like amorning’swork,1have inspired awe through the centuries. Their sheer size sets them apart, let alone theperfectionof theirgeometry.Justhowtheywerebuilt remainsamystery;even todaywewouldbehardpressedtoreplicatethemwithalltheadvantagesofmoderntechnology.AtthetimeoftheAncientEgyptianstherewerenodump-trucksorcranes,nosteelcablesorhoists, not even iron tools.Without the benefit of somuch as a simple pulley, they builtmountainsfromstoneand,withaprecisionthatistrulyastonishing,laidtheseoutonthedesertfloor.Yetthemorepuzzlingquestioniswhyandnothowtheybuiltthem.WhydidtheEgyptianschoosetobuildpyramidswhen,sofarasweknow,theyhadneverbeenbuiltbefore?2Whydidtheybuildthemsobigandofsuchprecision?Whydidtheyscatterthemaroundthedesertinsteadofbuildingthemallinoneplace?3

Contemporary Egyptology has no convincing answers. Pick up any textbook on thesubjectandyouwillencounter thesamestatement, that thepyramids functionedasroyaltombs. But why, when a simple hole in the ground would have sufficed, should theEgyptians have built tombs up to 147 metres high? Why make this prodigious effort tohouseadeadbody?Evengiventhatthepharaohswereautocratsandwerereveredaslivinggods,thisseemslikeacolossalwasteoftimeandenergy.The popular image of gangs of slaves forced to carry out this enormous task is also amyth; there is no evidence to suggest that people were compelled to take part in this

massiveenterpriseagainsttheirwills—indeed,ifanything,theopposite.Thesheerqualityofcraftsmanshipintheconstructionofthepyramidssuggestsaprideinthework,andtherearesubtletiesofdesignwhichsuggestidealsatoddswiththebrutalimageofAncientEgyptportrayedinbiblicalfilmepics.In fact, the Egyptians were highly civilised and deeply religious at a time whenEuropeanswerestillprimitive,andthereismuchtosuggestthattheybuiltpyramidsmoreas an affirmation of their religious convictions than to glorify dead pharaohs, howeverpowerful.But theEgyptianswere also an extremely reservedpeople,whokept the innermysteries of their religion from all but a few chosen initiates. As it was these few whodirectedthebuildingofthepyramids,itisnotsurprisingthatweknowsolittleabouttheirmotives.Therearealsomysteriessurroundingspecificpyramids,especially theGreatPyramidofGiza.Havingstoodintactforseveralmillennia,itwasfirstbrokenintoinAD820byateamof Arab workmen on the orders of Caliph Ma’moun, son of the legendary Haroun alRashid.4 After weeks of tunnelling through solid limestone, they emerged into a dark,gloomypassageway.Furtherexplorationalong tunnelsandgalleries revealeda systemofthree chambers which, much to their chagrin, were all empty. Only a lidless, granitesarcophaguswasfoundintheso-calledKing’sChamber.The Ancient Egyptians were themselves remarkably silent about the pyramids. By thetimeofTutankhamun(c.1300BC),theGizapyramidswereoveronethousandyearsold,andthememoryofwhobuiltthemandwhywaslost.TheGreeksandtheRomanswhooccupiedEgypt from the fourth century BC to the seventh century AD took little interest in thesemonuments, though theGreekhistorian,Herodotus,whospent some time inEgypt in thefifth century BC, sought to explain their origins and purpose in The Histories. This is theearliest first-handaccountofthepyramidsknowntousandisamixtureofpersonalbias,local gossip and mythology.5 It was not until the Arabs invaded Egypt in the seventhcenturyADthatarealattemptwasmadetoexplorethepyramids.The Great Pyramid has continued to fascinate adventurers and has attracted moreattentionthananyothersinglebuildinginhistory.Throughoutthecenturiestherehasbeenthesuspicionthatitheldfurthersecrets,thatsomewhereinsidewasahiddenchamber,andthatonedaythischamberwouldbefound.GenerationsofEgyptologistsandamateurshavesearchedforit,andhaveusedeverythingfromdynamitetox-rays,butwithoutsuccess.

On22March1993theinternationalmedia6excitedlyannouncedthatRudolfGantenbrink,an unknown German robotics engineer, had made the most significant archaeologicaldiscoveryofthedecade.EmployedbytheGermanArchaeologicalInstituteinCairotofindaway of improving the ventilation in the Great Pyramid, Gantenbrink had sent a tinyremote-controlledrobot,UPUAUT2(‘OpeneroftheWays’inAncientEgyptian),upthesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber.Comingtoahaltafteraboutsixty-fivemetres,therobotsentbackvideopicturesofwhatappearedtobeasmalldoor,withatantalisinggapunderneathit.Nowadoorsuggestssomethingbeyondit,perhapsachamber.Ifsuchachamberexists,it

couldnothavebeenplunderedsincethepyramidwasbuilt,astheshaftwasclosedatbothends. This means that whatever the Ancient Egyptians might have put in it has lainundisturbedforatleast4400yearsandmuststillbethere,andifthepyramidbuilderstooksomuchtrouble toconceal it, itmusthavebeenvery important;more importantperhapsthanthemummyofadeadpharaoh.Thissuggeststhatitwassomethingtheyregardedascentral to their religion and perhaps connected with their motivation for building thepyramidsinthefirstplace…ButRudolfGantenbrinkwasnottheonlypersoninterestedintheshafts, forIhadbeen

investigating them for several years in connection with their astronomical bearings. Byextraordinarycoincidence,AdrianGilbertandIhadbeentakingphotographsoftheQueen’sChamber and the opening of the southern shaft just days before UPUAUT 2went on its epicjourney,andImetandtalkedtoRudolfandhisteamastheypreparedforthefinalstagesoftheirinvestigationintotheQueen’sshaft.Adrian’s and my interest was altogether more abstract: what might these shafts have

symbolised?Itisbynowwellknownthattheywerenotprimarilyforventilation.Itisthedirection in which they point that is most significant— towards specific stellar regionswhichhadgreatimportancefortheAncientEgyptians.Ihadbeenresearchingthematterofthe lost star religion of the pyramid builders for a number of years and had publishedseveralarticlesonthesubject;7however,itseemedtomethatsomeofthedataontheangleof one of these shafts was inaccurate. I was therefore hoping that Gantenbrink’s newmeasurementsbylaserbeamswouldprovideuswithamoreaccuratereading,sothattheastronomicaltargetofthisshaftcouldbeverified.

1.Cross-sectionoftheGreatPyramidshowingchambers,passage-waysandshafts

Gantenbrink’s amazingdiscoverywas reportedon the front pageof the Independent inLondon and, as his spokesman in England, I was asked by their archaeologicalcorrespondent tocommenton the religious significanceof the shafts. I explained that thesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberpointedtowardstheBeltofOrion,associatedwiththe

god Osiris, and the equivalent shaft from the Queen’s Chamber (the one blocked by the‘door’) pointed towards Sirius, the star of the goddess Isis.8 These alignments were notaccidentalbutwereclearlyboundupwiththepurposeofthepyramid.Thiswasthefirsttheworldknewofanacademicdebateconcerningastarreligionlinked

tothepyramids,becausethestandardtextbookshadalwayssupporteda‘solarhypothesis’.Speaking on Channel 4 television that evening, Dr Edwards, the world authority onpyramids,lentsupporttomytheorybysuggestingthatthedoormighthideastatueofthepharaoh‘staringoutinthedirectionofOrion’.Onthesubjectoftheshafts,hewasquotedthenextdayby theDailyMail as saying that ‘Theywere calledventilation shaftsbecausenobodyknewanybetter.…TheypointattheconstellationofOrion,whosestarswerethegodOsiris.’9

What other secrets do the Giza Pyramids hold relating to the stars of Orion? Withconfirmation fromGantenbrink that the trueangleof the shaft, verifiedby UPUAUT 2, fittedexactly with my predictions, I had the final evidence that a master plan governed thebuildingofthepyramids—simplebutwithastoundingimplicationsforourunderstandingofthePyramidAge.MysearchforasolutiontotheOrionMysteryhadbeguntwelveyearsago.

1THEGENESISOFTHEORIONMYSTERY

Theskieshavebeenthemoverof[man’s]scienceformillennia,theyarehishopesanddreamsoftomorrow;nowhereisthevisionofthefirstmenwhocarvedtheirthoughtsonstonesofullydisplayedasinthetombsofearliestEgypt

–JaneB.Sellers,TheDeathsofGodsinAncientEgypt

IADanceforSirius

In1979,atLondon-Heathrowairport, IboughtabookcalledTheSiriusMysterybyRobertTemple.1 I took itwithme to the Sudan,where Iwas going towork on an engineeringschemetoconnecttheBlueNilewiththeRahadRiverbymeansofacanalsystem.2

Thebookturnedouttobeahistoricaldetectivestory,interestingbecauseitsinitialpointoffocuswasanAfricantribe,theDogon,whoeverysixtyyearsenactedaceremonycalledtheSigui,duringwhichtheirpriestsputonmasksandperformedacomplexdance.Thiswasarenewalceremony,basedontheapparentmotionofSirius,knowntomostpeopleasthe‘dog star’. Sirius is the brightest star in the heavens and is in the constellation of CanisMajor just below Orion.3 The Sirius Mystery also explored aspects of Ancient Egyptianastronomy, and as I was both an amateur Egyptologist and a keen student of AncientEgyptianastronomy,itseemedlikeagoodbooktotaketotheSudan,wherethenightskiesareidealforstarwatching.IdiscoveredthatTemple’smysterywasbasedonanarticlewritteninthe1950sbytwoFrenchanthropologists,GriauleandDieterlen.4TheyhadstudiedtheDogonandfoundthemtobeinpossessionofunexpectedknowledgeconcerningSiriusanditsinvisiblepartner,the‘whitedwarf’,SiriusB.RobertTemple,anAmericanlivinginBritain,aFellowoftheRoyalAstronomical Society and a graduate in Oriental Studies and Sanskrit, came across theirwork in the early 1960s. Hewas baffled as to how the Dogon could have known of theexistenceofSiriusB,giventhatitisbarelyvisibleusingaverypowerfultelescope(itwasonlyin1970thatthefirstphotographofSiriusBwasobtainedwithgreatdifficultybytheastronomer Irving Lindenblad).5 Most people today remain ignorant of the existence ofSiriusBandnotmanywouldevenbeawareofSiriusA,sohowcouldtheDogonhavehadaccurateinformationconcerningSiriusBinthe1950s?AfurthermysterywashowtheDogonseemedtohavekeptphysical recordsrelating tothisstar,intheformofcultmasks,someofwhicharecenturiesoldandarestoredincaves.Theirobsessionwiththistinystarwasstrange:wherehadtheirknowledgeoriginated?

Templeconcludedthatasitclearlyhadnotcomefrommodernastronomers,itmusthaveoriginatedfromancestralsourcesandhadprobablybeenpasseddowntotheDogonbeforetheymigratedtotheirpresenthome,Maliinsub-SaharanAfrica.InEgypt,inancienttimes,Sirius was considered the most important star in the sky and was identified with theEgyptians’favouritegoddess,Isis.InthisobliquewayTemple’sinitialstudyofthearticlebytheFrenchanthropologistshad ledhimviaanobscureAfrican tribe inevitably toAncientEgypt.Hewrote:

WhenIbeganwritingthisbookinearnestin1967,theentirequestionwasframedintermsofanAfricantribenamedtheDogon.…TheDogonwereinpossessionofinformationconcerningthesystemofthestarSiriuswhichwassoincrediblethatIfeltimpelledtoresearchthematerial.Theresult,in1974,sevenyearslater,isthatIhavebeenabletoshowthattheinformationwhichtheDogonpossessisreallymorethanfivethousandyearsoldandwaspossessedbytheAncientEgyptiansinthepre-dynastictimesbefore3200BC.6

ThoughmuchoftherestofhisbookconcerningthemythologyoftheNearEastwashighlyspeculative,Templehaduncoveredamysteryworthyoffurtherinvestigation.IftheDogonhad inherited their knowledge of Sirius B from the Ancient Egyptians, what otherknowledgemight these ancients have had concerning the stars? I had always understoodthatEgyptiansof all periods veneratednot somuch the stars but the sungod,Ra; I alsoknewthatforashorttimeunderthepharaohAkhenaten(c.1350BC)therewassomeheresyconcerningthegodAten,symbolisedbythesolardisc.7

Inanyevent,atthetimeIreadTheSiriusMysteryIknewverylittleoftheirmoreancientstarreligion.Thissubject turnedout tobean interestingandneglectedfieldofstudyandone of the most important in understanding the Ancient Egyptians’ sky religion. It alsobecameclearthattherewassolittlewrittenaboutitbecauseitwasesotericknowledgeofthe highest order. The Egyptians were probably the greatest astronomers of the ancientworld, but, unlike the Greeks and Romans, most of their knowledge was restricted to asmallgroupofinitiates.8Atleastsomeofthesesecretsconcernedthestars.Itseemedobvioustomethattheplacetolookforevidenceofthislostknowledgewasnotamong the tribes of Mali but in Egypt itself. There the ancients had left a wealth ofcontemporaneous evidence in the form of temples, tombs, obelisks, inscriptions and —aboveall—thepyramids.Ihadanintuitionthatthelostknowledgemightbesomethingofgreatsignificance,andfeltastrongurgetopursuethetrail.Having finished my contract in the Sudan in 1980, I left for another engineeringassignment, thistimeinthedesertkingdomofSaudiArabia.LittledidIknowthat in lessthanayearIwouldcomeacrossfurtheramazingevidencethatwouldreawakenmyinterestinthestarmysteryandpointtowardsaconnectionwiththepyramids.Butbeforegoingintothis,letmejustreviewcurrentknowledgeofthePyramidAgeandwhatisknownoftheskyreligionoftheEgyptiansofthatperiod.

IITheLandofGodKings

ThelandofEgyptmighthavebeenjustanextensionoftheSaharadesertwereitnotfortheworld’slongestriver,theNile.Thismightyartery,withitssourcesdeepintheheartlandsofAfrica, is fedby the reservoirsofLakeTana inEthiopiaandLakesAlbertandVictoria inUganda,andbringslifetotheotherwisetorridregionsofSudanandEgypt.Seenfromtheair, it lookslikeagiganticsnake, lazilyslinkingnorthwardstothecoolMediterranean.Ithas a presence and beauty that contrasts strangely with the burning desert beyond itsbanks.The Egyptians had good reason to worship the Nile, which they believed was the

manifestationofthegods.Withminimalamountsofrainfallingontheirland,itwastheironlysteadysourceoffreshwater.Theirlivesweretoalargeextentgovernedbytherhythmof the Nile; the annual flood, caused by the melting of snow high in the mountains ofEthiopia, which occurs around the time of the summer solstice, was the most importantevent in their calendar. The Nile irrigated a wide area on either side of its course anddepositedlargeamountsofthickblacksiltwhichincreasedthefertilityoftheland.Sorichwasthisnaturalfertilisationthatseveralcropswerepossible inayear.Toall intentsandpurposes,Egyptwas(andindeedstillis)the‘giftoftheNile’.Geographically, Egypt’s inhabitable land (excluding a few desert oases) falls into two

distinctareas:thelong,narrowvalleyoftheNileasitwindsthroughcanyonsanddesert,andthetriangular,flatDeltawheretherivermeetstheMediterranean.Thesetwoterritorieshave always been referred to as Upper and Lower Egypt and are quite different incharacter.ThefertilevalleyofUpperEgyptisathinstreakoflandsome600mileslongandonlyaboutthreemileswide.Inthepastthiswassufficienttosupportthelocalpopulation,but agriculturewas only part of theirmodus vivendi. The Nile was also a great highwaylinkingdarkestAfricawithLowerEgypt.ThecitiesofUpperEgyptwereimportanttradingpostsonthishighway,dealinginivory,preciousstones,wood,incenseandslaves,andthistrade, as much as agriculture, constituted the wealth of Upper Egypt. Lower Egypt, bycontrast,isaflatalluvialplain,withsomeofthefinestarablelandintheworld,irrigatedby a constant water supply. Once wholly marshland, the Egyptians transformed it intofarmland. It isnowanareaof enormousdategroves and,under the shadeof thepalms,othercropsthrivetofeedbothmanandanimals.Richinwheatandcorn,itwasoneofthegreatfoodbasketsoftheancientworld.

2.MapofEgyptlookingsouthalongtheNileValley

Thenatural division of the land gave rise to the two separate kingdoms ofUpper andLowerEgypt.ThecapitalofUpperEgyptwasatNekheb,nearHierakonopolis,under theprotectionofthevulturegoddessNekhebet.LowerEgypt’scapitalwasatPe,atownintheDeltawhichtheGreekslatercalledButo;itwasprotectedbythecobragoddessEdjo.Howthe two kingdoms related to each other in pre-dynastic times is not known, butEgyptologistsbelievethattheywerefirstunitedbyMenes,apowerfulkingofUpperEgypt,whowasalsoknownas‘thescorpionking’.Around3100BCheissaidtohavesubduedLowerEgypt, declaredhimself ruler over a united kingdomand founded the FirstDynasty. ThisdateisusuallytakenasbeingthestartofEgyptianhistory,thoughtheEgyptiansconsideredtheircivilisationtobeverymucholderandlookedbacktoagoldenagewhenthetwolandswereruledbythegods.TheybelievedtheanthropomorphicdeityOsiriswasthefirstdivinepharaoh.ThefactthatEgyptwasreallytwokingdomswas,however,neverforgottenandthe pharaohswere always referred to as ‘Lord of the Two Lands’ or ‘King of Upper andLower Egypt’. They also adopted both protective goddesses, Edjo and Nekhebet, andfrequently wore a double crown, red for Lower Egypt and white for Upper Egypt, tosymbolisetheirlordshipoverbothlands.FollowingMenes’sconquestofLowerEgypt,andunificationofthekingdoms,therewere

tobesomethirty-twodynastiesuptoandincludingtheGreekPtolemies,whotookcontrolfollowing Egypt’s conquest by Alexander the Great in 332BC. Cleopatra was the lastpharaonic ruler of Egypt before it fell to the might of Rome in 30BC, when the line ofpharaohs effectively ended. This long history, from c. 3100BC to 30BC, is sub-divided forarchaeologicalpurposesintoanumberofperiods,eachcomprisinganumberofdynasties.9For our purposes, the most important of these is the Old Kingdom, also known as thePyramidAge.ItcomprisesDynastiesThreetoSix(c.2686–2181BC).Thisperiod,accordingtoDrEdwards, is the ‘PyramidAgeparexcellence’,andreached itsapotheosis in theFourthDynastyduringwhichthegreatestpyramidswerebuilt.10

MenesbuilthisnewcapitalatMemphis,amidlushpalmgrovesonthewestbankoftheNile.ItslocationwasofgreatpoliticalandsymbolicimportanceforitstoodneartheheadoftheDelta,atthejunctionofUpperandLowerEgypt.Almostnothingnowremainsofthisoncegreatcity:donkeysandcattlegrazeunderthedatepalmswherepalacesandtemplesoncestood.Thereareplanstocarryoutmajorexcavationsofthesitewhenfundsallow,butpresentarchaeologicalknowledgeconcerningthisancientmetropolis issurprisinglyscant.Inlatertimes,duringtheNewKingdom(c.1450BC)thecapitalofunitedEgyptwasmovedto Thebes in Upper Egypt, butMemphis continued to prosper until well into the secondcenturyAD.AfewkilometreswestofMemphisistheancientnecropolisofSaqqara,aroyalcemeteryimportant throughoutEgyptianhistory. It is the site of the famous step-pyramidofZoserandseveralothersmallerpyramids,notablythatofUnas,lastpharaohoftheFifthDynasty.Saqqara probably takes its name from Sokar, a falcon-headed deity believed to be thekeeper of the whole necropolis.11 It contains many other tombs, some of which arebeautifullydecoratedwithscenesofeverydaylifeasitmusthavebeenwhenthepyramidswerebuilt, andexcitingdiscoveries continue tobemade in thisnecropolis,most recentlythe tombofageneralofRa-Moses II,northofSaqqara.Unfortunately, like thepyramidsthemselves,thesetombsaresufferingfromthedepredationsoftourism,andareurgentlyinneedofprotectiontopreventfurtherdeterioration.

3.DetailmapofMemphisarea

On the other side of the river fromMemphis and some twenty kilometres north is thelegendarysacredcityofAnnuorHeliopolis,12asitwaslatercalledbytheGreeks.Thiswastheseatofapowerfulpriesthoodwhosememberswerethecustodiansofaschoolofwisdomor initiation, and the great temple of Ra, the sun god. The priests of Heliopolis wieldedenormousinfluenceascustodiansofthestatecult;theirschoolofwisdomwasfamouswellintothePtolemaicperiod,andismentionedwithgreatreverencebyHerodotus.13

HeliopolisisnowathrivingsuburbofGreaterCairoandlittleremainsofitsgreatpast;onlyanobeliskofSesostrisI,apowerfulpharaohoftheTwelfthDynasty(c.1940BC)andafewbrokenpillarsandbeamsofanancient temple.TheSesostrisobeliskstands in lonelyisolationresemblingagreatstonefingerpointingtothesky.YetitisonlyoneofmanythatoncestoodinHeliopolis,includingtworaisedbyTothmosesIIIofthepowerfulEighteenthDynasty.TheseweremovedbytheRomanstoAlexandriainabout12BCandplacedinfrontoftheCaesarion,atemplededicatedtoAugustusCaesar.NeitherTothmosesnortheRomanscouldhaveimaginedthatseveralmillennialater,inAD1878,thesetwoobeliskswouldleaveEgyptaltogether.Onenowstandson theVictoriaEmbankment inLondonand isknown,erroneously, as Cleopatra’s Needle; the other is in New York’s Central Park outside theMetropolitanMuseumofFineArts.14

Ontheedgeofthedesert,acrosstheriverfromHeliopolisandashortwayupstream,istheelevatedplateauofGiza,knowntoEgyptologistsastheMokattamFormation.Thissite,nowalmostengulfedbythespreadofGreaterCairo,iswherethefamoustrioofpyramids,thelastWonderoftheWorld,proclaimthegloryofthosewhobuiltthem:threeofthegreat

FourthDynasty pharaohswhom theGreeks calledCheops,Chephren andMycerinos.15 AtGizatherearealsomuchsmaller‘satellite’pyramids,arraysofsmall,flattombs,remnantsofchapelsandtemplesand,ofcourse,thelegendaryGreatSphinx.ItistheGizapyramidswhichhaveexcitedtheimaginationofgenerationsandarewhatmostpeoplethinkofwhentheyhear theword ‘pyramid’.Fewmodernvisitorsareaware,however,thatthefatherofCheopsbuilttwoothergiantpyramidsatDashour,abouttwentykilometressouthofGiza.Unfortunately,thearmycontrolsthesiteofDashour,anditisoutofbounds to theregular tourist. In the twenty-kilometrestretch fromDashour toGizaarethe pyramid ‘fields’ of Saqqara, Abusir and Zawyat Al Aryan, and about six kilometresnorth-west of Giza is the desolate site of Abu Ruwash, where a pyramid of the FourthDynastyoncestood.Onlyitsbaseandfoundationsnowremain.Meidumisaboutsixty-fivekilometres south of Saqqara, but is generally not considered an integral part of theMemphite Necropolis, which covers an area thirty kilometres long by four kilometreswide.16

AboutseventeenkilometresnorthofGizaandonalmostthesamelatitudeasHeliopoliswasanother importantcentre: theancientcityofKhem, latercalledLetopolis.ThisDeltacitywascloselyconnectedwiththehawkgodHorus,andaveryancienttemple,olderthanthepyramids,wassitedthere.17

IIIHeliopolisandtheTempleofthePhoenix

At the time the pyramids were built, there were no obelisks at Heliopolis, only a crudesacredpillar fromwhich,apparently, theancientnameofthecity,Annu,derives.18CairodidnotexistandHeliopoliswasthereligiousheartofthecountry.AtAnnustoodatemplededicatedtoAtum,theCompleteOne,thefatherofthegods.DuringthePyramidAgeAtumbecamemoreandmoreidentifiedwiththesungod,Ra,whointimeusurpedAtum’splaceanddemotedhimtotheroleof‘oldsun’asitsetsinthewest.However,intheseearlydays,before the Pyramid Age, Atum stood for the One God, equal to our concept of God theFather.Atumwasthecreativepowerbehindthesunandeverythingelseintheworld.19

AtHeliopolis therewasanimportantsacredhillormounduponwhichtheFirstSunrisehadtakenplace,20andbeliefhasitthatthesacredpillarstoodonthisholymoundpriortothe Pyramid Age. At the beginning of the Pyramid Age, another, evenmore sacred reliceitherreplacedthesacredpillaror,morelikely,wasplaceduponit.21ThiswastheBenben,amysteriousconicalstonewhich,forreasonswewilldiscusslater,wascreditedwithcosmicorigins.TheBenbenStonewashoused in theTempleof thePhoenixandwas symbolicofthis legendary cosmic bird of regeneration, rebirth and calendrical cycles. In AncientEgyptian art the phoenix was usually depicted as a grey heron, perhaps because of theheron’s migratory habits; it was believed that the phoenix came to Heliopolis to markimportantcyclesandthebirthofanewage.22ItsfirstcomingseemstohaveproducedthecultoftheBenbenStone,probablyconsideredthedivine‘seed’oftheprodigalcosmicbird.Thisidea(whichweshallalsoconsiderlater)isevidentfromtherootwordbenorbenbenwhich can mean human sperm, human ejaculation or the seeding of a womb.23 The

mysteriousBenbenStonedisappearedlongbeforeHerodotusvisitedEgyptbutnotbeforeithadbequeatheditsnametotheapexstoneorpyramidionusuallyplacedontopofpyramidsand,later,theheadofanobelisk.24

4.Artist’simpressionoftheoriginaltempleofthePhoenixatHeliopolis,withPillarofAtumsurmountedbytheBenbenstone

WhatwastheBenbenandwhatbecameofit?Itwasclearlyatthecentreofanimportantroyalcultwhichlaterbuiltpyramids.Aswehavesaid,theholycityofHeliopoliswasinthehandsofapriesthoodwhichwieldedconsiderablepowerinthePyramidAge,andtherecanbelittledoubtthatthedesignofthepyramidswasundertheirdirection.25Thewordpriestasweunderstand today it is somewhatmisleading, for theHeliopolitan sagesweremostlikely highly trained initiates conversant not only with religious ideologies but with thestudyofcelestialbodiesand,probably,theartofsymbolicarchitectureandhieroglyphs,thesacred form of writing invented by the Egyptians.26 Clearly, then, the Heliopolitanpriesthoodwouldhaveknownaboutthemysteriousstellarreligionalludedto intheSiriusMystery.

5.TheEgyptianPhoenixorBennuBird

EgyptologistsconsiderthatHeliopolisprovidedthenearestthingtoastatecult,forwhileevery district had its own local gods, theHeliopolitan religion,whose pantheonwas theGreatEnneadofgods,wasrecognisedeverywhere.27Thisgreatpantheon,composedofninedeities, formed the family ruled by Atum-Ra. Originally un-manifest, Atum, or Atum-Ra,masturbated and thus created Shu, the air god, and Tefnut, the moisture goddess. ThiscouplecreatedGeb, theearthgod,andNut, the skygoddess.GebandNutmated, thoughtheircopulationwas interruptedby their fatherShu,who,as theair, camebetween themandliftedthecanopyoftheskyawayfromtheearth,therebypartingthedivinelovers.Inspiteofthiscoitusinterruptus,Nut,theskygoddess,gavebirthtofouranthropomorphicgodswho livedonearth.ThesewereOsirisandSeth, twomalegods,andtheirsisters, IsisandNephthys.Osiris and Isiswere united andbecame the subject ofAncient Egypt’s greatestmythasthefirstdivinecouplewhoruledEgypt.Isisgavebirthtoanonlyson,Horus,fromthe seed of Osiris. Since Osiris, or his ‘soul’, was often identified with the phoenix, it isprobable that the Benben Stone symbolised, among other things, his seed, and thus thegenerativepowerthatcreatedHorusfromthewombofIsis.28

It iswith these last five anthropomorphic or human-formgods thatwe shall bemostlyinvolved, and especiallywithOsiris, for hewas not only seen as the first divine king ofEgypt, but his tragic death andmiraculous resurrection provided the basis of the ancientEgyptianmysteriesandtheoriginoftheirrebirthcult.29

6.TheHeliopolitanEnneadofGodsplusHorusthesonofIsisandOsiris

IVThePyramidAge

TheAncientEgyptianswerereligiouspeopleandbelievedemphaticallyinanafterlifeinsome heavenly Egypt. To help the dead reach this celestial afterworld, it was deemedimportant to preserve the body of the deceased as far as possible and to provide thedepartedwiththemeansandaccessoriesforthearduousjourneyintoeternity.Inpre-dynastictimesthedeadwereburiedinsimplepitsduginthedesertsand.Thebodywas placed on its side in a foetal position, presumably ready to await a rebirth in theafterlife.InthedryconditionsofEgypt’swesterndesert,naturalmummificationtookplace,probablymorebyaccidentthandesign.Yetthecorpsewasalwaysliabletobeexposedbyjackalsandwilddogs,desecratingitandmakingiteasyforrobberstolocatethetombandstealpreciousartefacts.DuringtheFirstDynastytheEgyptiansbeganbuildingtombswith

superstructuresofmudbricksandstonetocovertheburialpitandprotectthecorpse.Theseweremassiverectangularstructureswithflatroofscommonlyknownasmastabas.30Thereare many of them scattered in the Memphite Necropolis. They continued to be usedthroughouttheOldKingdomperiod.UptotheendoftheSecondDynastysomekingswereburiedinthem,butthereaftertheywereusedonlyforthenobility;deadkingsweretohavemuchgrander‘MansionsofEternity’.31Mastabasweremadeofrockandmudbricksandarebelievedtohavebeenmoreelaboratethanthehomesinwhichthepeoplethemselveslived.AccordingtoDrEdwards,thereasonforthiswasreligious:

Inalandwherestoneofexcellentqualitycouldbeobtainedinabundance,itmayseemstrangethattherulersandgoverningclassesshouldhavebeencontenttospendtheirlivesinbuildingsofinferiorqualitytotheirtombs.TheAncientEgyptian,however,tookadifferentview;hishouseorpalacewasbuilttolastforonlyalimitednumberofyears…buthistomb,whichhecalledhis‘castleofeternity’,wasdesignedtolastforever.32

During the Third Dynasty the so-called step-pyramids appeared but these are not truepyramidsinthegeometricalsenseoftheword,sowewoulddobettertothinkofthemassteppedtowers.33 The largest of these remaining isKingZoser’s at Saqqara, not only thelargest of its kind built in Egypt but the first known structure builtwith stonemasonry:quarriedandproperly cut rather than rough stones stacked together.34 This innovation isattributedtoageniuspriest-architectcalledImhotep,whowasalsoZoser’svizier.Imhotep,whomtheGreeksequatedwiththeirgodofmedicineAsclepius,waslaterdeifiedandsaidtobethegreatestwiseman.HewasalsothehighpriestofAnnuandastronomer-generalorchiefstargazer,withthetitle‘ChiefoftheObservers’.35

The step-pyramid of Zoser is an imposing structure; it is sixty metres high and has arectangularbase. It seemstohavecontainedtheburialchamberofKingZoserandothersusedforhisfamily.Itsziggurat-likestructureseemsalsotohavesymbolisedaladderwhosesixstepsleadinguptoaseventhplatformprobablycorrespondedtotheplanetarysphereswhichencircletheearthandthereforetostagesofascentthroughwhichthesoulmustpassafterdeath.This isacommonconcept foundinmythologiesaroundtheworldandiswelldocumentedinWilliamLethaby’sArchitecture,MysticismandMyth.SpeakingofthezigguratofBorsippa,restoredbyNebuchadnezzar,Lethabytranslatesthelatter’sinscription:

IhaverepairedandperfectedthemarvelofBorsippa,thetempleofthesevenspheresoftheworld.Ihaveerectedit in bricks which I have covered with copper. I have covered with zones, alternately of marble and otherpreciousstones,thesanctuaryofGod.36

Writingofthestep-monumentsofEgyptafterseveralpagesconsideringsimilarstructuresinAssyria,China,andMexico,Lethabysays:

MasperoandPerrotaredisposedtoaccepttheaccountofaGreekwriterthattheGreatPyramidwasdecoratedinzones of colour, with the apex gilt; and it would seemmore than a coincidence that the earliest pyramids,attributed to the first fourdynasties, shouldbe instages.ThatatSakkarahstillhassix steps,decreasing from

thirty-eightfeethighatthebottomtotwenty-ninefeetforthetop,inremarkableresemblancetotheZigguratatBabel.

7.ThePyramidsoftheIVthDynasty

AndMr Petrie has found that the pyramid ofMedum [sic] was built in seven degrees before the outer andcontinuouscasingwasapplied,‘producingapyramidwhichservedasamodeltofuturesovereigns’.37

Looked at in this way, the step-monument of Zoser is much more than the tomb of apowerfulking;itisastatementofreligiousbeliefsandanexpressionofthehighestart.ItstandsproudlyaboveSaqqaraamidthetombsofgenerationsasasymboloftheEgyptianreligion. Visible from Memphis and the surrounding Nile Valley, it would have been aconstantreminderthatthepurposeoflifeonearthwastoprepareforthehereafter.Following Imhotep’s achievement at Saqqara, several other step-pyramids were built,notablyatMeidum,someforty-fivekilometressouthofSaqqara.ItisbelievedthatthislatermonumentwasbuiltbyasuccessorofZoser’snamedHuni,aboutwhomvirtuallynothingisknown. The step-pyramid builders were succeeded by the celebrated kings of the FourthDynasty,whobuilt thetruepyramids.TheseincludethemagnificentpyramidsofDashourandtheworld-famoustriadatGiza.ItisnotinconceivablethatImhotepalsoplannedthese,

evenifhedidnotlivetoseethembuilt.

2THEMOUNTAINSOFTHESTARGODS

HereIam,ORa(Sun-God),Iamyourson,Iamasoul…astarofgold…

PyramidTexts,lines886–9

Modernarchaeologicalscholarshavecultivatedapristineignoranceofastronomicalthought,someofthemactuallyignorantoftheprecession[ofstars]itself.

G.deSantillana,Hamlet’sMill,p.66

ITheSolarTheory

As we have noted, the true pyramid was prefigured in the step-pyramid of Zoser, theearliestlargestonebuildingyetdiscovered.Itmarkedaturning-pointinthedevelopmentofEgyptiancivilisation,whichwasapproachingitszenithwiththedramaticriseoftheFourthDynasty.Zoser’smonument requiredahuge leap in imaginationaswellas in technologyand labour organisation, and it moved Egyptian funerary architecture in one giant leapfrommud-brickmastabastowardsthegrandiosetruepyramids.TheoverwhelmingconsensusofEgyptologistsisthatthestep-pyramidwasadevelopmentof the mastaba but, unlike mastabas and the earlier burial pits, the step-pyramids weredesigned to be seen from afar and their outside lookwas as important as their internalburial chambers. The theory that the step-pyramids served as cosmic symbols is notrevolutionary.1Allover theworld thereare structureswitha similar shapeandmeaning,from the stupas of south-east Asia to the stepped pyramids of central Mexico. They areinvariablyderivedfromthesamebasicarchetype: themountainor ladder fromwhichthecelestialworldcouldbereachedorwhichcouldserveasaplatformforthesacerdotaldutyofmonarchsandrulers:acommonconceptinthesacredmythologyofalmosteverynation.ItwasalsopartoftheEgyptianheritage,forthehillofAnnuwasregardedinsimilarterms;itwastheholyhillofAtumrisingfromtheprimalsea,andonitstopstoodhissacredpillarcrownedwiththeBenbenStone,hissacredseed.Wedonotknowwhatoriginally stoodon topofZoser’s step-pyramidbut itmayhavebeenareplicaoftheBenbenStone,2whichwouldbeinkeepingwiththeoverallsymbolismof thePyramidAge.Whatwedoknow is that the later, truepyramidswerecappedwithreplicas of the Benben, for this was the name given to their crowning pyramidions.ExamplescanbeseentodayintheCairoMuseum,3whichprovidefurtherevidence,ifanywereneeded,thatpyramidbuildingwasmorethanthecreationofelaboratetombs.

TheassociationoftheBenbenwithHeliopolis,whosenamemeans‘thecityofthesun’,4hasledsomeEgyptologiststoconcludethatthepyramidshapeisessentiallyasolarsymbol,that it represents rays of the sun coming down to earth through the clouds. Thus thepyramid symbolises a crude stone ramp leading the pharaoh home to the sun. This is arelatively recenthypothesisand isanextensionof thestep-pyramid/ladderof theplanetstheory. It is repeated byDr Edwards in hisPyramids of Egypt where he quotes AlexandreMoret: ‘Thesegreat triangles forming the sidesof thePyramids seem to fall from the skylikethebeamsofthesunwhenitsdisk,thoughveiledbystorm,piercesthecloudsandletsdowntoearthaladderofrays.’5

Commentingonthis,DrEdwardsadds:

WhenstandingontheroadtoSaqqaraandgazingwestwardsatthePyramidplateau,itispossibletoseethesun’sraysstrikingdownwardsthroughagapinthecloudsataboutthesameangleastheslopeoftheGreatPyramid.Theimpressionmadeonthemindbythesceneisthattheimmaterialprototypeandthematerialreplicaarehererangedsidebyside.6

This ‘pyramid= the sun’s rays’ hypothesis has become deeply entrenched as a historical‘fact’ and is quotedwhenever thepyramids arediscussed.However, this theory (and it isonly a theory) unwittingly diverted the attention of researchers from the real symbolicpurpose of these monuments. But we must first consider the history of true pyramidbuilding,beginningwiththeworkofSneferu,firstkingoftheFourthDynasty.

IITheSneferuEnigma

Inthespaceof500years,fromabout2700BCtoc.2200BC,morethanthirtymilliontonsofrock,enoughtobuildWindsorCastleahundredtimesover,wasmovedaroundthewesterndesertnearmodernCairo.Itwasusedtoconstructpyramids,7someofwhich,liketheGreatPyramid atGiza, arewell over 140metres high. They formed a huge royal cemetery forancientMemphis,whichwenowcalltheMemphiteNecropolis.8DuringthisPyramidAge,also known as the Old Kingdom, hordes of Egyptians worked like ants on this giganticbuilding site, while an equally large army of masons, goldsmiths, painters and scribeschipped,melted,brushedandscribbledawaytopreparefortheroyalfunerals.Togivesomeideaofthescaleoftheseworks,in1980anEnglish-languagenewspaperinSaudiArabiannounced thataFranco-Americanconsortiumhadsigneda largecontract tobuildthenewUniversityofRiyadh.Theterm‘large’hardlydidjusticetothesheerscaleofthe project: it was the largest single fixed-price contract awarded to a contractor in thehistory of constructional engineering and was valued at over US$1 billion. The logisticsinvolvedwerestaggering:8000workersonsite,millionsofcubicmetresofrockandsoilto

move and hundreds of thousands of cubicmetres of concrete to be poured. Even the siteofficeswereonamonumentalscaleandanOlympic-sizedswimming-poolandotherleisurefacilitieswouldbeprovidedforthestaff.Yet the Riyadh University project was modest in comparison with what happened at

DashourandGizanearly4500yearsago.Whenwecomparethetechnologyandresourcesavailablenow—gigantictowercranes,bulldozersandexcavators,hydrauliccranesandsoon — the unsatisfactory nature of the consensus view of Egyptologists concerning thepyramids becomes apparent. To refer to the gigantic pyramid complexes at Giza andDashour as ‘royal cemeteries’ with ‘royal tombs’ is like calling the Palace of Versailles ahouse,orStPeter’sinRomeachapel.ThebuildingofthepyramidsshowsthatthePyramidAgewasremarkableforgreattechnologicalabilityanddaringinnovation.ButwhatexactlywasthePyramidAge?Whatsortofgoldenagewasit?According to Dr Edwards, ‘the Pyramid Age, par excellence … covers the period

beginningwith the Third Dynasty and endingwith the Sixth Dynasty.’9 During this timesometwenty-eightpyramidcomplexeswerebuiltalongastretchofdesertrunningfromAbuRuwashinthenorthtoMeiduminthesouth,thewholecontainedinanareaabouteightykilometreslongbysomefourkilometreswide.Yetsuchstatisticsaremisleading,fortheydonotgiveusabalancedpicture.Itisoftenoverlookedthatmostofthebuildingtookplaceina very short period, the Fourth Dynasty, when seven of the twenty-eight pyramidswerebuilt;butsuchisthescaleofthesegiantmonumentsthattheyaccountformorethan75percentofthetotalthirtymilliontonsofmaterialusedduringtheentirePyramidAge.Fiveoftheseven,threeatGizaandtwoatDashour,havesurvivedmoreorlessintacttothisday.The first king of the FourthDynastywas Sneferu, father of Cheops. For reasonswhich

Egyptologists have not yet determined, Sneferu and his architects abandoned the step-pyramidandlaunchedthedaringandhugesmooth-sidedpyramiddesign.Mostscholarsdoagreethatthemotivesforthisdramaticchangewerereligious,butwhatthesemotiveswereisnotsoevident.WhatiscertainisthatSneferu’sventuremadethestep-pyramidbuildersoftheThirdDynastylooklikevillagecontractors.Hisbuildersraisednotonebuttwogiganticpyramids,which,frompresentevidence,nootherpharaoheverattempted,beforeorafterSneferu. In addition to this massive building programme, Egyptologists believe thatSneferu’s builders were able to satisfy him on another constructional enterprise; theupgradingof thestep-pyramidatMeidumintoa truepyramidby filling in thestepswithmasonry and adding the smooth casing-blocks.10 But there is still much controversysurroundingthis theory,andtheMeidumpyramid,begunintheThirdDynastyandso farsouthoftheMemphiteNecropolisproper,cannotbetreatedinthesamewayastheotherFourthDynastypyramids.To get a good idea of the engineering revolutionwhich Sneferu initiated, compare the

step-pyramid of Zoser, employing some 850,000 tons of material,11 with Sneferu’s twogiantsatDashour,which togetherusednearlyninemillion tons.Thisamazingupsurge inengineering and organisational prowess has defied explanation, but it is obvious thatsomething important inspired Sneferu, somethingwhichperhaps involved the thinking ofthegreatmaster-builder-cum-priest—Imhotep.Itisnotsimplytheincreaseinscalebutthefact that the technology was suddenly available to raise large blocks of stone, some

weighing several tons, to a height of nearly 100metres.12 Tomake up the core of thesepyramids,largeblocksofhardlimestonewerequarried,transported,dressed,stackedthenplaced inperfectgeometricalshapeswhichtheyhaveretaineduntil today.13Thequestionbecomes notwhether the pyramidswere just tombs butwhat changed at the opening ofSneferu’s reign thatmade it possible and indeed imperative to build pyramids on such ascale.The textbooks do not provide a satisfactory answer to this question; they overlook the

significanceofthehugeincreaseinactivityduringSneferu’sreign.DrJaromirMalekoftheGriffithInstituteatOxford,inarecentbookonthepyramidsofEgypt,passesquicklyoverthis subject, though he does say that ‘the innovations introduced at the time [of the IVthDynasty] were so wide-ranging that they must have had their origins in the sphere ofreligionratherthantechnology.’14PreviouslytherenownedarchitectandEgyptologist,DrAlexanderBadawy,hadmerelywritten:‘AtMeydumatruepyramidwasobtainedbyfillingup the steps of a layer pyramid…AtDashur Sneferu erected on a square base two truepyramids, one called the Rhomboidal (Bent)… It has been, however, observed that theupperpartofthispyramidispoorlybuilt…presumablyfinishedinahurry.’15

To describe the building activities at Dashour as being carried out ‘in a hurry’ issomethingofanunderstatement.IfSneferu’sbuildershadonlythesameresourcesastheirpredecessorsat theirdisposal—andthere isnogoodreasontoassumeotherwise—theywere in somethingmore than a hurry. Tomake things evenmore difficult, the buildingactivities were carried out on three sites: the two at Dashour which are two kilometresapart,andathirdatMeidum,fiftykilometresfurthersouth,atleastoneday’sjourneyup-river.Eveniftheworkonthethreesiteswasperfectlyplanned,therehadtobeahugeandcomplexorganisationbehindthesceneswhichwouldtaxeventoday’slargecontractors.Tocut, move and place nine million tons of limestone blocks in the space of perhaps twodecades,inanepochwhichdidnotknowthewheelorthepulleyandhadnoirontools,isafactor which merits close scrutiny. Let us consider the scale of this achievement in thecontextoftheFourthDynasty.

IIITheGoldenAgeoftheFourthDynasty

What,therefore,couldhavehappenedc.2650BCwhenSneferucametopowerandfoundedthegreatFourthDynasty?DrEdwardswasthefirsttobringsomesenseofproportiontotheSneferuenigma,in1947.Priortohisanalysis,Egyptologistswerefacedwithaperplexingsituation, which involved the solitary Meidum pyramid in the extreme south of theMemphiteNecropolis,originallybuiltasastep-monumentandlaterconvertedintoatrue,smooth-facedpyramid.16

TherearenocontemporarywritingsontheMeidumpyramidorelsewherewhichgivethenameofitsowner.However,inatemplenearbywasfoundwhatEgyptologiststechnicallycall‘graffiti’(scribblesmadebysomepasser-by).ThegraffitiweredatedtotheEighteenthDynasty—some1200yearsafterthereignofSneferu—andindicatethatatthattime(c.

1400BC)theMeidumpyramidwasconsideredtobelongtoSneferu.17DrEdwardstranslatedthegraffiti,apparentlywrittenbyascribecalledAa-Kheper-Resenb,wholivedduringthereignofTuthmosesIII: ‘…intheforty-firstyearofthereignofTuthmosisIII…IcametoseethebeautifultempleofKingSneferu.…’Edwardsalsoreferstograffitifromtimesearlierthan this, as far back as the Fifth Dynasty (some 250 years after the reign of Sneferu),whichmentionhisname in connectionwithMeidum.18 Thiswouldnormallybe sufficientevidencetoattributetheMeidumpyramidtoSneferubuttherewerethetwootherpyramidsatDashourtoconsider,withthe‘southern…certainlybuiltbySneferu’19andevidencethatstronglysuggestshealsobuiltthenorthernone.AninscriptionfoundnotfarfromDashourdating fromthereignofKingPepi Iof theSixthDynasty,mentions the ‘twopyramidsofSneferu’.20Thiswasanofficialinscription,partofaroyaldecreeexemptingthepriestsofSneferu frompaying taxes,whichmust be regarded as sound evidence. Yet another, alsofound at Dashour and dating from the Fifth Dynasty,mentions the ‘southern pyramid ofSneferu’.21Readtogether,theseinscriptionsimplythatthereweretwopyramids,asouthernandanorthern,whichbelongedtoSneferu.Thequestionthenwas,whichpyramidshouldbeconsideredthesouthern:themoresoutherlyofthepairatDashour,alsocalledthebentpyramidbecauseitsangleofslopechangeshalfwayup,orthatatMeidum?Finally,onthetombofapriest associatedwith the southernpyramidatDashour, there is an inscriptionreferringtothe ‘southernpyramidofSneferu’.22Thisconfirmedthat theDashourpyramidwasthesouthernpyramidofSneferu,andthatitsnorthernpartnerwasalsoatDashour.SowheredidtheMeidumpyramidfitin?Egyptologistswereataloss.Dr Edwards proposed a way out of this archaeological impasse. He pointed out thatalthoughownershipoftwopyramidswasuniquetoSneferu,itcouldperhapsbeunderstoodto ‘symbolise his sovereignty over Upper and Lower Egypt’; three pyramids, however,‘wouldseemtohavenojustification,practicalorsymbolic’.23Itwasaboldadmissionthatarchaeologicalevidencecanbemisleading.Edwardsthenproposedthatuntilnewevidencecame to light, Egyptologists should consider Sneferu as the owner of the two Dashourpyramids, but that he had probably only converted the Meidum pyramid from a step-monumentintoatruepyramid.Itmade good sense; the supposed builder of the original step-pyramid atMeidumwasnow said to have been the elusive Huni. Since Huni seemed to have reigned just beforeSneferu, and would have been expected to have a pyramid of his own, this attributionmeantthattheSneferuenigmacouldberegardedassortedoutandEgyptologistscouldgetonwithotherpyramidproblems.ButalthoughEdwards’stheoryforMeidummaderationalandevenpoeticsense,heissuedthewarningthatsincenoinscriptions,eithercontemporaryorofalaterepoch,linkedthemysteriousHuniwiththeMeidumpyramid,it‘doesnotfollowthathispyramidwasindeedthesteppyramidofMeydum…’24

This leads to thenextproblem:whydidSneferubuild twopyramidswhenallotherkingsbefore and after himwere satisfiedwith one?Did he intend to be buried in two places?Perhaps it is thewords ‘owned’and ‘belonged’whicharemisleading.Could itbe that thepyramids were not regarded as belonging to any particular king but rather to the royal

lineage and the cult as awhole? Sneferumay have built two pyramids and converted athird, but perhaps they were not ‘his’ as we have hitherto thought. After all, medievalcathedrals, although built during the reigns of specific monarchs, do not belong to themeveniftheywereinterredinthem.IftheownershipconsensusofEgyptologistsistostand,howisitthatSneferu,whobuilttwoandperhapseven threepyramids,didnotmake it clear toposterity thathewas theowner?TherewasplentyofspaceoutsideandintheDashourpyramidsforinscriptionstohavebeencarvedincapitalletters.ButnoneoftheFourthDynastykingsputhisnameonthepyramidhesupposedlyowned.Thereisnotonecontemporary,officialinscription,noteveninsidetheGreatPyramid.Askyourself,ifyouhadbuiltthegreatesttombinhistory,afterseveraldecadesofeffortandcost,wouldyou leaveeveryoneguessingwhohadperformed sucha feat? Itwasnotthatthepyramidbuildersdidnotlikeofficial inscriptionsontheirmonuments.FromKingUnas (last king of the Fifth Dynasty) onwards, pyramids had hundreds and hundreds ofofficial inscriptions, leaving us in no doubtwhich kings built them.25Was it that FourthDynastyEgyptianscouldnotwrite?Wrongagain;manyinscriptionsexistinthevicinityofpyramidsdatedtotheFourthDynastyandbefore.InthechapelofQueenMeresankhmanyhieroglyphic texts can still be seen. So this omission in the Fourth Dynasty pyramids isextremelyoddandcontrastswiththeearliermastabasandtheinscribedpyramidsoflaterdynasties.WhydidSneferu,Khufu(Cheops)andtheothersnotinscribetheirpyramids?Nevermindposterity,whyleavethegodsguessingwhowasresponsibleforthesefinemonuments?DidtheFourthDynastykingsnotregardthemselvesasindividualownersofthepyramids?IsitpossiblethatalltheFourthDynastypyramidswerepartofasinglescheme,whichrequiredthebuildingofsevendifferentpyramidsatspecificlocations?TheFourthDynastyasawholeisexceptionalandstandsoutfromtherestofthePyramidAge.ItseemstohavearrivedliketheEgyptianphoenixwhobringsanewgoldenage,andover a short period of time carried out a magnificent programme of civil engineering,achievinga scale and standardofworkmanshipunparalleleduntilmodern times.26 Then,just as suddenly, it ended.The textbooks speakof ‘religiousupheavals’ and ‘civilwars’,27but there isnoevidenceof these. Ifweare to find theanswerweneedtogoback to theroots of pyramid research and question everything we have been told. Let us begin bylookingagainatthedatingofthepyramids.

IVTheDatingofthePyramidAge

Inthe1940smodernchronologistsreshuffledthestudyofAncientEgyptwhentheymovedthe early dynastic epoch forward by a millennium. Prior to this, the First Dynasty wasthoughttohavebegunearlierthantoday’sestimates.Inthe1830sChampollion,thefatherofscientificEgyptologyanddeciphererofthehieroglyphics,believedthattheFirstDynastybeganc.5867BC. Later theGermanEgyptologist,Karl Lepsius,moved this to3892BC. Then

Mariette,writinginthe1870s,revertedto5004BC.Finallyhiscolleague,DrBrugsch,settledfor4400BC.Brugschhadapparentlybasedhiscalculationsonthesimplisticassumptionthatthereare,onaverage,threegenerationsineachcentury,28but,forlackofanythingbetter,hissystemwasacceptedformanydecadesbymostEgyptologists.Theninthe1940sthedatingoftheFirstDynastywasagainadjustedtoc.3100BC.Thisisconstantly refined to 3150BC, 3300BC, 2900BC and so on, leaving us confused about whatsystemwearetoconsiderdefinitive.Inanyevent,itshouldnowbeclearthatthescienceofEgyptian chronology is far from perfect and relies on evidence dependent on personalinterpretationsandsubjectivity.Itisfarfromexactwithouttoolsthatsciencehastooffer,such as carbon dating and, in the case of symbolic architecture based on astronomicalalignment as with the pyramids, the use of precession calculations.29 Without them wewonderhowearlyEgyptologistswere able to establish suchprecisedates as ‘5004BC, and‘5867BC’. Today chronologists use the prefix ‘circa’ (c.) before a suspect date is given, towarnof aplus orminusvariation.Yetwe see suchbolddatings as the start of Sneferu’sreign,givenasc.2686BC;c.2584BC;c.2614BC.30Notonlyaresuchfiguresmisleadingwiththeir implicationsofaccuracy,butevidence is rarelyofferedas to their computation.Theearlier theepoch, the lessaccurateare suchconventionaldating systems,andconcerningthePyramidAgesuchestimatescouldeasilybeacenturyout,ormore.31

InaletterwereceivedfromDrEdwardsduringthepreparationofthisbook,thedateofc.2600BCforKhufu’s(Cheops’s)reignwasdeemed‘mostsatisfactory’.32Butthelatestdata,obtained inMay1993, fromRudolfGantenbrink’s lasermeasurementsof theshafts in theGreatPyramidconfirmedthateventhis‘mostsatisfactory’datemayhavetobeadjustedbysome150yearstoc.2450BC,33tothetimewhenthoseshaftswerebuilt.

WhenthepharaohSneferucametopower,thewesterndesertnearhiscapitalatMemphishadalreadysproutedafewstep-pyramidsintheMemphiteNecropolis.TodayonlythatofZoser remains. Much farther south was the lone step-pyramid of Meidum. Also in theMemphite Necropolis weremanymastaba tombs, and farther northwas the holy city ofHeliopoliswithitspowerfulpriesthood.ThiswasroughlythesituationattheopeningoftheFourthDynasty.Sneferu’s bold decision to alter the traditional step-pyramid design resulted in thebuildingoftwogigantictruepyramidsatDashour.ThecreditshouldnotnecessarilygotoSneferubut,mostlikely,tohisarchitect-priestwhowaseitherthelegendaryImhoteporhissuccessor. Imhotep is generally credited with the invention of stone masonry and thescience of medicine. But Dr Edwards rightly pointed out that his title of Chief of theObserverssuggeststhathewasanancientastronomerwhostudiedthemotionofthestars.34ThistitlewasoftenassumedbythehighpriestofHeliopolis,whichsuggeststhatImhotep,and those great masters like him, filled the function of high priest of that holy city.35Having so successfully completed the Zoser step-pyramid complex, Imhotep, or hissuccessor,was possibly fired by an even greater ambition: a unifiedmaster plan for theMemphiteNecropoliswhichwouldallowfulldevelopmentoftheroyalrebirthcult.36

Sneferu is said to have died after reigning for nearly thirty-four years. With the

coronationofhisson,Khufu(Cheops),pyramidbuildingwastoreachitsapotheosis.

VTheThreeGreatPyramidsofGiza

Sneferu seems to have died peacefully c. 2480BC,37 leaving his legacy of the two giantpyramidsatDashour.Sometwenty-onekilometresnorthofDashourwastheelevatedrockyplateau ofGiza (theMokattamFormation).38 This plateau extended about 2.2 kilometresfromnorthtosouthandabout1.1kilometresacross.Itslopedgentlyfromwesttoeast,thendroppedsharplynearthecontoursoftheNileValley.39ItwasonthisimposingsitethattheeldestsonofSneferu,Khufu,launchedthemostambitiousengineeringprojectinthehistoryofbuilding,which,with its twopartners there,was tobecomethegreatestwonderof theancientworld.ThereisnosatisfactoryexplanationwhyKhufudidnotfollowinhisfather’sfootstepsandbuildhispyramidatDashourorindeedatSaqqara,wheretheancestralstep-pyramidsandmastaba tombswere located. The easy answer is that the dominant position of the Gizaplateau inspired him and his architect found the site ideal for a pyramid which wouldtranscend those of Sneferu. But if this is true, why did Sneferu himself not select GizainsteadofDashour?DashourisnotmuchnearertoMemphisthanGizaisandisaratherlowsite hardly visible from the palm groves which surroundMemphis.40 Indeed, uninformedvisitorstodayaresurprisedtobetoldthattherearetwogreatpyramidsotherthanthoseatGiza.SowhydidKhufuchooseGiza,asitesofarfromhisfather’stomb?Perhapshedidnot‘choose’ Giza as such; perhaps itwas already part of amaster plan, intended to expandfromsouth tonorth,devisedduringhis father’s reign?GeorgesGoyon,whowaspersonalEgyptologisttoKingFarouk,wasoftheopinionthattheGizasitewas‘certainlychosenbythe priest-astronomers because of certain religious and scientific factors’, yet what thesewereGoyondoesnottellus.Weagree,however,thatreligionandastronomymotivatedtheancientbuilderstomovetoGiza.

VITheGreatPyramid

Eventoday,initsruinedformandlackingalmostallitsglisteningwhitecasing-stones,theGreatPyramidisstaggering.ItbroodsoverthesurroundingdesertandsuburbsofmodernCairo, seemingmore like some strange featureof the landscape than theworkofhumanhands; indeed,morelikeageometricalmountainthanabuilding.Themathematicianandjournalist P. D. Ouspensky visited Giza for the first time in 1914, shortly before theoutbreakoftheFirstWorldWarandwroteoftheexperience:

Theplateauisreachedbyawindingandascendingroadwhichgoesthroughacuttingintherock.Havingwalkedtotheendofthisroadyoufindyourselfonalevelwiththepyramids,beforetheso-calledPyramidofCheops(Khufu),onthesamesideastheentranceintoit.Totherightinthedistanceisthesecondpyramid,andbehindit,

thethird.

Here,havingascendedtothepyramids,youareinadifferentworld,notintheworldyouwereintenminutesago. There, fields, foliage, palms,were still about you.Here it is a different country, a different landscape, akingdomofsandandstone.Thisisthedesert.Thetransitionissharpandunexpected.

…Theincomprehensiblepastbecamethepresentandfeltquiteclosetome,asifIcouldstretchoutmyarmintoit,andourpresentdisappearedandbecamestrange,alienanddistant.41

TheGreatPyramidofKhufu,liketheotherpyramids,standsfour-square,butitisinallitsdetailthemostperfect.ThefirstexhaustivesurveyofthemonumentinmoderntimeswascarriedoutbySirFlindersPetrie in1880–2.Heusedthelatestequipmentofthetimeandapproachedhistaskwithgreatthoroughness.Hefoundthatthesidesofthepyramidwereindeed linedupalmostexactlywith thecardinalpointsof thecompass:north, south,eastandwest.(Theaccuracyofthisalignmentisincredible,withanaveragediscrepancyofonlyaboutthreeminutesofarcinanydirection;thisisavariationoflessthan0.06percent.)Healsomeasured the sidesof thebaseasbeing230.25metres for thenorth side;230.44metresforthesouth,230.38fortheeast,and230.35forthewest.Thus,althoughnosideisidentical to any other, the difference between the longest and shortest is only nineteencentimetres,lessthan0.08percentoftheaveragelength.Suchdegreesofaccuracy,bothinorientationtowardsthecardinalpointsandinkeepingthe base square and the sloping side perfect, are little short of miraculous when youconsiderthesizeofthestructure.Itsperimeterisalmostonekilometre,withanareaofover53,000squaremetres,enoughtofitintoitthecathedralsofFlorence,MilanandStPeters,aswell asWestminsterAbbey and St Paul’s.42 It is indeed doubtfulwhether any of theselaterbuildingsexhibitthesameaccuracyastheGreatPyramidintheirorientationortheirstructuralexecution.Althoughthepyramidcontainsseveralchambers, it isbynomeansahollowbuilding;itismostlysolidmasonryandconstructedfromapproximately2.5millionlimestoneblocks.Onaveragetheseweighabout2.6tons, togiveatotalmassofover6.3milliontons.43

Wecan simplymarvel at the craftsmanship and technological abilities of these ancientbuilders,fortheynotonlyorientatedtheirmonumenttowardsthefourcardinalpointsandkept theplansquareand theslopes true,but theycased its four sloping faceswith finelypolishedwhitelimestonefromthequarriesatTuraontheothersideoftheNile.Judgingbythe few facing stones remaining at the foot of the north side of the pyramid, thesewereevenlargerthanthoseusedinthecoreofthebuildingandweighedsomefifteentonseach.Theyweresetsocloselytogetherthatthebladeofaknifecouldnotfitbetweenthem.Thecasing-blockswereremovedbytheArabsfromthethirteenthcenturyAD(somesaytobuildthe mosques of Cairo), but when intact the pyramid must have looked even morespectacularthanitdoestoday,glitteringlikeajewelinthesunlight.

It is now quite easy to clamber up and down the narrow corridors leading into thepyramids,forbanistersareprovidedandtherearewoodenrampswithmetalfootings.TheGizapyramidsarealsoelectricallylitinside.Suchluxurieswereintroducedinthe1940s,butexplorationwasnotsoeasyforearliertravellers,asOuspenskylamentedin1914:

The floor is very slippery; there are no steps, but on the polished stone there are horizontal notches, wornsmooth,intowhichitispossibletoputone’sfeetsideways.Moreover,theflooriscoveredwithfinesandanditisverydifficulttokeeponeselffromslidingthewholewaydown.TheBedouinguideclambersdowninfront.Inonehandheholdsalightedcandle;theotherhestretchesouttoyou.Yougodownthisslopingwellinabentattitude.Thedescentseemsratherlong—atlastitends.44

Onethingthathasnotchanged,ofcourse,isthelowheightoftheceilingandthesteepnessofthegradientofthispassage;itisonlyabout1.19metreshighand1.04metreswideandis sloped at 26 degrees 31 minutes 23 seconds to the horizontal. The passage plungesdownwards,throughthecoreofthepyramidandthenthroughthebedrockthatliesbeneathit, fora totalof105.15metres. It carriesonhorizontally fora further8.83metresbeforeterminatinginaroughlyhewnchamber.Thepurposeofthischamberisunknownandthesubjectofmuchdebate. It seems tobeunfinished,and thishasgiven rise to the so-called‘abandonment theory’.According to itsproponents, thisundergroundcavernwasplannedastheburialchamberoftheking;forwhateverreasonandwhilethepyramidwasstillinitsearlystagesofconstruction,thisplanwasabandonedinfavourofbuildinganewchamberhighinsidethepyramiditself(theQueen’sChamber).Lateronthis toowasabandoned;afurthercorridor(theGrandGallery)andathirdroom(theKing’sChamber)beingbuilt.Itisbelieved that thekingwas eventuallyburied in this last chamber,which contains a largesarcophagus,butnoremainsoftheking’smummyorhisfuneralgoodshavebeenfoundanditisassumedthatthepyramidwaslooted.The abandonment theory has a certain attraction, but it runs against many practicalrequirementsofbuildingengineering.Tohavechangedthedesignofthepyramidhalfwaythroughwouldhavepresenteditsengineerswithnearlyinsurmountableproblems.Tohavealteredthedesigntwiceseemsinconceivable,particularlywhenthesealterations involvedbuilding the Grand Gallery, itself an extraordinary achievement, as well as the King’sChamber.WebelievethattheKing’sandQueen’sChambers,aswellas theGrandGallerywhichlinksthem,wereallpartandparceloftheoriginaldesignforthepyramidandwereindeedessentialfeatures.Thereisnohardevidencetoprovethatthesubterraneanchamberwaseverintendedastheburialchamberoftheking;indeeditmayhavebeeninexistencebeforethepyramidwasbuiltaspartofanearlierstructureonthesamesite.Wecannotbesure that this was so, but it is certainly facile to assume it was abandoned for technicalreasons. The Egyptians were experts at building underground chambers and would noteasilyhavebeendeterredfromburyingthekingunderthepyramidhadthatbeenhiswish.

These days visitors are not allowed into the underground chamber; roughly eighteenmetresfromtheentrancetothepyramidanascendingcorridorbegins.It isanotherback-breaking journey of approximately forty metres at a gradient of more than twenty-sixdegrees.Aswiththedescendingcorridor,itrunsexactlynorth-south(i.e.,itismeridional).At the top of this corridor is the heart of the pyramid, the Grand Gallery, but beforeclimbing this, a short journey along the horizontal corridor brings you into the Queen’sChamber.Aswith somuchof theGreatPyramid, the functionof theQueen’sChamber remainsamystery.Theacademicconsensusisthatitwasintendedastheburialchamberofthekingbut,liketheundergroundchamber,itwasabandoned;ithasrecentlybeensuggestedthatitsentrancewas too small to allow the granite coffer (now in theKing’sChamber) to enterit.45Thisargumentisnotreallytenable;apharaohcapableofhavingsuchamassiveandperfectpyramidbuiltwasunlikelytohavealteredhisplansbecausesomeonehadmadehissarcophagus too large. Abandoning all this work for such a reason does not fit theprobabilities.The Queen’s Chamber is not very large; only 5.74metres from east to west and 5.23metresnorthtosouth,itsceilingrisingtoanapexof6.22metresabovefloorlevel.Intheeast wall there is a niche, closely resembling amirab (the prayer niche found in manymosques). The back of this niche has been cut away by treasure-hunters who no doubthoped to find a secret chamber beyond. However, this is not the case; the niche wasprobably used originally to hold a statue of the king.46 Thewalls are of carefully fitted,smooth limestone blocks. Though not as large or as elaborately finished as the King’sChamber,theQueen’sChamberlooksnomoreabandonedthantherestofthepyramid.Asit lies exactlyon thepyramid’s east—west axis, theQueen’sChambermusthavebeenanimportantaspect,anditseemsinconceivablethattheAncientEgyptianswouldhavebuiltitonlytoabandonitatthelastmoment.

The particular features of interest both to us and to Rudolf Gantenbrink are the two so-called‘air-shafts’ inthischamber,whichhaveformanyyearsbeenseenassupportingtheabandonment theory. These shafts, which have their counterparts in the King’s Chamberabove,werefirstdiscoveredbehindthewallsof thechamberbyaBritishengineernamedWaynmanDixonin1872.47AsintheKing’sChamber,oneshaftisdirectedtothesouthandtheothertothenorth.Further investigationsoonrevealedthat,unlikethose intheKing’sChamber,theseshaftsdonotrunthroughtotheoutsideofthepyramid,provingthattheycould never have functioned as ventilators as some have supposed.48 In 1881 they werecarefullyinvestigatedbyPetrie,whomeasuredtheirslopesandlengthswithaclinometer.He concluded that they were not very long and that they seemed to serve no practicalpurpose.Thiswasgoodammunitionfortheabandonists,whoconcludedthatthereasontheshaftsdidnotpenetratetotheoutsideofthepyramidwasthattheywereabandonedatthesame time as the Queen’s Chamber. The matter might have rested here had not RudolfGantenbrinkprovedthattheshaftsweremuchlongerthanhithertoassumed.49

RunningfromtheleveloftheQueen’sChamberuptothatoftheKing’sChamberistheamazingarchitecturalcreationknownastheGrandGallery.Thisisinmanywaysthemost

elaborate andmysterious featureof thewhole internal systemof theGreatPyramid, andwordscanscarcelydo it justice. It isenormously impressive. It runsupwardsat thesameangle as theascending corridorbut insteadofbeinganarrow, crouched tunnel it is 8.53metreshigh.Whenyouareinside,itgivestheimpressionofbeingevenhigherasitsweepstowardstheKing’sChamberatthetopend.Itisaverycuriousstructureindeed,forthoughit looks rather like amassive staircase, there are no steps as such. Yet it appears highlyfunctionalandwascarefullyfinishedinfinelysmoothedTuralimestone.AgainOuspenskyprovidesagooddescription:

Intheconstructionofthisuppercorridor-staircasethereismuchthatisdifficulttounderstandandthatatoncestrikestheeye.InexaminingitIverysoonunderstoodthatthiscorridoristhekeytothewholepyramid.Fromtheplacewhere I stood, it couldbe seen that theupper corridorwasveryhigh, andalong its sides, like thebanistersofastaircase,werebroadstoneparapets,descendingtotheground,thatistothelevelwhereIstood.Thefloorofthecorridordidnotreachdowntotheground,beingcutshort…ataboutaman’sheightfromthefloor.InordertogetintothecorridorfromwhereIstood,onehadtogoupfirstbyoneofthesideparapetsandthendropdowntothe‘staircase’itself.Icallthiscorridora‘staircase’onlybecauseitascendssteeply.Ithasnosteps, onlyworn-downnotches for the feet. Feeling that the floorbehindyou falls away, youbegin to climb,holdingontooneofthe‘parapets’.50

Ascending theGrandGallery is easier now, for there are shortmetal steps on either sideleading from the level of the Queen’s Chamber to the level of its floor. There are alsohandrailstohelpyouup(anddown)andawoodenramponthefloorwithmetalanti-sliptreads.AlthoughtheGrandGalleryisnoweasiertoexplore,itisstilloverwhelminglymysterious,especiallywhenonerealisesthatthiscuriousroomwasancienteveninthedaysofAntonyand Cleopatra. The walls are corbelled, so that the Grand Gallery becomes narrowertowards its ceiling, and its cross-sectiondesign seems toecho thecuriousniche inside theQueen’sChamber,alsocorbelled.AswithsomuchEgyptianarchitecture,itlookssoancientthatitseemsalmostmodern.Thereisaquasi-inhumanqualityabouttheGrandGallerythatishardtoexplain,asthoughitwerenotintendedforpeopletowalkupanddownbuttoserve some other specialised or specific function. Many have remarked that the GrandGallerylookslikepartofamachine,whosefunctionisbeyondus.This is not a recent observation; theNeoplatonist Proclus drew attention to this in hisfourthcenturycommentaryonPlato’sTimaeus.51HeclaimsthattheGreatPyramidservedas an astronomical observatory before it was completed, and that it was used as somesighting device for looking at the skies. This idea was taken up by a Victorian writer,RichardA.Proctor,whowroteTheGreatPyramid:Observatory,TombandTemple,publishedin1883.52Hepointedouthowthevariouscorridorscouldhavebeenusedforobservingthestarswhilethepyramidwasbeingbuilt;inparticular,hesuggestedthattheGrandGallerycouldhavebeenused to record the transitsof stars.Proctorbelieved that the slots in the

parapetswereusedtofixthepositionofamovablerampusedinthiswork.Tounderstandthis, it has to be remembered that because the Gallery is meridionally aligned to thesouthernsky,itcouldindeedhavebeenusedinthiswayatsometimebeforethetoppartofthepyramidwasbuilt.Then again, as some modern Egyptologists tell us, it may simply have been used forstoringgraniteportcullisslabs.Ifso,theEgyptianswenttoenormoustroubletobuildsuchastore-roomwhenaroughchamberwouldhavesufficed.Noone,however,hastheanswertotheriddleoftheGrandGalleryandperhapsnooneeverwill.AscendingtheGrandGallerybringsonetotheKing’sChamber.Technologicallythisisthefineststructureofall:itmeasures10.46metresfromeasttowestand5.23metresnorthtosouth;itsheightis5.81metres.Itcanthereforebeseenthatwhileitsfloorareaisexactlyadoublesquareofside5.23metres,itisjustalittletoohightobeadoublecube.UnliketheQueen’s Chamber, which is linedwith limestone, this is of smooth black granite broughtfromAswaninUpperEgypt.53Whoeverwasresponsibleforbuildingitwasamastermasonindeed. The granite blockswhichmake up thewalls and ceilingweigh about thirty tonseachandareperfectlysmooth-faced.Nomortarwasusedinjointingbut,aswiththecasing-stonesontheoutsideofthepyramid,theblocksweresoperfectlycutandfittedthataknifebladewill not fit between the joints. Fine jointing such as thiswould have been difficultwithlargelimestoneblocks;withhugegraniteblocksitislittleshortofincredible.At thewesternendof thechamber is themysteriousgranitesarcophagus.Althoughit isbelievedthatthiswasthefinalresting-placeofKhufu,thereisnottheslightestevidenceofacorpsehavingbeeninthatchamber,notasignofembalmingmaterialorfragmentofanyartefact.Noclue,howeverminiscule,haseverbeenfoundinthischamberoranywhereelsein theGreatPyramid.Thishas ledmany to suppose thatwehavenotyet found the trueburial chamber of Khufu.Whatever the case, the sarcophagus in the King’s Chamber hasbeenbadlydamagedbysouvenirhunterschippingpiecesfromitsedges.Finally, there are the two air-shafts of the King’s Chamber to be considered. As in theQueen’sChamber,theserisefromthenorthandsouthwallsbuttheyshootrightthroughthepyramidtoemergeonitsexterior.Thefourshaftsfoundinthetwochambersareallquitenarrow, only some 20 × 20 centimetres in cross-section The belief that they wereventilators is a curious idea for a burial vault, and one not repeated in any of the otherpyramids.As these shafts are central to our thesis,wewill be returning to them later ingreater detail. For the present, the consensus is that theywere not intended to keep thepyramidventilated,althoughoneoftheachievementsofRudolfGantenbrinkandhisteamwasthefittingofventilatorsintheshaftsoftheKing’sChamber;thisbroughtthehumiditydownfromastifling90percentto60percent,thesameasoutside.Thisisimportantwhenyou consider the thousands of tourists passing through these chambers every day, eachexhalingwatervapour.

The completion of the Great Pyramidmarked the high point of the Pyramid Age.Whencomplete, it stood147metres (481 feet)high, somefiftymetreshigher than the largerofSneferu’spyramidsatDashour,orequivalenttoaddinganextrafifteen-storeybuildingontop.ItalsorequiredthatKhufu’sworkmenquarryandraisetwomilliontonsofstonemore

than the amount needed to build either of the Dashour pyramids. That Khufu was veryseriousabouthispyramidisborneoutbysuchtextualinformationaswehaveabouthim.Thereis,intheBerlinMuseum,adocumentcalledtheWestcarPapyrus.ItdatesfromtheNewKingdombutisundoubtedlyacopyofaFifthDynastyoriginal,forittellsthestoryofhow this dynastywas ordained by the divine intervention of Ra, the sun god. The storytakesplaceintheFourthDynastyduringthereignofKhufu.Wanting to be entertained, Khufu asks one of his sons, Djedef-Hor, to bring to him amagiciancalledDjedi,anoldwiseman‘ofonehundredandten…whoknowsthenumberof thesecretchambersofThoth.NowHisMajestyKingCheops (Khufu) spentallhis timetryingtofindoutthenumberofsecretchambersofthesanctuaryofThothsoastohavethesameforhisown“horizon”…’Hewasthereforeeagertomeettheoldmagician.Horizonhere means the Great Pyramid, for it bore the name ‘the horizon of Khufu’.54 Thoth, ofcourse,was the ancient god ofwisdom, depictedwith an ibis head,whowas reputed tohaveinventedscienceandthesystemofhieroglyphicwriting.Hisfamousbooks,forty-twoinnumber,weresupposedlykeptatHeliopolisandformedthebasisofthestaterebirthcult.Inlatertimes,ThothwasidentifiedwiththeGreekgodHermesandwassaidtohavebeenresponsible for theplanningandconstructionof theGreatPyramid.55WhenthemagicianDjedi arrives at court, Cheops asks him to perform somemagical stunts and interrogateshim: ‘It isalso said thatyouknowthenumberof the secretchambersof the sanctuaryofThoth…’.TothisDjedireplies:‘Please,Idonotknowtheirnumber,OkingmyLord,butIknow the place where it is… there is a chest made of flint in the building called “theinventory”inHeliopolis.Itisinthischest.’Djedithensaysthathecannotgetitandneithercantheking;onlythreeasyetunbornkings inthewombofapriestessofHeliopoliswillhavethatprivilege.ThesearethefirstthreekingsoftheFifthDynasty:Userkaf,SahuraandNeferirkara.Unfortunately, the Westcar Papyrus does not tell us what happened to the chest inHeliopolis or whether Khufu did obtain it and use the information it contained in thebuildingofhispyramid.WeareleftwonderingwhetherhediddiscoverasecretchamberofThoth at Heliopolis and, as is hinted in the papyrus, build a secret chamber of his owninsidetheGreatPyramid.Work went on at Giza long after the death of Khufu. He was succeeded by Khafra(Chephren):whobuiltanothergiantpyramidnexttotheGreatPyramid.Thoughonlyafewmetresshortofthefirst,thesecondappearstallerbecauseitstandsonaslightlyhigherpartoftheGizaplateau.AfterKhafracameMenkaura(Mycerinos),whobuiltasmallerpyramid,65.5metresinheight.Byanyotherstandards,thethirdpyramidisagiant,butitisdwarfedbyitsneighboursontheGizaplateau.Sixkilometresnorth-westofGiza isAbuRuwash,wherea sonofKhufu,KingDjedefra,built his pyramid, but thishasnot survived timeandplunder. It is nowapitiful heapofrubbleandhardlyrecognisableasapyramid.Itsdimensionsarenotknownforsure,butitseemstohavebeenalargestructure,perhapssimilarinsizetothatofMenkauraatGiza.Another obscure pharaoh named Nebka, perhaps a brother or son of Khufu, planned apyramidatZawyatAlAryan,asiteaboutfivekilometressouth-eastofGiza. Itwaseitherneverfinishedorwasdismantledinlaterepochsandusedasaready-madequarry.56With

Nebka the Fourth Dynasty came to an end. What happened next is unknown toEgyptologists; we are faced with an apparent loss of will and consequent decline inpyramidbuildingaftertheFourthDynasty.Toputtheirachievementsintocontext,itmayhelptocomparethesizesoftheirknownpyramids.Thetablegivestheapproximatesizeandmassforeach.

HEIGHTSANDMASSOFFOURTHDYNASTYPYRAMIDS

LocationHeight,metres

Mass,milliontons

DashourSouth 102 3.59

DashourNorth 101 4.00

Giza(Khufu) 147 6.18

Giza(Khafra) 140 5.28

Giza(Menkaura) 65 0.57

AbuRuwash unknown 0.50

ZawyatAlAryan unknown 1.50

Total 21.62

To this twenty-onemillion tonsmust be added themass of rock to raise boundarywalls,temples, causeways and other structures forming part of a pyramid complex. We canconservativelyaddafurtheronemilliontonsoflimestoneandgranite,andthistwenty-twomilliontons57representsmorethan80percentoftherockusedduringthewholePyramidAge.TheFourthDynasty,literally,towersabovethosewhichprecededandfollowedit.

VIITheCollapseoftheFourthDynasty

JaromirMalek,directoroftheGriffithInstituteoftheAshmoleanMuseum,hasclaimedthatwedonotneedknowledgeofarchitectureorhistorytoknowwhichpyramidcamefirst:

It isenoughtolookattheirpresentsilhouettes: thesteppyramid…isoftheThirdDynasty…thepyramidsproperwhichpresentacleanandsharpoutlineagainsttheskydatefromtheFourthDynasty;thoseoftheFifthandSixthDynastiesarenowraggedshapesresemblinghugepilesofstoneblockandrubble…58

It is obvious to anyone visiting the pyramids that after the Fourth Dynasty there was asharpdeclineintheskillofpyramidbuilding.ThekingsoftheFifthDynastybuiltfivesmallpyramids at Abusir, about nine kilometres south-east of Giza, and a further two smallpyramids at Saqqara, not far from Zoser’s step-pyramid. All of these were rather poorlyconstructed, and theworkmanship of the inner core,which hasmostly collapsed, is verymuchshoddierthanthatoftheirillustriouspredecessorsoftheFourthDynasty.AlltheFifthDynastypyramidsarenowmereheapsofrubble,somemorelikemoundsthanpyramids.59FoursmallpyramidswerebuiltbytheSixthDynastypharaohsatSaqqara,allabout fifty-threemetreshighandofevenshoddierworkmanship.Withtheselast‘thePyramidAgeparexcellence’,asEdwardsputsit,cametoaclose.60

TheFifth andSixthDynastypyramids required some2.75million tons of limestone fortheir construction, less than half the mass of Khufu’s pyramid at Giza. This, and theobviously shoddy workmanship involved, implies that something drastic must havehappened at the close of the Fourth Dynasty, something as inexplicable as the suddenemergence of the Fourth Dynasty with the rise of Sneferu and his ambitious project atDashour.TheFifthandSixthDynastybuildershad theexperienceof thegreatFourthDynasty tofallbackon,sofromanengineeringpointofviewwewouldhaveexpectedaprogressionand not a regression in the skills of raising monumental pyramids. Some Egyptologistsbelieve the problemwas one of social upheaval or economics. But if the later dynastiescouldnotmatchtheFourthinthescaleoftheprojectstheyundertook,atleasttheyshouldhavebeenabletosustainthequalityofworkmanship.ItisalmostasthoughEgyptexperiencedatechnologicalexodusattheendoftheFourthDynasty, a brain and skill drain that depleted the pharaonic state. During the FourthDynasty, theEgyptiansweresuprememasterbuilders, thensuddenly,withinagenerationorsooftheirdemise,therewasanamazinglossofskillintheartofpyramidbuilding.Thisis so pronounced that even the most conservative of architectural Egyptologists, DrAlexander Badawy, describes the Abusir pyramids as being ‘strikingly poorer than themegalithic Fourth Dynasty structures’.61 Visitors to the Abusir site are hard pressed tobelievethatsuchpitifulheapswereoncegeometricalpyramids.Egyptologists stilldebate theevents that led towhat theycall thecollapsebetween theendoftheFourthandthestartoftheFifthDynasty.Theytalkofsocio-politicalupheaval,butDrMalek claims that ‘theOldKingdomwasnotbrought to its kneesbyanupheavalcaused by a popular uprising … no large-scale invasion from abroad took place.…’ Hebelievesthatthereoccurredaweakeningofthestate’sauthoritycausedbya‘gradualshiftintheownershipoflandfromthecentralauthoritytocultandtempleestablishmentsandthenobilityasawhole’.62Yet,asfarasweknow,thereisnoevidencetoconfirmthis;therearenolanddeedsordecreestosupportsuchcontentions.Edwards,ontheotherhand,feelsthattherewasaviolentculturalorreligiouschangewhichcausedashiftinauthoritytothepriests of Ra, the sun god, whose centre was at Heliopolis. But he, too, admits that‘documentary records are lacking’ to support this theory.63 If the truth is told, nobodyknowswhathappened;conventionalreasoningcannotexplaintheevidencewehavebeforeus.AllwecansayisthatwhateverhappenedattheendoftheFourthDynastycausedthe

eventualcollapse,asMalekdescribesit,ofthegreatPyramidAge.The Giza pyramids are the crowning achievement of Ancient Egypt and the ancient

world. It also seems that thedynamicmomentum set by the FourthDynastywas slow infading;althoughFifthandSixthDynastypyramidsweresmallerandshoddier, theurgetobuild them was still there, and we get the impression that it was not a collapse thatoccurred but something more like the handing over of the state’s authority to a lessexperiencedgovernmentafteralarge-scaleevent.

VIIIEvidenceofaMasterPlan

In1934,towardstheendoftheGreatDepression,asuccessfulAmericanarchitect,JamesA.Kane, visitedDr JohnWilson, then director of theOriental Institute at theUniversity ofChicago.Kanehadbroughtalargefoldercontainingdetaileddrawings,calculationsandageo-surveyanalysis,notforanewofficeblockorsomemansioninNewEngland,butoftheGizaplateauandthethreegreatpyramidswhichstandonit.Wilson’sfirstreactionwastotrytopersuadeKanetodropthishopelessbusinessof‘solvingthemysteryofthepyramids’but then, in his own words: ‘I found myself constantly falling back to the cry of“coincidence”! Now coincidence may be invoked once or even twice, but when severaldivergent elements coincide and coincide again, coincidence becomes conformity ratherthanchance.’64

Whatthearchitectwasshowinghimseemedobvious:theGizapyramids,seenasawhole,were built in accordance with an architectural master plan. In his thesis, ‘The AncientBuildingScience’,Kanewaspresentingadetailedanalysisof thegeo-architecturalaspectsoftheGizapyramidswhichshowedconclusivelythateachofthethreegreatpyramidswaspart of a single, unified plan, onewhichmust have been devised from the outset of thegreatenterpriseatGiza.Wedonotproposetogointothedetailsofhisanalysis,butKanesawthatthethreeGizapyramidsweredevelopedfromaplanbasedupongeometricalandsurveyingprincipleswhichhebelievedwererelatedtoastronomicalobservations.Eveninthe1930s,most Egyptologistswere aware that thepyramidswere set out andorientatedusingastronomicalobservations.Forexample, thebasesof thepyramidsareall setalongmeridians,sothateachsideoftheirsquarebasesfacesoneofthefourcardinalpoints.Thattheentrancestothepyramidsarevirtuallyallontheirnorthfaces,andthattheirinternalsystemsaredesignedtorunalongtheirnorthtosouthaxes, indicatesthatthismeridionalsettingwasparamount.RecentlytheAmericanarchaeologist,MartinIsler,reiteratedthisfactinconnectionwith

Khufu’s pyramid, saying ‘accurate orientation could only have been achieved by usingcelestialbodies’.65Theaccuracy is indeed stunning; there is anaveragedeviationofonly1.8arcminutes,minimalforsuchalargemonument.66Thecelestialbodyorbodieswhichservedastheorientationtargetcouldnothavebeenthelargediscsofthesunormoon(asIsler supposed) but must have been a pinpoint of light, which strongly implies a star.Edwardsaddssupporttothisstellarhypothesiswiththeopinionthat‘itseemsmorelikelythatthehighdegreeofaccuracywasachievedbyastralratherthanbysolarobservations’.67

ThisbecomesobviouswhenweknowthattheAncientEgyptianswereavidstargazers.Thepriestswatchedthenightskynotonlyforreligiousreasonsbutfortellingtimebytherisingof starsand their culminationasmarkers to somenatural star-clockmechanismbasedontheapparentdailyandannualmotionofthestars.R.O.Faulkner,the‘definitive’translatorof the Pyramid Texts, alsowrites that ‘it is well known that the Ancient Egyptians tookgreat interest in thestars,notonly forpracticalpurposes…but inscribingstar-mapsandtablesintheircoffinsandtombs…inwhichthestarswereregardedasgodsorasthesoulsoftheblesseddead.’68Indeedithasoftenbeendemonstrated,notleastbyDrEdwards,thatthemeridian line to set apyramid’s squarebase couldbest be achievedbyobserving thestars. Everything points to astral methods having been used, not only because of theaccuracythisgivesbutbecauseweknowthattheAncientEgyptianshad,attheoutsetofthePyramidAge,astrongstellarreligionderivingfromanancestralcult.69

All this might seem obvious to us, but James Kane’s ideas made little headway inEgyptologycircles.Althoughhepublishedhis thesis, itwasput toonesideand forgotten.Severaldecadeslater,in1984,theAmericanResearchCentreinEgypt(ARCE)launchedtheGizaPlateauMappingProject.Thiswastobecarriedoutduringtwoseasonsintheperiod1984to1986.TheteamleaderwasMarkLehner,anAmerican-bornEgyptologistfromYaleUniversity.TwomajorreportswerepublishedinARCEnewslettersinEgyptbeforeLehnerpublishedhisfullreportinaprestigiousGermanEgyptologicaljournal.Lehner’s reports are largely based on surveying and geological data. Curiously and in

viewofhis earlier literarywork,70 hewas notmuch concernedwith the cultic aspects ofwhatever plan might exist, nor indeed with the symbolic architectural and astronomicalmessagesthemonumentsmightcontain;hisfocuswasonthegeomorphyofthesiteandtheneed todetermineexactco-ordinates for theanalysisofgeological formations in theGizaplateau.Whilemanywaited for new physical evidence forwhat some engineers alreadysuspected—thattheGizapyramidswerepartofaunifiedmasterplan—allthatcameoutof the1984–6surveyswasamassofcomplexgeologicalandsurveyingdatawhichraisedmorequestionsthanitanswered.AlthoughDrLehnerhadperformedanexcellentgeologicalandland-surveyexercise,theburningquestionsrelatedtoaunifiedplanwerenotansweredbutfurtherobfuscatedbytechnicaljargon.Yethewasawe-struckbythegrandscaleofthepyramids of Giza and Dashour which the Fourth Dynasty raised, and wrote that ‘whengraphedagainsttime,thisbriefperiodofthemostmonumentalarchitecturestandsoutasasharppeakdwarfingthematerialinvestedforroyalconstructionpriororsubsequenttothereignsof thesekings’.71Lehner later reported thatanobviousdiagonalalignmentexistedrunningjusteastandclosetothemonuments.Thislineprojectsfromthesouth-eastcornerofthefirstpyramid(Khufu)tothesouth-eastcornerofthethirdpyramid(Menkaura),laterreferredtoasthe‘Lehnerline’byotherresearchers.72

KaneandnowLehnerwerethuspioneersofanewavenueofresearchandpeoplebegantothinkaboutaunifiedgroundplanforGiza.Theywerenottheonlyonestothinkalongthese lines; at least two other researchers pursued it further and their results weremoreextraordinarystill.

IXAUnifiedGroundPlan

Asisoftenthecasewithvalidtheorieswhichevolvefromtheconvergenceofdiversedata,the‘masterplantheory’hadpoppedupevenbeforeLehner’ssurveywasfinished.AsimilarsuggestionhadcomefromJohnLegon,aself-employedphysicistlivinginSurrey,England.He first expounded its basis in theReports of the Archaeology Society of Staten Island.73 In1988,andingreaterdetail,hewroteapaperentitled‘AGroundPlanatGiza’andthiswaspublished in the Oxford journal Discussions In Egyptology.74 Legon investigated the‘possibilityofapositionalrelationshipbetweenthethreepyramids’atGiza.His thesis was passed to me late in 1988 by Dr Edwards, who seemed interested inLegon’stheoryofaunifiedplanatGiza,whichwasasfollows:

Theplacingofthethreepyramidsinasinglegroundplanwasobviouslyanambitiousproject,andonewhichindicatesthatthearchitectsandbuildersoftheFourthDynastyhadamuchgreatercontrol…thanhadhithertobeenrecognised.Theywereapparentlyabletodictate,forexample,thesmalldimensionsoftheThirdPyramid,despitethepresumeddesireofMenkauratohaveamonumentequaltothoseofhispredecessors.SincethethreelargepyramidsofMeydumandDashurappearall tohavebeenbuiltbySneferu, it seemspossible thatat theoutset,KhufuhimselfmighthaveaspiredtotheconstructionofthethreepyramidsofGizainasingleunifiedgroundplan.75

Legon showedmathematically that the three Giza pyramids fitted inside a rectangularperimeterhavingthenorth-southsideas1732cubits76andtheeast-westsideas1414cubits.Itoccurredtohimthatabasicmodularunitof1000cubitswasused,andcouldbeexpressedas 1000 √3 and 1000 √2. Since these sides were of a right-angled triangle, the diagonalcould be expressed as 1000 √5. He concluded that such geometrical and mathematicalharmonycouldnotbetheproductofcoincidence.ThenotionofamasterplanatGizawasnow getting strong support from other quarters, but Legon, intent on proving that therewasevidenceofamasterplan,alsoomittedtoinvestigatethereligiousorculticmotivesforit.77 The question that still hung in the air was, and still is, what does the master planexpress?InFebruary1988ateacherandgeologist,RobinJ.Cook,publishedapaperentitled‘TheGizaPyramid:ADesignStudy’.78CookexpandedonthefindingsofLehnerandLegonandaddedsomeideasofhisowntoshowthat‘theGizapyramidsweredesignedaccordingtoasystemofgeometricalideas,andthatthesitewasplannedasawhole…’Cookpointedoutthatageometricalaxialsystemcouldbeshowntolinkthecentralpyramid,thatofKhafra,with the small satellite pyramids next to the first and third pyramids. The main anglesexposedwere60degreesand26.5degrees;60degreesistheangleoftheisoscelestriangleand 26.5 degrees is produced by the diagonal of the double-square. This angle of 26.5degreescouldalsobefoundinthemainpassagewaysoftheGreatPyramidandthedouble-square of the floor of theKing’sChamber; again defying the limits of coincidence.Cook,

unlikeLegonandcertainlyunlikeLehnerearlier,sensedapowerfulsymbolismbehindtheplan, evidence which revealed the use of geometrical and geo-architectural patterns toexpressanancientsystemofnumericalphilosophy.Herightlyobservedthat:

The Giza Pyramids represent a symbolic statement written in stone and the language of a mathematicalphilosophy.TheGizagroupprobablyrepresentsasymbolicexpressionoftheHeliopolitanmyth[myemphasis]…79

Yet Cook seemed unable to say what the symbolic statement was that was written instone.80HeandLegonhaddemonstrated theadvanced stateofEgyptiangeometryat thetimethepyramidswerebuiltandthatitcouldbeappliedinpracticalways,butthiswasnotenoughtoexplaintheGizapyramidsortheirlayout.Itseemsweneedtolookfurtherfortheseanswers,notatGizabutinthesmallFifthandSixthDynastypyramidsatSaqqara.Thereareinscribed,insidethelittlepyramidofUnas,someextraordinarytexts.

3THEDISCOVERYOFTHEPYRAMIDTEXTS

ThePyramidTexts…constitutetheoldestcorpusofEgyptianreligiousfuneraryliteraturenowextant.Furthermore,theyaretheleastcorruptofallsuchcollectionsoffunerarytexts,andareoffundamentalimportancetothestudentofEgyptianreligion…

—R.O.Faulkner,TheAncientEgyptianPyramidTexts

AlexanderPiankoff,a translatorof thePyramidTexts…was seriouslyopposed to thepresent trendofusing thereligioustextsprimarilyforthesearchofdatesandtheaccumulationofseparatefacts…[he]aimedatlettingthewritingsspeakforthemselvesandthusevokethesymbolsandprototypesofreligiousthoughts…thePyramidTextswereaimedatinsuringthesamerebirthforthedeadkingasthatofthegodOsiris-Orion…

—JaneB.Sellers,TheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt

ITheDayoftheJackal

HiddeninsidesomeoftheFifthandSixthDynastypyramidsaretheoldestreligiouswritingsyetdiscoveredintheworld.These,forobviousreasons,areknownasthe‘PyramidTexts’.Giventheirextraordinaryantiquity,itseemsstrangethattheyarenotbetterknowntothepublic.MostpeoplehaveheardoftheDeadSeaScrolls,whicharefromamuchlaterepoch(c.100BC) andmuch less interesting documents. It is curious that the PyramidTexts havebeensoneglectedbymostpeople,amysteryinitself.WhenIfirstcameacrossthemin1979Iwasastoundedandwonderedwhyhadn’tIheardof them before. Talking with friends in Cairo, I discovered that many Egyptians wereignorantoftheirexistence.Iwasconvincedthattheywerefarmoreimportantthanwehadbeen led to believe, and decided to examine them more closely. I soon perceived thateverythingabouttheseancienttextsismysterious,eventheirdiscovery,whichhappenedinamostcuriousway.During the winter of 1879 a rumour was circulating in Cairo that ancient inscriptionsmight exist inside the small and unexplored pyramids at Saqqara. The rumour gatheredmomentumandarousedtheusualmixtureofscepticismandexcitementuntilitreachedtheearsofProfessorGastonMaspero.Hehad recentlyarrived inCairo to takechargeof theMission d’Archéologie Française and was eager to further his career in Egypt. Anexperienced archaeologist and brilliant philologist,Maspero knew only toowell that thebiggestarchaeologicalfindsoftenbeginwithjustsucharumour,awhisperinthemarkets,andthisonehadafeeloftruth.Itseemedtoconfirmwhathehadsecretlysuspectedabout

theotherwisesilentpyramidsofEgypt.Hedecidedtoinvestigate.Apparently,a jackalordesert foxhadbeenspottedatdawnimmobilenearacrumbledpyramidinthenecropolisofSaqqara.Itwasasiftheanimalweretauntinghislonehumanobserver,areisorheadworkman,andwasalmost invitingthepuzzledmantochasehim.Slowlythejackalsaunteredtowardsthenorthfaceofthepyramid,stoppingforamomentbeforedisappearingintoahole.ThebemusedArabdecidedtofollowhislead.Afterslippingthrough thenarrowhole,he foundhimself crawling into thedarkbowelsof thepyramid.Soonheemergedintoachamberand,liftinghislight,sawthatthewallswerecoveredfromtop to bottom with hieroglyphic inscriptions. These were carved with exquisitecraftsmanship into the solid limestoneandpaintedoverwith turquoiseandgold.The reishad stumbled across one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of the late nineteenthcenturyand thecodedmessageswhicheventually led to the resolutionsof themysteryofthepyramids.There is a certain irony that thediscoverywasmadeby followinga jackal. InAncientEgyptthereweretwojackalgods,thoughtheywereprobabalydifferentaspectsofthesamedivinearchetype.ThefirstandbestknownwasAnubis,whoinEgyptianfunerarypaintingsisalwaysshownsupervisingtheritual‘weighingoftheheart’,thedreadedfinalreckoningofthedeadthatdecidedwhetherornotasoulcouldenterintothecourtofOsiris.WoodensculpturesofAnubiswerealsomadeandplacedasguardiansinsidethetombsofpharaohs;a beautiful example of one of these (now in the CairoMuseum) being the ever-watchfulguardianfoundinthetomboftheboy-kingTutankhamun.TheotherjackalwasWepwawetor Upuaut, the ‘opener of the ways’. It was after him, of course, that the German teamnamedtheirfamousrobot.ThedistinctionbetweenAnubis andUpuaut is not clear from the ancient texts, but, asRobertTemplepointedoutinTheSiriusMystery,AnubiswasseenaslinkedwithSirius,thebrighteststarintheconstellationCanisMajor(theGreatDog).UpuautseemstohavebeenconnectedwiththenorthernconstellationwhichwenowcallUrsaMinor.(ThejackalisalsoinvolvedwithourquestforsolutionoftheOrionMysteryandIwastoencounter‘my’jackalatGizajustbeforemakinganimportantdiscovery.)

IIParlez-vousFrançais?

The Discovery of the Pyramid Texts is shrouded in controversy. The late 1870s were,admittedly, a confusing time in Egypt. Themoodwas of imminent civil disturbance andevenofcivilwar,andthereweresignsofrevoltagainstforeignersandthepuppetkhedive,TewfikPasha.1Amilitary fleetwaspreparingtosail fromBritainto intimidatetherebelsand their leader, Ahmed Arabi, who had been threatening the khedive’s authority andharassingandmurderingEuropeansinCairoandAlexandria.2Amidthepoliticalinstabilitytherumourofthejackal’sfindaddedworryandconfusionfortheforeignarchaeologistsinCairo, whowere concerned with safeguarding their livelihoods as well as archaeologicaltreasures.

Thecredit forthediscoveryofthePyramidTexts isgenerallygiventoGastonMaspero,but the true sequence of events that led to the discovery are far from clear. It is welldocumented thathewas the first toenter thepyramidofUnason28February1881,butthere can be no doubt that two other text-bearing pyramids had already been secretlyexploredbyAugusteMariette(1821–81),directoroftheEgyptianAnti-quitiesService.3

ThestorygoesthattheArabreis,probablydisappointedatnotfindingany‘real’treasureinside the small pyramid, reported his find to the authorities responsible for antiquities,whichmeantAugusteMariette,themostseniorEgyptologistofhisday,whohaddonnedthetitleofpasha.MariettewasanativeofBoulogne,andhadbeen inEgypt since1851.Hehadbecome famousa fewmonths afterhis arrival inEgypt,whenhehaddiscovered theSerapeumatSaqqara,ahuge labyrinthofundergroundgalleriescontainingdozensof themassive sarcophagi of the sacredApisBulls ofMemphis.Thismadehima good friendofKhediveSaidandlaterofhisson,Ismail,whichgavehimconsiderableinfluenceinEgypt.Mariette founded the Services des Antiquités, the prototype for the Egyptian AntiquitiesOrganisation, and the BoulagMuseum, which eventually became the CairoMuseum andmoved to its present location in Tahrir Square.Mariette became the first director of theServices,thenapositionofpowerinEgypt,sinceitcontrolledthetradeofantiquitiesandtheconcessionstoforeignbodieswishingtoexcavate.By 1880, when the Pyramid Texts were discovered, Mariette had become a household

name andhis reputation as an archaeologistwas immense.Hehad also a reputation forstubbornness and authoritarianism which, on more than one occasion, caused politicaltroublewithhismentors.4Hisstarwassetting;hewastiredandsick,andhadlosthiswifeandachildinanoutbreakoftheplagueinEgypt.Mariettebroodedoverwhatheregardedas his private empire, the Memphite Necropolis where, among other treasures, he haddiscoveredtheSerapeum.ItwaswellknowntoallthatMariettehadbeensomethingofarebelinhisyouth.Hehad

originally been sent to Egypt by the Louvre, not to excavate but to look for Copticmanuscripts, which he was given funds to purchase. Instead, relying on his intuition,Mariette used the money to carry out unauthorised excavations at Saqqara. Luckily, hishunchprovedright,andhediscoveredtheSerapeum.TheLouvre’scuratorsforgavehimandsent himmoremoney to carry onwith excavationwork.5 However, this was all bygonedays;now,asanoldandtiredman,herefusedtoallowhisyoungercolleaguesthefreedomhe had once enjoyed. When the rumours concerning the pyramid were brought to hisattention,herefusedto followthemupor letanyoneelsedoso. InspiteofentreatiesbyMasperoandothers,Mariettemaintaineda rigidandpatronising stance, claiming that itwouldbeawasteoftimeandmoneytoentertheseunexploredpyramids.Hisargumentwasthat aspyramidswere tombs they couldnot ‘speak’; theywereobviouslymuettes (mute),andhe insistedthat theycouldnotpossiblycontain inscriptions.Hiscolleagues, includingMaspero,decideditwasbesttoletmattersstand.Onthefaceofit,Marietteseemedtohaveavalidpoint.Ithadtobeadmitted,evenby

theoptimisticMaspero,thatallthepyramidsopenedsofar,includingthegreatpyramidsofGiza, containedno contemporary inscriptionswhatsoever.Theonlywritings found insideweregraffitiofnogreatvalue.6Therewasnoreasontobelievethatthesmallerpyramids

atSaqqarawouldbedifferent.Therewasonlythejackalrumourand,thoughMasperotookit seriously, Mariette was not impressed and reiterated his objection by asking ‘If thepyramidscontainedtexts,theywouldnotbejusttombs,wouldthey?’7Masperosaidlater:‘OneknewquitewelltheopinionofMarietteonthissubjectofpyramids:intheprefacetohis unfinished work on the mastabas, he wanted forcefully to prove not only that theycontainednotexts,butthattheyneverhadcontainedanyinscriptionsandthatitwouldbeawasteoftimeandmoneytowanttoopenthem…’.8

Early in 1880, however, the money problem at least had been solved. The Frenchgovernmentmadeagenerousdonation to theAntiquitiesServiceof10,000 francs,on theunderstandingthatat leastoneof theunopenedpyramidsatSaqqarashouldbeexplored.Maspero had been urging that the funds be sent in the hope of softening Mariette’sopposition.Itworked,butnotinthewayMasperohadhoped:

Thework,startedinApril1880undertheguidanceoftheReisMohamadChahin,resultedinthediscoveryoftworuinedchambersandacorridor,coveredwithhieroglyphs.Theimprintsoftheinscriptions,carriedoutbyMrEmileBrugsch-Bey,werehandedtomebyMonsieurMariette,withoutindicationoftheirorigins,askingmetoexaminethemandtranslatethem.AfirstglancemademerecognisetextswhichcamefromthepyramidofPepiI.9

MasperoclaimedthatMarietteinsistedthesetextswerenotfromaroyalpyramidbutfromthelargemastabatombofanobleman:

MonsieurMariettewassobiasedinfavourofhistheoryof‘dumb’pyramids,thatheatfirstdidnotwanttoadmitthatthetombtheinscriptionshadcomefromwasapyramid,andthatithadentombedPepiI:accordingtohimtheyhadonlyfoundamastabaoflargesizebelongingtoacommonindividual…10

Atlast,on4January1881Marietterelented.This,afterall,couldbehislastchancetobeprivy to the secrets of the pyramids. Reluctantly, he gave instructions to his Germanassistant,EmileBrugsch,toinvestigatethisirksome‘jackalrumour’.AfewdayslaterBrugschreportedtoMariettethatthereis’sstoryhadbeencorrect.Itwas

in a pyramid and not amastaba that the inscriptions had been found.11 But by now thegreatarchaeologistwasonhisdeathbedand,ironically,neversawthetexts.On19January1881MariettediedatBoulag,nearthefamousmuseumhehadcreated,andhisembalmedbody now rests inside a sarcophagus in the courtyard of the CairoMuseum of EgyptianAntiquities. A bronze statue ofMariette dominates the scene, with a plaque, ‘AMariettePasha,L’EgypteReconnaissante’.

MasperowasMariette’s obvious successor, andwas immediately appointed Director oftheServicesdesAntiquités.Itwascleartoeveryonewhathisfirstmovewouldbe:withtheofficial authority his new position brought, the full exploration of the neglected smallpyramidsintheMemphiteNecropoliswasonasecurefooting.

ThusitwasthatinthesecondweekofFebruary1881,underagloriouswintersun,Masperoembarked upon the operation with quasi-military zeal. He decided to ‘attack along thewholefrontoftheMemphiteNecropolis,thatisfromAbuRoash[Ruwash]toLisht…’12Thepyramids of Pepi I and Merenre had already been opened by Brugsch and now ‘rapidsuccesswastofollow.Unaswasopenedonthe28February,PepiIIandNeferirkaraon13April, andTeti on29May…’Excavationswent onuntil late in1882onotherpyramidswith no further inscriptions found, butMasperowas proud to report that ‘in less than ayear,fiveoftheso-called“dumb”pyramidsofSaqqarahadspoken…’13

Thiswasmore thanhehadeverdreamtwouldbe found; literally thousandsof linesofhieroglyphshadnowbeendiscovered.OnecanfeelMaspero’sexcitementasheexplainsthequantity of writings involved. ‘The result’, he wrote, ‘is considerable. The inscribedpyramidsatSakkarahavegivenusalmost4000linesofhymnsandformulae,ofwhichthegreaterpartwerewrittenoriginallyduringtheprehistoricperiodofEgyptianhistory.’His conclusion as to the date of their original composition, even by conservativeestimates, brings us to a period around3200BC,which is almost twomillennia before thecompilation of the Old Testament and over 3400 years before the first Christian gospelswere written. The Pyramid Texts are certainly the oldest religious corpus of writingsdiscoveredanywhereintheworld.Of the fivepyramids involved, theonewhichwas toyield thegreatestnumberof textswas that of Unas, last of the Fifth Dynasty kings (c. 2300BC). The pristine texts in thispyramid were not only the finest in the collection but the oldest. Maspero was the firstperson toenter thechambersofUnasandsee the texts.Hehadtocrouchashemadehiswaythroughthelow,descendingpassageuntilhereachedthesarcophaguschamberwithitswonderfulpitchedceiling.Herehe(likeAdrianandIacenturylater)gazedwithaweatthewonderfullycuthieroglyphsinscribedonthewalls.Maspero now had the difficult task of translating and interpreting what he haddiscovered.Hewrote,‘Thetextswhichcover[thewalls]areofthreekinds:ritualistictexts,prayersandmagicalformulae.’14Itwasanunfortunatechoiceofwords,forcommentslikethis were to undermine the significance of the find. This was one of the most excitingarchaeologicaldiscoveriesever,butbylabellingthePyramidTextslittlemorethangrimoiresof pagan superstition, he made them seem inconsequential. Maspero failed, like manyothersafterhim,todetecttheastronomicalcontentofthewritingsandtheexpressionofapotentesotericwisdom.It took thebestpartof fivedays forMaspero,with thehelpofEmileBrugsch, to copydownthetextsfromUnas’spyramid;withinafewweekshehadaroughtranslationreadyforpublicationintheofficialjournaloftheMissionArchéologiqued’Egypte.Hewrotelater:

Idonothidethefactthatthistentativetranslationwasratherrash,andIperhapsshouldhavewaitedlonger;I

nonethelessthoughtthatEgyptologistswouldbemoregratefultomeforaquickpublicationratherthanwaitingforanin-depthstudy,andwouldthereforeforgivemetheerrorsininterpretationinfavouroftheimportanceofthetexts.15

Maspero’sconfessionprovednecessary,becausehewasprecipitateinhisinterpretationofthePyramidTexts.UnfortunatelyagreatdealofmisunderstandingaboutthemwascausednotonlybyhimbutbyotherEgyptologists in the earlypartof the twentieth century. Intheirenthusiasmtobringouttranslationsandcommentaries,theydependedasmuchupongutinstinctasanythingelseandthistendedtobeloadedwithChristianbias.The greatest culpritwas an American Egyptologist named JamesHenry Breasted,whomadeaseriousattemptat interpretingthetexts in1912.Breastedwastosee intheTextssomethingthatwasnotthereatall:theremnantsofasolarcultversusstellarcultrivalry,withthestellarcultindeclineandthereonlyfornostalgicreasons.Hewasthustowrite:

stellarnotionshavedoubtlessdescendedfromamoreancientdaywhenthestellarnotionwasindependentofthesolar…it isevidentthatthestellarnotionhasbeenabsorbedbythesolar…thesolarbeliefspredominatesostronglythatthePyramidTextsasawholeandintheforminwhichtheyhavereachedusmaybesaidtobeofsolarorigins.16

Breasted concluded that the stellar cult deserved little attention; all his attentionwent towhathesawastheprincipalthemeofthePyramidTexts,asolarcult.TheinevitableresultwasthatthepyramidswereallocatedasolarpedigreebyBreasted;suchaconclusionputasolarstamponthemandtheirsymbolicpurposesthatwasgoingtobeveryhardtoshift,forBreasted was no ordinary Egyptologist. By the end of his ‘brilliant career’ his list ofcredentialsandtitlesfilledtwopages,andhewasdubbed‘therealfounderofEgyptologyintheNewWorld’.17

Breasted (1865–1935) came from ‘sedate Mid-western stock and had once planned topreparehimselffortheministry’;hisinterestinancientpeopleseventuallydrewhimtothestudyof ‘Biblelands’,althoughhealways ‘retainedastrongsenseofmission’.18Hebeganhisworking lifeasaclerk in localdrug stores,graduating inpharmacy in1882.He thenwentontostudyHebrewinChicagoandmovedtoYaleUniversityin1890–1.TherehewasdrawntothestudyofEgyptology,whichremainedhislife-longpassion.In1892hewenttoBerlin and studied under the German philologist, Dr Adolf Erman. He gradually made anameforhimselfandattractedtheattentionandfriendshipofJ.D.RockefellerJr.,who,in1924, gave him a grant which Breasted used in part to found the Oriental Institute atChicago,America’sfirstEgyptologicalseat.FurthergiftsfromRockefellerallowedBreastedto turn the Oriental Institute into the leading Egyptological institute of the NewWorld,

commanding the deep respect of scholars and students alike.19 With this status andacademicauthority,fewwouldhavedaredtochallengehisestablishedviews.ThereisnodoubtthatBreasted’scontributiontoEgyptologyisimmense,butthisdoesnotalter the fact thathisbiblicalbiasandhispersonalvisionofamonotheisticsolarreligionwhich he sought to graft on to the Pyramid Tests nearly closed the door to a freshinterpretation of them. There were many who sensed that something was adrift in hisinterpretations, and that theastronomical and stellaraspectsof theTextsdeservedcloserscrutiny,butwiththesolar theorygainingthesupportofotherEgyptologyheavyweights,Breasted’sviewsremainedunchallengedforalongtime.HewasfascinatedbythemysteryofthereligionoftheAncientEgyptians.Inhispopularbook,TheDevelopmentofReligionandThought inAncientEgypt, he took ituponhimself toshowhow,inhisview,thedevelopmentofEgyptianreligiousideologieshadoccurred.ThePyramid Texts were the revamped product of ‘successive editors almost at haphazard’.20‘What is the content of thePyramidTexts?’ he asked, andofferedhiswide and attentiveaudiencethisreply:

…itmaybesaidtobe,inthemain,sixfold:

1)Afuneraryritualandaritualofmortuaryofferingsatthetomb

2)Magicalcharms

3)Veryancientritualofworship

4)Ancientreligioushymns

5)Fragmentsofoldmyths

6)Prayersandpetitionsonbehalfofthedeadking21

HereducedthePyramidTexts to themumbo-jumboofarchaicandsuperstitiousmagician-priestswithweirdideasabouttheafterlifeproblemsoftheirdeadkings.Hardlyareligionat all, put in those terms. True religious thoughts, Breasted believed, came much later,duringtheepochofthe‘heretic’pharaohAhkenaten(c.1350BC).Bynow,inBreasted’sview,thesolarcultwasreadytobecomeasolarfaithwithhintsofamonotheisticconcept.ThiswassupposedlyinstigatedbythenewAtencultintroducedbythe philosophical and gentle pharaoh, Akhenaten.22 Breasted saw in Akhenaten’s famousancestor,thegreatThoth-MosesIII,aleaderofa‘nationalpriesthoodasyetknownintheearlyEast,andthefirstPontifexMaximus’underthegodAmon.WithThoth-MosesIIIthusbrandedasasortofpharaonicpope,whoseofficeBreastedtermed‘thisAmonitepapacy’,hisAmericanaudiencebegantoconjureanalmostJudeo-ChristianideaofThoth-MosesIII’sstrangegreat-great-grandson.MuchinBreastedterminologywishestoseeAkhenatenastheprecursorofamonotheistic religionwith thesun,or rathersundisc,as thesymbolof theOneGod,the‘Word’.23

This was not surprising to his audience, since Moses was believed by many to be acontemporaryofAkhenatenand,someclaimed,amainparticipantinthedevelopingandblendingofthemonotheisticHebraicfaithwiththereligionofthepharaohs.24Nagging inthebackground,however,wasthestellarcultwhichtestifiedtoBabylonianpolytheisticstarworship and was therefore unacceptable to Hebraic idealism. The stellar element was

evident in the Pyramid Texts, and Breasted, as all others before him, felt uncomfortablewith it.Hecast itasahalf-bakedtheorywhichblemishedthepuresolar ideologiesof thePyramidAge.Because of these flawed early studies, one of the most important keys to a trueunderstandingofthetexts—theiruseofallegoricalastronomy—wasnearlylost,buriedunder the mountain of academic verbiage which followed Maspero’s publications. Theastronomical keymight have disappeared for ever but for a fateful discovery in 1982, acenturyafterthePyramidTextswerefound.Wewilldiscussthisinlaterchapters,butletusnowexaminewhatthetextsreallyare,andtheirrelationshiptothebetterknownEgyptianBookoftheDead.Thiswasacorpusofsimilarwritings,recordedonpapyrusscrollsinlatertimes. Armed with this basic knowledge, we will be ready to approach the core of ourmystery,theroleofOrioninEgyptianreligion.

IIIThe‘OldTestament’ofAncientEgypt

WehaveseenthatthePyramidTextsarehieroglyphicwritingscarvedontheinternalwallsofoneoftheFifthDynastypyramidsandfourothersfromtheSixthDynasty.Theycanthusbedatedtoaperiodbetweentheearliest(Unas)c.2300BCandthemostrecent(PepiII)c.2100BC. However, even these, the oldest religious writings in the world, are not theoriginals,butderivefromsomelostandmoreancientarchetype.Wearefortunateinonerespect though, that since the timewhen theywere carvedon thewalls of thepyramids,theyhavenot suffered from further corruption at thehands of editors and scribes,whichcannotbesaidforothersacredscripturesfromthedistantpast,includingtheBible.ItissadthattheTextshavebeensoneglectedinrecentdecadesbyscholarsofcomparativereligionandhistoryofphilosophy.Considering thewell-developed theologyandmythology theycontain,and the fact thatthey were used specifically for royal ceremonies and rites during the great epoch of thePyramidAge,wecanbesurethatthecopieswhichsurvivedonthewallsof thepyramidswere indeed taken from older sources which have not themselves survived. How muchearlierthanthetimeofUnaswastheoriginalsourcematerialwritten?Perhaps the best way to answer this question is to see how their discoverer, GastonMaspero,andotherscholars,Egyptologistsandtranslatorsafterhim,perceivedthePyramidTexts.InalectureMasperogavesoonafterthediscovery,hedescribedthemas‘4000linesof hymns and formulae, of which the greater part were originally written during theprehistoric period of Egypt’. Now ‘prehistoric’ Egypt, even bymodern new chronologicaldating, places them around 3200BC at the latest — a date which Maspero and hiscontemporarieswouldhavefoundveryconservativeindeed.In1912Breastedwastowriteofthesetexts:

Contrarytothepopularandcurrentimpression,themostimportantbodyofsacredliteratureinEgyptisnottheBookoftheDead,butmucholderliteraturewhichwenowcallthePyramidTexts.Thesetexts,preservedinthe

FifthandSixthDynastypyramidsatSakkara,formtheoldestbodyofliteraturesurvivingfromtheancientworldanddisclosetoustheearliestchapterintheintellectualhistoryofmanaspreservedtomoderntimes.25

SinceBreastedwrote thosewords, further confusionhasbeen caused (particularly amonginvestigatorsoutsidescholarlycircles)bythecommonpracticeamongEgyptologistsofthefirsthalfofthetwentiethcenturyofreferringtothefuneraryliturgyandmanyothertextsofancientEgyptcollectivelyas‘TheBookoftheDead’,withthePyramidTextsconsideredas the oldest version. This was a trend promulgated by, among others, ProfessorWallis-Budge:

ThehistoryofthegreatbodyofreligiouscompositionwhichformtheBookoftheDeadoftheancientEgyptiansmayconvenientlybedividedintofourperiods,whicharerepresentedbyfourversions:I.TheversionwhichwaseditedbythepriestsofthecollegeofAnnu(theOnoftheBible,andtheHeliopolisoftheGreeks),andwhichwasbased upon a series of texts now lost… is known from five copieswhich are inscribed upon thewalls andpassages in the pyramids of kings of the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties at Sakkara, and sections of it are foundinscribedupontombs,sarcophagi,coffins,stelaeandpapyrifromtheEleventhDynastytoaboutAD200.26

II.TheThebanversion,whichwascommonlywrittenonpapyriinhieroglyphicsandwasdividedintosectionsorchapters,eachofwhichhaditsdistincttitlebutnodefiniteplaceintheseries.TheversionwasmuchusedfromtheEighteenthtotheTwentiethDynasty.

III.Aversioncloselyalliedtotheprecedingversion,whichisfoundwrittenonpapyriinthehieracticcharacterandalsoinhieroglyphics.Inthisversion,whichcameintouseabouttheTwentiethDynasty,thechaptershavenofixedorder.

IV. The so-called Saite version, inwhich, at someperiod anterior probably to the Twenty-sixthDynasty, thechapterswerearrangedinadefiniteorder.Itiscommonlywritteninhieroglyphicsandinhieratic,anditwasmuchusedfromtheTwenty-sixthDynastytotheendofthePtolemaicperiod.

Budge’sdivisionsare far fromadequate.Hisversions II, IIIand IV, thoughsimilar tooneanother inmanyrespects,differmarkedly fromthePyramidTexts.Notonly that,but thePyramidTextsarelumpedtogetherwithmuchlaterwritingssuchastheCoffinTexts.This banding together of Egyptian sacredwritings and labelling them as ‘Books of theDead’hastendedtocloudscholars’ judgementsconcerningthePyramidTextsanddisguisetheiruniqueness.Budgedid,however,goontosaythatthey‘bearwithinthemselvesproofs,notonlyofhavingbeencomposed,butalsoofhavingbeenrevised,oredited,longbeforethe days of KingMena (c. 3300BC)…’27 Dr Edwards, another former Keeper of EgyptianAntiquities at the British Museum and author of the definitive work on the pyramids ofEgypt,reaffirmedthispositionwhenhewrotein1947,‘ForthemostpartthePyramidTexts

werenot the inventionof theFifthorSixthDynasties,buthadoriginated inearlier times…’28Wecanfindnoreasontodoubtthisassessment; indeedwebelievethatthePyramidTextsandthestarreligiontheycontainpredatetheFifthDynastybymanycenturies.ThefinalanddefinitivetranslationofthePyramidTextshasprovedanarduousbusiness.AfterMaspero’s hasty effort, German scholarswere themost active in this field. Dr KurtSethe’sepicversion(1910–12)isforemostamongthem.Duringthe1950sand1960ssomeEnglish translations were to follow, the first by Samuel B. Mercer, Professor of SemiticLanguages and Egyptology at Toronto University, then another by Alexander Piankoffbased only on theUnas inscriptions.29 Finally in 1969 the eminent and respected Britishphilologist, Raymond Faulkner, produced what is considered the definitive translation.PublishedbyOxfordUniversityPressunder the titleTheAncient Egyptian PyramidTexts,30Faulkner’stranslationisstillregardedasthebest.Eventually,in1986,justoveracenturyafter their discovery, the publishers Aris & Phillips reissued Faulkner’s book as the firstpaperbackeditionoftheTexts,andthiswasreprintedin1993.Faulkner,impressedbytheantiquityandcontentoftheinscriptions,describedthemthus:

The Pyramid Texts… constitute the oldest corpus of Egyptian religious and funerary literature now extant.Furthermoretheyaretheleastcorruptofallsuchcollectionsoffunerarytexts…Theyincludeveryancienttextsamongwhichwerethosenearlycontemporarywiththepyramidsinwhichtheywereinscribed…’31

It is quite clear from all this thatwe are dealingwith texts ofwhich the greater portionoriginatedwellbefore theFifthDynasty. I felt safe, therefore, inassuming that,althoughtheearliestcopywasfoundinthepyramidofUnas,lastkingoftheFifthDynasty,theTextsrefertoareligionandrituals inexistenceduringtheFourthDynasty—theperiodduringwhichthegiganticpyramidsofGizaandDashourwereconstructed.Inprojectingthetextsbackonedynasty,fromtheFifthtotheFourth,IbelievedIwasnotcontradictingscholarlyopinion. Indeed, all the Egyptologists involved with the Pyramid Texts, from theirdiscoverertotheirdefinitivetranslator,sawthemasincludingveryancientmaterial frombeyondthePyramidAge.Iwas soon to discover, however, thatwhile Egyptologistswere prepared to agree to agreaterantiquityforthePyramidTextsthantheFifthDynasty,theycomplainedthattherewasnohardevidenceofthis.Thisseemedveryoddtome;youcouldnothaveitbothways.Eitheritshouldbeaccepted,atleastonphilologicalgrounds,thatthetextscontainveryoldideasandmaterial,or that theyappliednoearlier thantheFifthDynasty. ItwasobviousthattheideasinthePyramidTextsdidnothappenonlyduringUnas’sreign,andthattheymight have taken several centuries to develop into the royal state religion. Yetarchaeologistswantedhardevidence,andthatwasnotyetpossible.Manyscholarsdismissthephilologicalevidence,whichoughttobeenoughinsuchcases,andwillnotagreetotheTextsbeingprojectedbackbeforethetimeofUnas,noteventotheFourthDynasty.This paradoxical attitude created a scholarly impasse, which some more intrepid

researchershavesincechallenged.32ManyscholarspreferrednottodealwiththePyramidTextsatall rather than riskembarkingon the sortof controversywhichcouldnegativelyaffect their careers. The study of ancient texts was, it appeared, the běte noire ofEgyptologists.Notmanywantedtosinkthemselvesinarchaictextssaidtobea‘haphazard’compilationof‘magicalspellsandhymns’oflittleornoconsequencefortheunderstandingof ancient ideas and ‘sciences’. And anyway, enough had already been said about thePyramidTextsbyBreastedandothers.

Regarding theprojectionbackwardsof thecontentof theTexts toearlierdynasties,oratleast to the Fourth Dynasty, it is, in many ways, the same as saying that the Christiangospels (theearliestdating from the fourthcentury) shouldnotbe ‘projectedback’ to thetimeofJesusoreventothethirdcentury,whenweknowverywell thatChristianitywasflourishinginboththeeastandinRome.UnliketheprolificstudyofancientChristiantextsinhundredsofestablishmentsaroundtheworld(notincludingtheclerics),thereis,asfarasthe Pyramid Texts are concerned, a curious academic seizure, a kind of intellectualcatatoniawhichhasstruckmanyEgyptologists.AgoodexampleofthiswasexpressedinaletterwrittentomebyProfessorCathleenKeller,SeniorEgyptologistatBerkeleyUniversityin California, who felt that a problem was raised by the fact that the versions of thePyramidTextswhichwepossess date from the endof the FifthDynasty (at the earliest),somewhatlaterthantheconstructionoftheGizamonuments.ShethereforethoughtthatweshouldbecautiouswhenprojectingthetextsbackintotheFourthDynasty.33

ButDrKellerdid admit that ‘many colleaguesdonot share this cautionand frequentlydiscuss theGiza complexes in terms of Pyramid Text rituals’. Yetwhat she did notmakeevidentisjustwhatismeantby‘somecautioniscalledfor’.Iregardedaprojectionbacktothe Fourth as very cautious indeed, especially when it is recognised that the bulk of thePyramidTextsinourpossessionwerebasedonolderoriginals.Yetthewell-knownProfessorofEgyptology,R.T.RundleClark,hadwarnedin1959that‘Excessivecaution leads tocompletemisunderstanding…It is in interpretation,however,that courage is needed.’34 Here at last was an Egyptologist who was agreeing that ‘thereligious literature cannot be understood without some sympathy for the outlook of itsauthors’.35RundleClarksawthePyramidTextsasthesupremeachievementsoftheirtimeand asked his colleagues to ensure that theywere ‘to be explained as such and not as achance collection of heterogeneous tags put together to justify the pretensions of rivalpriesthoods’.36Heemphasisedthatthemorethetextsarestudiedthegreaterappearstheir‘literary quality and intellectual content’, and asked scholars to treat them with greaterrespect.IsoonrealisedwhatRundleClarkmeantwhenhesaidthatcourageisneededifyouwantto interpret the Pyramid Texts: the vague warning given by Dr Keller was nothingcomparedwithaletterfromaSwissprofessorinCairowhotoldmeinnouncertaintermstoleavethingstothe‘experts’andtogoaboutmybusiness.Headvisedmeto‘abandonthissubjectandbecomeagoodengineer’.37

Themore I investigated, themore it drew amixed reaction from academics. Some feltthattheycouldnotcommentonthe ‘mathematical’or ‘astronomical’aspectsofmythesis,

otherswerenonplussedandmost,atleastintheearlystage,simplycouldnotbebotheredto reply. I had the impression that not only was I treading on taboo territory, but thatastronomyandthestudyof thePyramidAgewereanathematoEgyptologists: thetwodonotmix for them. Dr Keller summarised the problemwhen she wrote thatmany seriousEgyptologists feltuncomfortable about the relationshipbetweenastronomicalphenomenaand ancient Egyptian architecture. They do not like to admit that the Ancient Egyptianswere motivated less by scientific curiosity than by religious considerations in theirunderstandingoftheskies.38

The result of all this caution and antipathy about anything astronomical is that today,more than a century after the discovery of the Pyramid Texts, few non-specialist readershave even heard of them; fewer still are aware of the star religion or astronomies theycontain.Weneednowtore-examinewhathappenedtotheTextsaftertheirdiscoveryin1880andtoexplore theircontents in thecontextof theirallusions: thepyramidstructures, theNileValleynearMemphisandtheskyabovethetwo.

IVTheWrongProgramfortheFiles

Anyone who has worked with a computer knows that calling up a file using a word-processingprogramnotcompatiblewiththeonebeingused,meansagarbledversionofthetextappearingonthescreen.This is more or less what happened (and in many ways is still happening) with thePyramidTextsandthepyramidsofEgypt.Webelievethatthewrongprogramforreadingthemhasbeenused.Wearenottalkingofthetranslationfromthehieroglyphiclanguagetomodernlanguages;wehavetheutmostfaithintheworkofFaulknerandothers likehim.Wearereferringspecifically to the interpretationputonthese textsbyEgyptologists.WebelievethattheproperprogramordecoderexistsandneedstobeunderstoodbeforewecanproperlydecodethePyramidTextsandextracttheirreal,esotericmeaning.Butletusfirstseehowtheorthodoxconsensusbecameestablished,andwhyitmaybetheresultofusingthewrong‘program’.AlthoughMasperopublishedlargeportionsofthePyramidTextspiecemealfrom1884to1894, these were distributed only among fellow scholars, as often happens with newarchaeological finds of a textual nature. For example, the famous Dead Sea Scrolls,discoveredinthe1940s,haveonlyrecentlybeenpublishedforthegeneralpublic.Likewise,thePyramidTextsweregivenlittle,ifany,publicexposurewhentheywerefirstdiscovered.In1910KurtSetheproducedthe‘firststandardedition’.Thisturnedouttobeabulkyworkin three volumes which, apart from its high cost, was almost inaccessible for non-Egyptologists. (As a matter of interest, it was Sethe who coined the term ‘utterance’ todenotesmallchapters,sometimesonlyafewlines,inthemainbodyoftexts.)The first sign of recognition that the star cult in the Pyramid Texts deserved closerattention came in 1946, when the prolific and tireless Dr Selim Hassan, an indigenous

Egyptologist,gavehisextensiveinterpretationoftheTextsinavolumeofhismassiveworkentitledExcavationsatGiza.ThoughHassanwasbynomeansinanymood,orposition,tochallenge Breasted’s established solar contentions, he did pay far more attention to thestellarelements in thePyramidTexts.Henoted: ‘At someremoteperiod in thehistoryofEgyptianreligiousthought,therewasabeliefthatafterdeaththesouloftheKingbecameastaramongthestarsofHeaven…’.39

WhyHassan saw this belief as being from ‘some remote period’ andnot contemporarywiththePyramidAgeisunclear.HedrewhisconclusionsfromwhathereadinthePyramidTextsandnot,ashisstatementimplies,fromreligiousmaterialfrom‘someremoteperiod’.There is no religiousmaterialmore remote than the Pyramid Texts.WhatHassanmeantwasobvious:hesawintheTextstheelementsofastarreligion,butassumedthatitcamefromaremoteperiodbecauseBreastedhadsaidso.Breasted’sreputationwasnowwaxinginEgyptologicalannals,andhisviewshadbecomeacademicdogma,noteasytodislodge.Butthefirstcrackinthesolartheorywasshowing,andHassanrecognisedthatthereweremanyreferencestothestarsandthestellardestinyofpharaohsinthePyramidTexts.In1952MercerproducedthefirstEnglishversionofamanageablesizeandprice.Itcamein fourvolumes, threeofwhichweredevoted to interpretations.40Mercer alsopaidmoreattention to the stellar doctrines of the Texts and, unlike Breasted andHassan, began torecognise that hidden behind the liturgy was a primitive astronomy, expressed in poeticallegories and symbolism. He was perhaps the first to regard the Pyramid Texts assomething other than a bulky compilation of ‘hymns and spells’ put together by somecarelessscribes.Hisanalysis,thoughcomplexattimes,wasthefirstsignthatsomeonewasrecognisinginthemelementsofreligiousritualswhichcouldbebetterunderstoodthroughtheirstellarandastronomicalcontent.This,ofcourse,conflictedwiththeestablishedview,andMercerwaspilloriedforbeingrashand far toobold inhis interpretations. Itwasalso said thathis translationsdid ‘notrepresentcurrentknowledgeofancientEgyptian’,41whichwasnotentirely true.Mercer’sstudymusthaveitsplaceintheanthologyofthePyramidTexts,andhisboldnessmayyetprovetobeagoodthing.(However,IsoondiscoveredthatquotingMercerontheTextswasfrowned on by academics.) He did much to highlight the fact that the Texts containallegoriesaboutthestarsandtheirmovementsandrecognisedthatanastronomymingledwithmythologyandritualsneededtobeextractedfromthem.Heshowedthattheprincipalthemewasthepowerfulbeliefthatthedeadkingwouldberebornasastarandthathissoulwas believed to travel into the sky and become established in the starryworld ofOsiris-Orion,thegodofthedeadandofresurrection:

The Dog Star was identified with Sirius; Orion was identified with Osiris.… It is not surprising to find anidentificationofOsiriswithOrion…[for]oneof thecentral themesof thePyramidTextswas thecompleteidentificationofthedeadkingwithOsiris…42

8 .Sahu-OrionfollowedbySothis-SiriusandthreestarsintheDallyProcessionoftheHeavens

Merceralsobelieved in thegreatantiquityof thecult found in theTexts: ‘TheworshipofOsirisis,nodoubt,prehistoric…bythetimeofthePyramidAgeitwasawell-establishedcult’.43

The starry world of Osiris was called the Duat, and Faulkner, after the careful andmeticulous analysis required to translate thePyramidTexts, concluded that theDuatwasnotapartofthesunbutoftenconsidereda‘partofthevisiblesky’.44Twoyearsbeforehepublishedhistranslation,FaulknerexploredthestarreligionintheTextsandpublishedhisviewsintheprestigiousJournalofNearEasternStudies.45 IamindebtedtoDrEdwards fordrawingmyattentiontothisimportantarticlebackin1986whenthe‘OrionMystery’wasstill dragging its heels.46 Faulkner quoted a large number of passages from the PyramidTexts which mention the stars in connection with the soul of the dead kings and theirafterlifedestiny.Yethe ignoredhundredsofotherpassageswhichalso refer to theastraldestiny of the kings, without specific reference to the word star, and more which drewattentiontothestarsbyallegoriesandmetaphors.ThisisobviousfromthewaythedeadkingisidentifiedwithOsiris,whoisidentifiedwiththe constellation of Orion, as Mercer pointed out.47 Faulkner also noted that theconstellationofOrionwasoneoftheafterlifedwelling-placesofthesoulsofdepartedkingswhobecamestars.It was now becoming clear to me that observational astronomy and its materialexpression in the symbolic architecture of the pyramid structures and their orientationsneededtobecarefullyexamined. Idiscoveredthat Iwasnottheonlyonewhofelt thatafreshreviewofthePyramidTextswasimperativeifprogressweretobemadeinsolvingthemysteryoftheEgyptianpyramids.The first serious complaint which called for new and unbiased review of the PyramidTexts had come in 1948 from the eminent orientalist Dr Henri Frankfort, Professor ofOrientalArchaeologyattheUniversityofChicagoanddirectoroftheWarburgInstituteinLondon. Frankfort attacked Breasted’s views as being ‘biblical’ and complained that noseriousattemptwasbeingmade toextract the truemeaningof thePyramidTexts.48 TwoyearsafterMercer’spublicationofhiscommentarieson theTexts,abroadsidecame fromanother quarter, this time from a respected philological source. Alexander Piankoff, who

hadalsotranslatedpartofthePyramidTextsfromtheUnaspyramid,lamented:

TheapproachtothestudyofEgyptianreligionhaspassedwithouttransitionfromoneextremetoanother.FortheearlyEgyptologiststhisreligionwashighlymysteriousandmystical.…Thencameasuddenreaction:scholarslost all interest in the religion as such and viewed the religious texts merely as source material for theirphilological-historicalresearch…49

In1992,whileAdrianandIwereintheprocessofwritingTheOrionMystery,another,moreforcefulcallforanewappraisalofthePyramidTexts—thistimewithdueapplicationofscientificastronomy—camefromJaneB.Sellers,anEgyptologistwhohadbeenstudyingtheastronomicalcontentsofthePyramidTextsfornearlysixtyyears.50Inherrecentbook,TheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt,51SellersairsthemanycomplaintsabouthowtheTexts,andEgyptianreligioustexts ingeneral,havebeentreatedbyscholars.52ShequotesHenriFrankfort53, who openly contested Breasted’s stranglehold on the study of the PyramidTexts:

[JamesH.Breasted]describedin1912a‘developmentofreligionandthoughtinancientEgypt’towardsethicalidealswhichpertainedtobiblicalbutnottoancientEgyptianreligion.Sincetheninterpretation(ofthePyramidTexts)haslagged…Themostprolificwriters…assumedtowardsoursubjectascientist’sratherthanascholar’sattitude;whileostensiblyconcernedwithreligion, theywerereallyabsorbedinthetaskofbringingordertoaconfusedmassofmaterial.54

Sellers addeda fewcommentsofherown: ‘Frankfortpointedout thatmenof this schoolhavedominatedthesubjectsincethe1920s,andheaccusedthemofbothbeingresponsiblefor thewidely accepted view that religionwas always a consequence of political power,andofbeingunabletoseethewoodforthetrees.’55

LongbeforeJaneSellers’srefreshingopenness,ItoohadcometotheconclusionthatnoonecouldreallycomprehendthePyramidTextsbytranslatingandinterpretingthewordswithoutabackgroundknowledgeofobservationalastronomy.Itwasobviousthatwithoutthis, and without a general appraisal of architectural symbology, they would remainunintelligible. There could be no doubt that they were documents to be taken with theutmost seriousness and not be treated as the haphazard work of frivolous scribes. Theyshowed evidence of being composedby a groupof initiated priests-cum-astronomerswhocontrolledthestatereligionofkingswhoweredeemedgodsandwhoseafterlifedestinywasasestablishedstarsoulsintheworldofOsiris.Butwhybuild thosemassivepyramids toachieve this stellardestiny?Whatmade themimaginethatbytakingtheembalmedcorpseoftheirkingto‘his’pyramidintheMemphiteNecropolishissoulwouldjoinOsirisinthesky?

4LETTHEPYRAMIDTEXTS‘SPEAK’

Theremaybenoneed to try toconnect thepyramidand thebenbenwith the sun,ashasoftenbeendonewithunsatisfyingeffect,forthepyramidmaybetheagencyforrebirthoftheking,justasthedecans(stars)themselvesarereborn,asthePyramidTextssay…

—E.C.Krupp,InSearchofAncientAstronomies

Itisthismixtureofastronomyandreligion,thecomminglingofmythandreality,andthisapplicationofobserving,engineeringandsurveyingtothepurposesoffantasythatsofrustratesandfascinatesthestudentofEgyptianlifeandscience.

—JamesCornell,TheFirstStargazers

ITheLandofthePharaohs

At the first opportunity, in autumn 1982, I took a short break and went on holiday toEgypt.ThoughIamofEuropeanextraction,Egyptismynativelandandatthattimemymother,alsoborninEgypt,wasstilllivingthere.Iamalwaysrevitalisedbyit:thoughpoorinamaterialsense,itisrichinlifeandspiritualityeventoday.Alexandria,my home town,was once a great cosmopolitan city. Now dilapidated andovercrowded, it is bursting at the seams. It was named after its founder, Alexander theGreat, and flourished under his successors, the Greek Ptolemies, to become a city thatrivalled Athens and Rome for the beauty of its architecture and its location on theMediterranean.Itsfameasacentreoflearningattractedphilosophersandstudentsfromallover theMediterraneanworld to its famous library and to listen to the liberal ideas andteachingsofitsplatonicandpythagorianphilosophersandadvancedastronomers.1UndertheRomansitremainedacentreoflearningandavant-gardeideasuntiltheArabconquestintheseventhcenturyAD.Alexandriahadalwaysbeenacityofideas,amelting-potofethnicgroupswhichincludedGreeks,Syrians,Ethiopians,RomansandJewsaswellas thenativeEgyptians,knownasCopts.2After theArabconquest thecityslowly fell intoruinsasEgypt turned itsbackonEurope.ItwastostayforgottenformanycenturiesuntilNapoleoninvadedEgyptin1798,but itwasnotuntil1830,underMuhammadAli, thefirstTurkishviceroyorkhedive, thatAlexandriabegantoregainsomeofitslostsplendour.Akeen,toughleader,MuhammadAliinvitedEuropeans—British,Maltese,FrenchandItalians—tohelphimmoderniseEgypt,and within a century Alexandria was once more the most fashionable city of the

Mediterranean. After the abdication of King Farouk in 1952, and the SuezWar in 1956,pressure was put on foreigners by the Nasser regime, and Alexandria lost most of itsEuropeans,leavingitonceagaintothelocalArabs.Unfortunately,therevolutioncouldnotsolve thecountry’sdemographicproblems,andAlexandriadeclinedasEgypt’spopulationgrewalarminglythroughthefollowingdecades.Acountrypopulatedbyonlytenmillionin1910 now has fifty-five million, increasing at a rate of one thousand a day. By 1982Alexandriahadbecomesocrowdedanddirty Icouldhardlyrecognise itas thecityofmychildhood.Asusual,atriptothepyramidswasontheagenda.Isurmisedthatifany‘hardevidence’weretobe foundconcerningthestarreligionof theancients, itwasherethatoneshouldlook.Afterall,thepyramidswerebuiltatthetimeRobertTemplebelievedthestarreligiontohavebeenofthegreatestimportance.Perhapsthenthetwowerelinked.Beingtrainedasanengineerandsurveyor,however,theevidenceIwaslookingforwouldneedtobemoretangiblethantheinterpretationofancientmyths.MylifelongexperienceofAfricaandtheMiddleEastmademeespeciallyscepticalofaccountsbyDogonpriests,howeverconvincingtheymightappear. Iwantedsomethingphysical,somethingyoucouldseeortouchandifpossible measure. I was also wondering whether the Ancient Egyptians might have leftsomesignormessageinthepyramids;otherwisewhybuildthemsolargeandofsuchrobustconstruction? If a message had been left, surely it must have been concerned with theirreligiousbeliefsandmightbetheanswertotheSiriusmysteryIhadreadabout.Iwasnowlooking for evidence of the ‘firstmagnitude’, the sort a specialist panel or jurywould becompelledtoaccept.

OnawarmnightinMay,twohoursbeforedawn,IdrovedownfromAlexandriatoCairoonthedesertroad.ThispoorlymaintainedroadapproachesCairofromthenorth-west,sothefirstthingyouseearethethreepyramidsofGiza.Iarrivedjustintimetocatchthelightof the rising sun on their faces, their majestic presence inspiring awe and a sense ofmystery.The sitewas freeof theusual crowdsof tourists; therewereonly adozenor sokeen visitors who, like me, were happy to miss a few hours of sleep to witness thismagnificentsight.IparkedthecaronahighspotoverlookingtheGizaplateaufromthewest,stoodforafewmomentstoinhalethefreshmorningair,thenwalkeddowntowardsthesmallestofthethree pyramids, that of Menkaura. A flutter of wings made me jump, and hundreds ofpigeons anddoves rose and circled the topof thepyramid. I haddecided to climba fewstagestogetagoodphotographofthetwolargerpyramidsagainstthelightoftherisingsun,andasIclamberedup,InoticedthatIwasnotalone.There,watchingmenervously,wasasmalldesertjackal.Thiswasararesightastheseanimals,nownearlyextinctintheenvironsofCairo,areshyofhumans.DuringalltheyearsIhadlivedinEgypt,evenonthemany occasions when I had been out hunting in the western desert, I had never seen ajackal.Thiswasawonderfulplaceandtimeforsuchapropitiousencounter.Westaredateach other for a few seconds, then the jackal disappeared around the corner. I suddenlyremembered the discovery of the PyramidTexts andhowa jackal had led the reis to theentrance of the pyramid of Pepi I at Saqqara. No such luck here, I thought. There was

nothing to suggest that soon I too would make a startling discovery about the PyramidTexts:onethatwouldalterthecourseofmylife.AftersunriseIdrovetoSaqqara.Ihadnotbeenthereformanyyearsandwantedtosee

again the famous inscriptions in the pyramid of Unas, last king of the Fifth Dynasty (c.2350BC).Thesunwasnowhighintheskyanditwasgettinghot,soIstoppedonthecanalroad and had breakfast. Arriving at Saqqara, I walked to the south side of the complex,avoidingthetouristsanddragomen.ReachingtheendofalongstonealleythathadoncebeenthesymboliccausewayleadingfromtheNiletothepyramidcomplex,IcouldseethesilhouetteofUnas’spyramid.Viewedfromtheoutside,itlookslikeaheapofrubble,butthesamecanbesaidoftheotherFifthDynastypyramids.YetUnas’spyramidisinmanywaysmorepreciousthanitsperfectandgiganticpredecessors.Unlikethem,itisfarfrommute,forinsidearethehugequantitiesofhieroglyphictexts.An old reis in a shabby jellabiyah, the local garb, was guarding the entrance of the

pyramidwaitingforbakshish(atip).AfiverinEgyptiancurrency,equaltotwoUSdollars,makesyouaVIPvisitor;forfiftyUSdollars,theoldmanwouldwrapupthepyramidinanewspaper,ifhecould,andsellittoyou.ThisisthesadstateofEgyptianantiquitiestoday.Noonecanblame theguardiansof thesemonuments for trying tomake thebestof theirsituation;withdozensofmouthstofeedandmonthlywagesthatwouldnotbuyamealinEngland, they rely on hand-outs from tourists by offering them ‘privileged’ access to themonuments. This often entails allowing tourists to touch the hieroglyphs, to use a flashcameraand,ifthebakshishisgenerousenough,toleavethemaloneinthemonumenttodoas they please. Many of these men have been on the same job for decades, jealouslyguardingtherichestterritoriesalongthemaintouristroutes,andsomeworkwithoutwagesor pay a fee to have these lucrative posts.Over the years they have becomemy friends.They have learnt to love themonuments they are supposed to guard, albeit for differentreasons,andgiventherightwagestheywoulddoafinejob.Ibrahim,anoldandtiredreisIhaveknownforyears,washagglingwithanoisygroupof

Japanesetourists.HegavemeabroadsmileandasalaamwavewithhisopenpalmandIdidmyusualrecommendationact forhim. I toldthegrinningJapanesehowIbrahimwasoncea‘friendofHowardCarter’andwassaidby‘Egyptologists’tobethebestguideintheland. Then I urged them to give him a good bakshish, and asked them tomake sure theancienttextswerenotabusedwhentheyenteredthepyramid.Leavingthemnoddingtheirheadsinunison,IwinkedtotheexaltedIbrahimand,slowly,bentmykneesandloweredmyheadtoenterthepyramid.An awkward walk, more of a scramble, through a descending passage and then a

horizontalcorridorbroughtmeintothefirstchamberwhere,likeMasperoacenturybefore,Ilookedatthelimestonewallscoveredwithcarvedtexts.Sowellpreservedarethesethatitishardtobelievethattheywerecarvedmorethan4000yearsago.Onthedimlylitwallthename ‘Osiris-Unas’ was written dozens of times in a neat row. Above it was ‘Sahu’, theancientEgyptiannameforOrion;thenmyeyesweredrawntothepitchedceilingcoveredwithstars.The Pyramid Texts, of which those from the Unas pyramid are the best examples, are

uncorruptedbygenerationsofeditorsandscribes.Theyaretheoriginalcopywrittenonthe

stonemorethan4000yearsago.Itwasthesetexts,theoldestknownwritingsintheworld,whichconfrontedmenow.

IIWhoSpeaksforthePyramidTexts?

Oneof the commonproblems concerning the studyof ancient texts is that the appointed‘experts’ will often not let the writings speak for themselves. They spend endless hoursstudyingthecontentsandgothroughthematerialwithafinecomb,but intheendmanyseeminterestedinusingthemonlyforphilologicalstudiesanddebates.Inthecourseofthisprocess, lacunae are filled in; simplewords are replaced by complex ones; explanations,where they are given, are between brackets or sidelined into footnotes which draw thereader further into the morass of academic scaramouching. Nit-picking, and looking forflaws and technical errors in each other’s arguments, causes more confusion thanelucidation,andactsasahugedistraction.The Pyramid Texts have not escaped this fate: a mass of scholarly verbiage has been

thrownat them in the formofphilosophical andphilological arguments.Theological andetymologicaldiscussionshavemade their contents seemmoreesoteric than theyneedbe.Decadeupondecadeof such treatmenthas reduced them to the status of boringmaterialbest left to thescholarsand ‘experts’.Thustheoriginal texts,expressed inpowerful termswhichtestifytoadeepfaithinanafterlifedestiny,havebeenobscured.Initially, I too fell into the trapof sieving throughthearticlesand thesesofacademics,

butitwasapparentthatsomeexpertslackedanyfeelingforthetexts,andspenttheirtimecontradicting and attacking one another. They presented the religion of the AncientEgyptians as a bogus liturgy of rituals whichmade the rites of Roman Catholicism lookstraightforward.Therewasonlyonewayoutofthisimpasse:Ihadtofindthebesttranslationavailable

and make up my own mind about their meaning. I was able to get hold of Faulkner’sacclaimedtranslationandbeginwithacleanslate.Ourfirstruleisthatwhereverpossibleweshouldtakepassagesatfacevalue.Wherepossiblethetextsshouldbelefttospeakforthemselves,andtherearepassageswhichspeakplainly,eventoalayman.Itisonlywhenthis is done that we can hope to find the right connections between the texts and thematerial,visualaspectofthepyramidcult:themonumentalarchitecturewithitsassociatedastronomy.Whenthesetwostrandsofevidenceareconsideredtogether,wecanunderstandtheritualsofpharaonicrebirth.However,thefirstquestionthatmustbetacklediswhethertherebirthcultoftheAncient

Egyptianswassolarorstellar.Inparticular,didtheybelievethatthedepartedkingmergedwiththesunorwashesupposedtobecomeastar?

IIITheStarKingofthePyramidAge

Egyptologistshave shown that theunderlyingconceptofAncientEgyptian theocracywasthatwhile thekingwasalivehewasa reincarnationofHorus, the firstman-godkingofEgypt,andwashailedasthesonofOsirisandIsis.Afterhisdeathitwasbelievedthatthepharaohwoulddeparttotheskyandhimselfbecome‘anOsiris’.3ButwhyanOsiris?WhatdoestheOsirianisationdoctrinemean?InUnas’spyramidthedozensoftextualpassageswhichcallthedeadkingOsiris-Unasareemphaticdeclarationsthat,inhisafterlifeform,themummifiedUnaswastobeanOsiris.WearealsotoldthattheOsirianisedkingsbecamestars;notanystarsbutspecificstarsinthe region of the constellation of Orion. Egyptologists thus concluded long ago that therebirthritualwasessential toconvert thedeadkings intoOsirisandmorespecifically (asMercerarguesforexample)toOsirisinhisastralformofSahu,theconstellationofOrion:‘Orion(Sah)wasidentifiedwithOsiris…4ItisnotsurprisingtofindanidentificationwithOrion…[for]…oneofthecentralthemesinthePyramidTextswasthecompleteidentityofthedeadkingwithOsiris…’.5

CentraltotherebirthriteswasthatthedeadOsiriswasbroughtbacktolifethroughthemagicalritualsofmummificationperformedonhimbyhissister-wife,Isis,withthehelpofAnubis.TheimportanceofthisideawasclearlyunderstoodbyJaneSellers,whosays,‘thePyramidTextswereaimedatensuringthesamerebirthforthedeadkingasthatforthegodOsiris-Orion’.6Thisispreciselywhatthesetextsare,apharaonic‘lifeinsurance’policyputtheresothatwhentherebirthritualsweretakentothepyramid,thecongregationcouldputintomotionthemagicalwordswhichwouldinducethesoulofthedeadkingtobecomeastar and rise toOsiris-Orion. Thus risen, the departed kingwould join the originalOsirisand, like him, become a star god in the constellation of Orion. The original Osiris hadbecometheLordoftheDuat,therealmofthedeadinhabitedbystarbeings.7

DrOttoNeugebauer andDrRichard Parker,whoworked as a team formany years atBrown University in Rhode Island, and who were both acclaimed authorities on AncientEgyptianastronomy,werethefirsttopositivelyidentifytheskyimageofSahu,seenasahuge human figure, with our own constellation of Orion.8 They also noted: ‘We knowfurtherfromthenamesofthedecans(stargroups)ofSahu,“upperarm”,“lowerarm”,etc.,thatSahuwasahuman figurewhich inanycase isgraphicallyportrayedon the traversestripsof thecoffinclocksandthevariousastronomicalceilings,suchasSenmut’s.’9 In theSenmutceilingastridingmancanbeseenwiththethreebrightstarsofOrion’sBeltontop.Parker and Neugebauer correctly concluded that ‘in the Pyramid Texts Sahu is identifiedwith Osiris, which fits well with its depiction as a human figure on the coffins andceilings’.10Many imagesofOsiris-Orionare shown inAncientEgyptiandrawings,amongthe oldest being that on the capstone or pyramidion of Amenemhet III’s pyramid, in theCairoMuseum.Here,too,Sahu-Orionisseenasastridingmanholdinga largestar inhishands.

9.CellingfromtheTombofSenmut(NewKingdom)Sahu-OrionisshownwithOrion’sBeltabovehim.HeisprecededbytheHyadesstars

groupandfollowedbySirius-Sothis

It isclear fromEgyptian funerary textsand thePyramidTexts thatSahu-Orionwas thesoul ofOsiris and that the sky region this bright constellation occupiedwas considered averydesirableplaceforthesoulsofkingstogotoafterthetraumasofdeathandrebirth.RundleClarkwrites:

TherisingofOrioninthesouthernskyafterthetimeofitsinvisibilityisthesign…Osirishasbeentransformedintoa‘livingsoul’.Toachievethis,thesecondformofOsiris,forthedeceased,isthebasicpurposeofthefuneralrites…soasanewOsiristhedeadkingcould,withduecarebyhissuccessors,becomeonewiththesouloftheoriginalOsiris.11

The first step in the astral transfiguration ritual was the changing of the corpse into anOsiris,i.e.,themummy-form.Thustocallthedeadking,orratherhismummy,Osiris-UnasorOsiris-Pepiandsoon,wastoseethekingreadytobecomeasoul, that isastar intheSahu-Orionregionofthesky.ThisismadeclearinthePyramidTexts:

Oking,youarethisGreatStar,theCompanionofOrion,whotraversestheskywithOrion,whoNavigatesthe(Duat)NetherworldwithOsiris;youascend from theeastof the sky,being renewed inyourdue season,andrejuvenatedinyourduetime.TheskyhasbornyouwithOrion.…[PT882–3]

Nointerpretationisneededhere.ThetextsstatethatthedeadkingbecomesastarinOsiris-Orion.Whenthisoccursiseasilyworkedout,becausewearetoldthattheeventisseenin

theeast,atdawn.Thisisconfirmedbyanotherpassage:

BeholdhehascomeasOrion,beholdOsirishascomeasOrion…Oking,theskyconceivesyouwithOrion,thedawn-lightbearsyouwithOrion…youwillregularlyascendwithOrionfromtheeasternregionofthesky,youwillregularlydescendwithOrioninthewesternregionofthesky…yourthirdisSothis…[PT820–2]

Faulkner,thedefinitivetranslatorofthePyramidTexts,usedtheGreeknameofSiriusi.e.Sothis.FromnowonweshallrefertothisstarasSiriusintheastronomicalcontextandasSothisinthemythologicalcontext.ItisknownthatthestarSirius(Sothis)waslinkedtothestartoftheNile’sannualflood,whichoccurredaroundtheendofJune(mid-JulyintheJuliancalendar).Siriusalwaysroseimmediately after the constellation ofOrion and as such Isis, the goddess identifiedwithSirius, forms a pair or couple with Osiris-Orion. There are many such passages whichmentionOsiris-OrionandIsis-Sothistogether,andmanymorewhichmentionOsirisandIsisin their human form. Mercer seemed to think that when Sothis ‘appeared as a goddessprimarily,andnotastar,shewasrepresentedasIsis…[andinthis]…humanform,shewas closely associated with the constellation of Orion’.12 This is easy to understand, forSothis immediately followsOrion.Wallis-Budge said, ‘themention of Orion and Sothis isinteresting, for it showsthatatone timetheprimitiveEgyptiansbelievedthat thesestarswerethehomesofdepartedsouls.’13ThePyramidTextsarecategoricthatthekingbecomesastarsoulafterdeathand,morespecifically,joinsOsiris-Orioninthesky.Manypassagesleaveuswithnodoubtonthismatter:

‘ThekingisaStar…’[PT1583]‘TheKingisaStarwhichilluminestheSky…’[PT362,1455]‘…Theking,aStarbrilliantandfar-travelling…thekingappearsasaStar…’[PT262]‘Lo,thekingarisesasthisstarwhichisontheundersideofthesky…’[PT347]

TherecanbelittledoubtthatthePyramidTextsmakeaclearstatementthatthedeadkingsbecomestars,especiallyseeninthelowereasternsky.Theyalsotellusthatitisthesoulsofdepartedkingswhichbecomestars:

‘beasoulasalivingstar…’[PT904]‘Iamasoul…I(am)astarofgold…’[PT886–9]‘Oking,youarethisgreatstar,thecompanionofOrion…’[PT882]‘…beholdhe(theking)hascomeasOrion,BeholdOsirishascomeasOrion…’[PT820]

ThusthedeadkingwasanOsirisandhissoulwasanOsirissoul,whosedepictionintheskywasOrion.ThePyramidTextscallthestarryafterworldofOsiristheDuat,anditisinthisDuat region that theastral soulsbecomeestablished.Therearemany indications that theDuat included the constellation of Osiris-Orion and that it was also thought of as thepyramidfieldsintheMemphiteNecropolis:

‘ThekinghascomethathemayglorifyOrion, thathemaysetOsirisat theHead…’[PT925]

‘TheDuathasgraspedyourhandattheplacewhereOrionis…’[PT802]

‘Mayyouascendtothesky,maytheskygivebirthtoyoulikeOrion…’[PT2116]

‘Liveandbeyoungbesideyourfather(Osiris),besideOrioninthesky…’[PT2180]

‘InyournameofDwellerinOrion…’[PT186]

‘Oking,youarethisGreatStar,thecompanionofOrion,whotraversestheskywithOrion,whonavigatestheDuatwithOsiris…’[PT882]

ThedepartedOsiris-kingwastojoinOsiris-Orionintheprescribedregionofthesky,whereall other departed kings, (the royal ancestors) had gone.We can even gauge the timeofyearconsideredidealforthisastralrebirthritual:WearetoconsiderOrion’srisingatdawn,butwearealso told thatSothis is involved, so this starmustalsobevisibleatdawn.Wealso know that this was the prelude to the start of the annual flood of the Nile whichoccurrednearthesummersolstice.ForthethreeeventstooccuratthesametimeduringthePyramid Age, astronomical calculations give the date of c. 2750BC.14 A passage in thePyramidTextsalludestothisidealtime:

Thereed-floatsoftheskyaresetinplaceforme,thatImaycrossbymeansofthemtoRa(therisingsun)atthehorizon.IferryacrossthatImaystandontheeastsideofthesky,when[Ra]isin[his]northernregionamongtheimperishablestars,whostandattheirstaffsandsitattheireast…Iwillstandamongthem,fortheMoonismybrother,theMorningStarismyoffspring…’[PT1000–1].

Thewordsinsquarebracketshavebeeninsertedtogivethecorrectastronomicalsensetothepassage.Nearthesummersolsticethesunis‘inthenorthernregion’ofthesky,andrises

atazimuth63.5degrees, that issome26.5degreesnorthofdueeast.15At this timeOrionrisesjustafewdegreessouthofdueeastsothattheking‘maystandontheeastsideofthesky’.Usingaspecialcomputerprogramtorecreatethedawnskyforc.2750BCatdawnonthesummersolstice,wegetavisualpictureoftheancienttextualdescription.Orionis‘fullyrisen’, and this all-important moment is denoted by the appearance of the ‘Star of Isis’,Sothis,justoverthehorizon.Itwasexactlythenthatthebrightstar,Isis-Sothis,performeditsheliacalorfirstdawn-risingtomarka‘newbirth’andthebeginningofanewyear.16

IVOffspringofIsis-SothisandOsiris-Orion

Althoughdebate is rife amongEgyptologists as to how thePyramidTexts and the ritualsthey present should be considered, they are unanimous on one thing: the royal rebirthrituals were based on a dramatic re-enactment of the Osiris and Isis story and themiraculousseedingandsubsequentbirthoftheirsonandheir,Horus.NowhereistheOsirianmythgiveninfullform;itseemsthattheAncientEgyptiansknewitsowellitwasdeemedunnecessarytonarrateitasapreambletotherituals,justasthemajority of Christians know the basic elements of Christ’s story. There are, however,thousandsupon thousandsof references toOsiris, Isis andHorus in theAncientEgyptianfunerarytexts,includingthePyramidTexts,soithasnotbeendifficultforEgyptologiststoreconstructtheOsirisstory:

Osiriswas the eldest sonofNut, the sky goddess, her other childrenbeing Isis, Seth,Nephthys andpossiblyAnubis.Osiris,amanaswellasagod,becamethefirstkingofEgyptandhissisterIsisbecamehisconsort.Hewasagoodkingandestablishedtheruleoflaw(maat).Withthehelpofhisvizier,the‘god’Thoth,hetaughtmenreligionandtheartsofcivilisation.Egyptbecameprosperousanditwasatpeacewithitself.Unfortunately,noteveryonewashappy—especiallyhisbrotherSeth.HeplottedagainstOsiris,murderedhimandcutupthebodyinto small pieces, which he scattered all over Egypt. Evenmore tragically, Isis was still childless when thishappenedandOsirishadnoheirtotakehisplace.Allwasnotlost,however,forIsissecretlygatheredupthepiecesofherhusband’sbodyand,bymeansofhermagicalpowers,reconstitutedthemintothebodyofOsiris,thusmakingthefirst-evermummy.Havingbroughthimbacktolife,shewasnowabletohavesexwithhim.AlthoughthiswasonlyatemporaryreprieveforOsiris,itwaslongenoughforIsistobecomepregnantwithhisseed.Histaskonearthhavingbeencompleted,Osiristransfiguredhimselfintoastarbeing(Orion)andwentontoruletheHeavenlyKingdomoftheDead—calledtheDuat.IsisnowhidfromSethinthemarshesoftheDeltanearHeliopolisandinduecoursegavebirthtoason,Horus.Hegrewuptobecomeapowerfulprince,andeventuallychallengedSethtoadueltoseewhohadtherighttoruleEgyptinOsiris’sstead.Duringthefight,HoruslostaneyeandSethlosthistesticles.Thoughthebattlewasinconclusive,thesungodwaseventuallypersuadedtojudgeinfavouroftheyoungHorusandhewasproclaimedking,thefirstinthelineofthepharaohs.17

10.ScenesfromtheBookoftheDead,theweighingoftheheartandpresentationofaworthysoulatthecourtofOsiris.Osirisisattendedby

hissister-wifeIsisandtheirsisterNephthys.BeforehimarethefoursonsofHorus,standingonalotus

ThetragicstoryofOsirisandtheheroicstruggleofHorustoregainthethroneservedasamodel throughout Egyptian history. The pharaohs legitimised their authority and, moreespecially, deified their rule by proclaiming themselves reincarnations of Horus; the epicbattle with Seth became ametaphor for the struggle of the pharaoh against illegitimateclaims to the throne. It is an accepted fact that all kings of Egyptwere regarded as thereincarnationofHorus, and in this capacity theywere theupholdersofwhat theancientEgyptians calledmaat,18 or ‘law and order’. When a Horus-king died, he was assured arebirthwithOsiris,thatistosayhebecameatonewithOsirisintheafterworldoftheDuat.Thiswould leave the throneofEgyptvacant for the legitimateheir toassume the roleofHorus; theheirwas thus the livingone, thesonofOsirisand Isis,asopposed tohisdeadfather, now an Osiris-king. It was this cyclical exchange from ‘Horus-to-Osiris-to-Horus’whichwasattheheartoftheroyalcultofthepharaohs;beinggods,theirmortalitycouldbeexplainedonly intermsof thisdivinemythanditwasnever indoubtthattheywouldbereborn in the afterworld realm of Osiris. The essential aim of the Pyramid Texts was toassistinthiscrucialprocess.

Henri Frankfort showed that the rebirth rites for a dead king ran in parallel with thecoronationritualsforhisheir.19Thedeathofapharaohthustriggeredadoubleevent,hisfuneralandthecoronationofhisheir,andweshouldbeaware,whenreadingthePyramidTexts, that we are dealing with a double ritual: the funeral of a Horus-king waiting tobecomeanOsiris,andthecoronationofthenewHorus-kingasthesonofOsiris.Inastralterms, the new king was the son of Osiris-Orion. Just as Osiris was identified with theconstellationofOrion,sohisconsortandsister,Isis,wasidentifiedwithSothis(Sirius).Isis-Sirius(Isis-Sothis)wasthustheastralmotherofthelivingking.Sirius,aswehaveseen,isthebrighteststarintheskyanditsconstellation,CanisMajor,immediatelyfollowsOrioninitsrising.InthePyramidTextsthelivingking,thenewHorus-kingundergoinghiscoronationwhileattendingtohisfather’srebirth,makestheseevocativeclaims:

“How lovely to see”, says she, namely Isis… tomy father, to the [dead] king,when heascendstotheskyamongthestars…’[PT939]‘Theskyisclear,Sothis[Sirius]lives[appears],Iama[the]livingone,theSonofSothis…’[PT458]‘YoursisterIsiscomestoyourejoicingforloveofyou.You[thedeadking]haveplacedheronyourphallusandyourseed issued inher, shebeingreadyasSothis,andHar-SopdhascomeforthfromyouasHoruswhoisinSothis…andhe(I)protect(s)youinhis(my)nameofHorus,thesonwhoprotectshisfather…’[PT632–3]‘The(dead)king’ssisterisSothis,theking’soffspringistheMorningStar…’[PT357;929;935;1707]ThedeadOsiris-kingalsomakeshisclaims:

‘Theskyispregnantofwine(thedawnlight),Nuthasgivenbirthtoherdaughter(Sirius)[in]thedawn-light,Iraisemyselfindeed…mythirdisSothis…[PT1082–3][thesecondherebeingtheoffspring’.]‘Givecommandtohimwhohaslife(i.e.,thelivingkingasHorus),theSonofSothis,thathemayspeakonmybehalfandestablishmyseatinthesky’[PT1482]

Theseextracts indicateclearlytheperformanceofanevocativestellarritual, inwhichthedeadking,asastarofOsiris-Orion,isseenascopulatingwithIsis-Sothis(Sirius)toseedherwomb and leave her pregnant with the astral Horus, the son of Sothis. The latter isrepresented by the legitimate heir, now to become the new pharaoh of Egypt. It seemsobvious that this son of Sothis is also identified with a celestial body, and Faulkner hassuggestedtheplanetVenus(astar)becauseofthename‘MorningStar’.20ButneitherVenusnor anyotherplanet qualifies as ‘Morning Star’ so that it is also ‘coming forth’ from thewombofSothis(Sirius).Whoorwhatwasthe‘MorningStar’supposedlyclosetoSirius?Intheepochofc.2750BC,Siriushadadeclinationofabout–21.5degrees.21Thiscausedittorisequitefarofftheeclipticduringthesummersolstice,ataboutazimuth116.5degrees

orsome26.5degreessouthofeast,withthesunbeingabout54degreesawaytothenorthjustbelowthehorizon.ThismeansthatnoneoftheplanetscouldbeanywherenearSiriusduring its heliacal rising. So what bright star could be called the ‘Morning Star’ andconsidered soclose to Isis-Sirius?Was thereabrightobjectnearSiriuswhich theancientssawbutwhichhasnowbecomeinvisible?Isa‘lost’stararealpossibility?Herewemust recallRobertTemple’sSiriusMystery, theheartofwhich revolves aroundthe secret knowledgeof theDogonofMali,who reported an invisible companion star ofSirius. According to Temple, the Dogon’s tradition supposedly came from Ancient Egypt,whereitoriginatedc.3200BC.TodaythisinvisiblestariscalledSiriusB.Itissuper-dense,awhite dwarf in astronomers’ jargon, which canbe seen only through a very powerfultelescope.ScientistsdonotthinkthatSiriusBwasvisibleinancienttimes,butcouldtheybewrong?Butlet’sleavethiscontroversyfornow,whilewedeveloptheOrionMysteryfurtherandlookatthemysteriousshaftsintheGreatPyramid.

VChannelstotheStars

In theGreatPyramidare fourprotractedandnarrowchannelsor shaftswhichhave longbaffledEgyptologists.Wediscussed thembrieflyearlier in thisbook,butnowweneed toreturntothemingreaterdetail.The two shaftswithin theKing’sChamberhadbeenknown since theearly seventeenthcentury.JohnGreaves,SavillianProfessorofAstronomyatOxford, reported theexistenceoftheopeningsofthesechannelswhenhemadehisfamoussurveyoftheGizapyramidsin1638, and noted that the northern one was blackened by ‘lamps burning there’.22 DeMaillet, the French consul-general, also reported the shafts in 1693 but came to the oddconclusionthattheyhadbeenusedtolowerfoodandcleardetritusduringtheconstructionof the pyramid.23 Jomard,who accompaniedNapoleon to Egypt in 1798, later described‘thesedeepnarrowcavitieswhichemanatefromthewallsofthecentralchamber’inKhufu’spyramid.24ItwastheBritishadventurer,ColonelVyse,andhiscolleague,J.S.Perring,whodiscovered theoutsideopeningsof the shaftsof theKing’sChamber in1837.At first theythought the shafts led to a room, despite the small cross-section (about 22 × 23centimetres),butabandonedthisideawhentheairrushedthroughthechamberaftertheycleared the southern shaft.25 They then decided, erroneously, that the shafts had beendesigned for ventilation, and coined the term air-shafts. Flinders Petrie accepted thisconclusion and adopted the term air channels in his description, saying ‘the air channelsleading fromthis [theKing’s]chamberweremeasuredon theoutsideof thepyramid; thenorthonevariesfrom30degrees43minutesto32degrees4minutesintheouter30feet;thesouthonevariesfrom44degrees26minutesto45degrees30minutesintheouter70feet.’26 In1872,WaynmanDixon,aBritishengineer,conjecturedthatsimilarshaftsmightbefoundintheQueen’sChamber,lowerdownthemonument.PiazziSmyth,theAstronomerRoyalofScotlandwhoemployedDixon,explainshowthediscoverywasmade:

Perceivingacrack(firstIamtold,pointedoutbyDrGrant)inthesouthwalloftheQueen’sChamber,whichallowedhimatoneplacetopushinawiretoamostunconscionablelength,MrWaynmanDixonsethiscarpenterman-of-all-work, by name Bill Grundy, to jump a hole with hammer and steel chisel at that place.… nextmeasuringoffasimilarpositiononthenorthwall,MrDixonsettheinvaluableBillGrundytoworkthereagainwithhishammerandsteelchisel…27[Smyth,P.TheGreatPyramid,p.428]

Sir Flinders Petrie whomeasured the slopes of the shafts in 1880 explains how this wasdone:

Thechannelsleadingfromthis[theQueen’s]chamberweremeasuredbygoniometer;theyareexactlyliketheairchannelsintheKing’sChamberintheirappearance,butwerecoveredoverthemouthbyaplateofstone,leftnotcutthroughinthechamberwall;noouterendhasyetbeenfoundforeitherofthem,thoughsearchedforbyMrWaynmanDixon,whofirstdiscoveredthem,andalsobymyself…

But then followedanoddcommentarybyPetrie: ‘Iobservedsomething likeamouthofaholeinthe85thcourseonthesouthface,scanningitwithatelescopefrombelow;butIwashinderedfromexaminingitclosely…’28

Weknow, fromGantenbrink’s recent extensive surveyusingalpinegear, thatwhenhisteamscannedthenorthandsouthfacesfortheallegedopenings,Petriewaswrongaboutseeing the mouth of a hole on the south face. Neither of the two shafts in the Queen’sChamber pierces the pyramid to the outside. Egyptologists later claimed, wrongly, thattheseshaftsstoppedsomeeightmetresfromthewallsoftheQueen’sChamber.Petriegavethemeanslopesoftheseshaftsas,northchannel37degrees28minutesandsouthchannel38degrees28minutes,each statementbeing ‘themeanof twoobservations,whichneverdifferedmorethansixminutes[Arcminutes]’.Petriewasalsotobeprovedwrong.However,the implications of his reportwere tremendous, for it didmuch to divert attention awayfromtheairchannelsintheQueen’sChamber;thelogicbeingthatsincetheydidnotpiercethepyramid,thechannels(andconsequentlytheQueen’sChamber)wereabandonedbytheancientbuildersinfavouroftheKing’sChamber,higherupthepyramid.ThisideapersistedformanydecadesuntilRudolfmadehisdiscoveriesinthesouthernchanneloftheQueen’sChamber,showingthatitwascutmuchdeeperthanPetriehaddeduced,andextendedwellabovethefloorleveloftheKing’sChamber,about19.5metreshigher,thusrunningalmostparalleltothesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberforthelast25metresofitstrack.29

Theventilationtheoryhadlongbeenquestioned;in1924aBelgianEgyptologist,Capart,suggestedanotherplausiblefunctionfortheshafts.Sensitivetothesymbolicfunctionofthewholemonument, Capart did not think theywere air-shafts at all, but served a religiouspurposeinstead:‘itismoreprobablethattheyhadafunerarypurpose,perhapstoafforda

passage for the soul of the king.’30 The same idea was expressed by the GermanEgyptologist, Steindorff, in 1929,31 cautiously by Edwards in 194732 and by Vandier in1954.33AboutthesametimeasVandier,thesymbolicfunctionattributedbyCaparttotheshafts was investigated more closely by Badawy, an Egyptologist with a knowledge ofEgyptianarchitecture.Abreakthroughwasontheway.InhisdetailedworkonAncientEgyptianarchitecture,BadawysuggestedthattheshaftsintheKing’sChambercouldhaveservedaschannelstothestars,‘thenorthernpassage…for the voyage of the soul to the imperishable circumpolar stars, the southern one toOrion.’34SoentrenchedwastheideathatthePyramidTextsreflectedasolardestinyforthedeadking thatnoonehad thoughtof this. Itwasnotuntil1964 thatBadawysought thehelp of an astronomer to make the precessional calculations which would validate histheory(seeAppendix1).HeaskedVirginiaTrimbletohelphimwiththeproblem,andtheyjointly published their work in an Egyptological journal in Germany.35 Badawy firstconsideredtheviewthattheshaftshadbeenintendedforventilation:

Thisinterpretationdoesnot…withstandobjectivecriticism.BesidesthefactthatnoprovisionwasevermadebytheEgyptiansinanyoftheirvarioustypesoftombsthisone,ifsointerpreted,wouldconformbutpoorlywiththeirachievementinventilatingtheirhouses.36

Badawy’s architectural studies had shown that the Ancient Egyptians did not ventilatetombs,norwouldoneexpectit.37Asfortheventilationoftheirhouses,theyusedslantingchannelsopeningontheceilingandorientednorthtomakeuseofthecoolnorthernbreeze.Badawycorrectlypointedout:

11.TheGreatPyramidofGizaincross-section

Alignmentsofshaftstostarsc.2600BCasdiscoveredbyA.BadawyandV.Trimblein1964

ToventilatetheburialchamberofCheopschannelsrunninghorizontallyattheleveloftheceilingwouldhavebeenmoreadequatethantheinclinedshaftsthatstartataboutonemetrefromthefloor,atthelevelofthelidof

thesarcophagus.Oneshouldaddtothisinadequacyinthedesignalltheconstructionalproblemsinvolvedofthebuildingofthetwoinclinedshaftsthroughallthecourses,aprocesswhichcouldhavebeenavoidedbybuildingthemthroughonehorizontalcourse.38

Healsopointedout that theopeningof the shafts in theQueen’sChamberhadbeen leftuncut in thewalls, and that itwasquite likely that the samehadapplied to those in theKing’s Chamber; if this was the case, ‘their assumed purpose for ventilation would havebeen out of the question’.39 Badawy knew, of course, that the Pyramid Texts referred toSahu-Orion and that the departed Osiris-king was identified with these stars. Orion hasalwaysbeenasouthernconstellationandsoitseemedanobviousgoaltoconsiderforthesouthern shaft of the King’s Chamber. The average slopes were taken by Badawy fromPetrie’sdata,around44.5degreesforthesouthernshaftand31degreesforthenorthern.Itwas immediately obvious to a trained astronomer like Trimble that the northern shaftpointedclosetothecelestialpole,whichliesatanaltitudeofnearly30degreesasobservedfromGiza–29degrees58minutes51secondstobeexactasmeasuredfromthecentreoftheGreatPyramid.VirginiaTrimbleworkedoutthedeclinationofthestarsofOrion’sBeltforc.2600BC,thentheassumeddatefortheGreatPyramid.Sheobtainedtheresultsshowninthefirsttable.40

Orion’sBelt Declinationin2600BC

AlNitak(ZetaOrionis) −15° 33′

AlNilam(EpsilonOrionis) −15° 16′

Mintaka(DeltaOrionis) −14° 45′

Source:Appendix1.

TheexactlatitudetothenearestminuteofarcgivenforCheops’spyramidis29degrees59minutes.Atthislatitudethecelestialequator,animaginarylinedividingthenorthernandsouthern hemispheres of the apparent sky globe that encompasses the earth, lies at analtitude of 60 degrees 01 minutes above the southern horizon i.e., the meridian lookingsouth(90degrees−29degrees59minutes=60degrees01minutes).The celestial equator is taken as being zero declination, so that anything above it is apositive declination in the northern hemisphere of the sky, and anything below it is anegativedeclination inthesouthernhemisphere.Toworkout thealtitudeofastarat themeridianasseenfromGizaandlookingsouth,thedeclinationhastobesubtractedfromthealtitudeofthecelestialequator(60degrees01minutes):

Orion’sBelt Altitude,degreesandminutes

AlNitak(ZetaOrionis) (6o°02′−15°33′)=44°29′

AlNilam(EpsilonOrionis) (6o°02′−15°16′)=44°46′

Mintaka(DeltaOrionis) (6o°02′−14°45′)=45°17′

Both Trimble and Badawy quickly realised that it was no coincidence that the southernshaft,whichpointedtowardsthemeridianataslopeof44degrees30minutes,seemedtotargetthepassageofOrion’sBelt.Trimblealsoshowedthatnootherimportantstarsatthatepochpassedatthispointinthesky:‘Itwouldseemlikelythatsomeotherstarsmightpassinthesamefashionovertheopeningoftheshaft.Ithappens,however,thatnootherstarsofcomparablemagnitudehaddeclinationswithin1degree30minutesof−14degrees30minutesduringthatperiod’.41

BadawythusconcludedthatthisshaftwasaimeddeliberatelyatOrion’sBelt,thecentreoftheSahu-Osirisconstellation,tohelpthesoulofthedeadkingtorisetothespecialstarryheavenofSahu-Osiris(Orion).Badawywasactually0.5degreesout,forwenowknowthatthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberisat45degrees.But44degrees30minuteswasclose enough for Badawy and Trimble to make this startling revelation. Oddly, neitherBadawynorTrimblepursued the same logicwith the two shafts in theQueen’sChamber,perhapsacceptingtheconsensusthatthesehadbeenabandoned.ThediscoverythatthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberwastargetedinc.2600BC tothe three stars of Orion’s Belt was largely ignored at the time. Only Edwards took thematter up, but not until 1981, when he made these important comments in an articlewritteninhonourofhisAmericanfriend,DowsDunham:

ThePyramidTextsfrequentlyalludetotheking’sassociationinhisafterlifewiththestarsand,inparticularwiththecircumpolarstarsandwithOrionandSothis.Scientificstudyhasshownthatthenorthernchannel(shaft),whichslopedupwardatanangleof31withthehorizontal,wasalmostinexactalignmentwithwhatwasthenthePoleStar (alphaDraconis),while three stars inOrion’sBelt passed eachdayat culminationdirectlyover thesouthernchannel (shaft),whose slope is44.5.To suppose that sucha settingof thechannelshadnomagicalsignificanceseemshighlyimprobable.42

It is strange that noEgyptologists have takenBadawy’swork further; perhaps because itchallengesthetheoryofasolardestinyfortheking,whichstilldominatespyramidstudies.Yet it should be obvious that the orientation of this shaft towards the Belt of Orionwasconnectedwith themanystatements in thePyramidTexts that theafterlifedestinyof thepharaohwasinthatregionofthesky.WhenIbeganmyinvestigationsintothestarreligionofthepharaohs,IknewnothingofBadawyorhis article; had I known, itmighthave saveda greatdeal of timeand effort.More importantly, it might have given me the encouragement not forthcoming from

Egyptologistsatthestartofmyquest.Asitwas,IturnedmyattentiontoGiza,unawareofthesevitalstellarclues.

5THEGIZAPLAN

They [the builders] were apparently able to dictate… the small dimensions of the Third Pyramid, despite thepresumeddesireofMenkaura[Mycerinos]tohaveamonumentequaltothoseofhispredecessors…

—J.A.R.LegoninDiscussionsInEgyptology

AtGizaweareconfrontedbyasetofmonumentswhichbeareverysignofintelligentdesign,yetweareignorantoftheprinciplesuponwhichthesedesignswerebased.

—R.Cook,ThePyramidsofGiza

IAPeculiarOffset

In1982,thedayafterIhadvisitedthepyramidofUnas,Iwenttoanotherfamiliarhaunt,theCairoMuseumofEgyptianAntiquities.Myobjectivewas theeastwingof thegroundfloor,wheremostofthePyramidAgerelicswerekept.TheMuseumisanextraordinaryplace,intheheartofCairoonthebustlingnorthsideofTahrirSquare,andenteringitscourtyardislikefindingasanctuaryfromthemadnessofthetrafficoutside.ThepresentbuildingwasdesignedattheturnofthecenturybytheFrencharchitect, Marcel Dourgnon; not unexpectedly there is a distinctly French feel about theplace, due not least to the mausoleum of Mariette. He had asked that his remains beentombedinasarcophagusandkeptinthegardensoftheMuseum;recentlyhisstatuehasbeen repaired and now dominates the crowds as they stream into what was once hisexclusivedomain.Inacountrybecomingmorefundamentalbythehour,Mariette’sstatuelooksstrangelyoutofplace,arelicofacolonialpastEgyptianswouldhavepreferredtodowithout. The gardens at the entrance of the Museum are full of pharaonic relics, whichwouldreceiveprideofplaceanywhereelse.There isnomoreroominsidethebuildingsomany statues and sarcophagi are left to themercyof the city’s terriblepollution and thegropingfingersof thousandsof tourists.Ontheeastsideof theMuseumisa localschool,wheretwosarcophagiserveasschoolbenchesandathirdasarubbishbin.I walked through the main hall and made my way to the pyramidion (benben) ofAmenemhetIII’spyramid.Thisisdatedtoc.1850BCandoncestoodontopoftheking’snowcrumbledpyramidatDashour.1Itismadeofhighlypolishedblackgraniteandhastwolinesof inscriptions around its base. These, as well as thewinged disc and eyes of the Horussymbol,includethefigureofOsiris-Sahu(Orion)withastarinhisoutstretchedhand.BeforeenteringtheeastgallerywhichcontainstheOldKingdomrelics, Icameacrossastatueof

Menkaura,builderof the thirdpyramidofGiza.Thoughsmall in size, it isbeautifullycutfromgreenschist.Thekingseemstoradiateapowerfulauthorityandastrangeintensityoffeeling,verycharacteristicofOldKingdomstatuaryart.Menkauraispresentedoneachsidebyagoddess;bothdisplayanoddsenseoftendernessmingledwithprideinthewaytheyholdon toMenkaura’sarms.Clearly, suchkingswerenot the tyrants theyare sometimesmadeoutbutwereregardedasdeifiedrulerstobelovedandglorified.Passing into the famous Room 42 which contains many Fourth Dynasty relics, Iimmediately sawthesplendidstatueofKhafra;builderof the secondpyramid.This is cutfromasingleblockofblackdiorite,agranitestonewhich isextremelyhardtowork.Yetthestatueissofinelypolishedthatitlookslikemetal;itisconsideredbysomeasoneoftheworld’s great works of art. The sculptor who worked the stone must have been theMichelangeloofhistime;howhesculpteddioritetosuchperfectionwithonlycoppertoolsremains a puzzle. Khafra sits on a throne, his face radiating both authority and love,depending fromwhich side youobserve it.His head is embracedby the openwings of aHorus hawk which rests on Khafra’s shoulders. I felt that even the ornate and beautifulrelicsfromTutankhamun’stombdidnothavesuchhauntingbeauty.I walked around the gallery taking in as many impressions as I could, then my eyescaughtsomethingelse:alargeposteronthenorthwall—anaerialphotographoftheGizapyramids.Thetagindicatedthat ithadbeentakenbytheEgyptianair force,probablyinthe1950s,andwasthefirstaerialviewIhadseenfromdirectlyabovetheGizasite.Beforelooking at this poster, I had not paidmuch attention to the curious offset ofMenkaura’spyramidfromthesouth-westalignmentofthetwolargerpyramids.Butnow,lookingfromhighupoverthesite,itstuckoutlikeanout-of-plumbframeonawall.Ihadworkedasasetting-out building engineer a few years before,2 andmy eyeswere trained to focus onsuchanomaliesinsitelayouts.ThepyramidofMenkaura,Ifelt,wasnotquitewhereitoughttobe.IaskedtheguardifIcouldtakeaphotographoftheposterandgotasmileandnod,with the usualmilitary style salutewhich indicated bakshish was in order. I was using ablack-and-white filmwitha fast50mm lensonmyoldOlympus. I raised thecameraandclickedonlyonce.Thisidlesnapshotwastochangethecourseofmylife.The short holiday over, I returned to work in Saudi Arabia. In Riyadh I had the filmdevelopedandorderedseverallargecopiesoftheaerialphotographoftheGizapyramids.Iwas intriguedby theoffsetofMenkaura’spyramidandwanted to try to solve the riddle.MostofmyfriendsinSaudiwereintheconstructionindustry—civilengineers,architects,planners—andIfeltthattheiropinionmighthelp.Myaimwastoseeifwecouldagreeonthereasonsfortheoddlayoutplanofthethreepyramids.

12.AnalysisoftheGizaLayoutPlan

As I had thought, most of those who looked at the photograph made the sameobservation:thethreepyramidswereeachsetalongtheirownmeridian(north-south)axesandeveryonenoticedthesouth-westdiagonalalongwhichthetwolargerpyramidsareset.Theyagreedthatthisindicatedaunifiedplan.ThencametheconfusionIhadanticipated:theywonderedwhythethirdpyramidwassomuchsmallerthantheothertwo,and,evenmorepuzzling,whyitwasslightlyoffseteastofthesouth-westdiagonallinewhichlinkedthetwolargerpyramids.AllagreedthatthesizeandoffsetoftheMenkaurapyramidhadbeenadeliberatechoicebythearchitect.Thequestionwaswhy?

IIAnArchitecturalPlan

I decided to give copies of the picture to another group of friends not involved inconstructionwork,butwithsomeunderstandingofanartisticorapoeticnature.Iwantedtosee if theywouldask thesamequestions.This time,however, I traced inblack inkthesouth-westdiagonallinewhichlinkedthetwolargerpyramids,andextendedthelinetotheMenkaura pyramid to show the curious offset. I also provided them with the assumedsequenceofbuilding:Khufu(CheopswiththeGreatPyramid),thenKhafra(Chephrenwiththe second pyramid) and Menkaura (Mycerinos with the smaller third pyramid). I waslistening forquestionsas towhythis lastpyramidwasmuchsmallerandwasoffset fromthesouth-westaxisoftheothertwolargerones.Therepliesconfirmedwhattheothergrouphaddeduced:thesizeandoffsetofMenkaura’spyramidseemedadeliberatechoicebythearchitect.Thisgroup,however,wasmoreconcernedtodiscoverwhyMenkaura’spyramidwas so much smaller. I dished out the standard reply: Menkaura probably was short ofresources.Theywerenotsatisfied,norwasI,butitwasasgoodanexplanationasany.Yetonwhatevidencedidthislack-of-resourceshypothesisrest?AsfarasIcouldmakeout,therewasnone.EgyptologiststhinkthatMenkauraruledforjustaslongashistwopredecessorsatGizaandwasdescribedasanequal toKhufuandKhafra,hiseternalcronies. Iofferedanotherstandardanswer:Menkaurawasinahurry,sohebuiltasmallerpyramid.AgainIhadtoagreethattherewasreallynoevidenceforthisconclusion.Thepyramidmusthavetaken several years to build— seven to ten years on conservative estimates3— so howcouldMenkaurahavebeeninahurry?Washeasickman?Againnoevidence.Hisstatuesshowhimashealthyandstrong.Isawthepointthatthissecondgroupwastryingtomake:whicheverwayyoulookedat

it,itdidn’tmakesenseforMenkauratohavesettledforamuchsmallerpyramid.Hemostlikelyhadthesameautocraticpowerandresourcesashis immediatepredecessors. Inanycase, theconceptofeconomywasalientothem;resourcesmeantplentyofablemenandplentyoflimestonequarries,bothofwhichMenkauracertainlyhad.Hispredecessorswouldalso have left much behind to make his task easier: ready open quarries, tools,accommodationforworkers,sledgesandsoforth(whatconstructioncompaniestodaycallthe ‘preliminaries’), and a wealth of experience gained by trial and error.4 Yet evenconsidering the unlikely possibility that Menkaura did not have the same power and

resources as Khufu and Khafra, why should he build an ‘inferior’ pyramid at Giza toadvertisethisfacttoposterity?Therewasplentyoflandelsewhere.Menkaura’spyramidisbynomeanssmall,buttheothersaretwiceastallandtentimesasmassive,reducingittothestatusofdwarf.Whywouldhehavesettledforthis?Onethingwascertain:Menkauraknewthathispyramidwasgoingtobemuchsmaller

than the other two at Giza. Such monuments have to be planned well in advance, andMenkauramusthaveapprovedtheplan.Whyapproveaplanwhichwouldmakehimlookinferior tohis twopredecessors?Whicheverwaywe lookedat it, therewere flaws in theexplanations.Perhapswewerelookingatthispyramid,indeedanypyramid,inthewrongway.Wewerelookingateachpyramidindividuallywhenweshouldhavebeenlookingatthemaspartofaunifiedproject.Allthatwehadtodowastothinkofthepyramidsnotasbelongingtothisorthatpharaoh,butasaconglomerateofmonumentsdevisedasaunifiedplan. What was more likely is that the pharaonic state saw itself as custodian of theMemphiteNecropolis as awhole, and that the chain of pyramids therewere seen not asindividualtombsbutasanensembleexpressingthesupremeideologiesoftheirrebirthcult.AllthepyramidstogethermadeuptheNecropolisorlandofthedead;moreaccurately,theymadeuptheDuat,the‘placewhereOsiris-Sahuis’.ButhowwastheNecropolislinkedtothestarsofOsiris?ReturningtotheGizagroup, Isawthatthequestionshadtoberephrased:Whydidthe

master plan specify two large pyramids and one smaller?Why offset the smallest to theeast? Now the answer became obvious: these ‘anomalies’ were not anomalies at all butconstraints imposed in the planning, design and layout of a master plan which werereflected in the third pyramid. The next question was, therefore, were these constraintsimposedbyengineeringorsiteproblemsorbyreligiousconsiderations?Trainedinconstructionplanningoflayout,wheretheclient’sbriefandthecontoursand

areaofthesite,amongotherfactors,imposedconstraintsonsizeandlocationofbuildings,Iknewbyexperiencethatmanythingswhichlaterappearasanomaliestoothers,areoftenplanned aspects of the design. Even thoughno answerwas as yet evident as towhy thethird pyramid was relatively small and offset from the south-west alignment of the twoothers,wecouldapply theprocessof strategic thinking in reverse: tracebackwhatcouldhaveimposedthosetwocriteriaonthelayoutoftheGizapyramids.

Therehadbeen somethingelseabout theaerialphotographwhichnowbegan to intrigueme,somethingimportantthoughitwasnotactuallyinthephotograph:theRiverNile.Notfar to theeast sideof theGizaplateauwas the lushNileValleyandbeyond it thecityofCairo.The river flows fromthe south tobranchoff justpastCairo into thewideDeltaofLower Egypt. The Nile’s course, as French Egyptologist Jean-Philippe Lauer points out,‘flowsquiteexactlytowardsthenorth’.5Inshort,apartfromthenaturalbendsandkinksonitscourse,theriverflowismeridional.LaueralsoshowedthatallmastabatombsfromtheFirstDynastyonwardswereorientatedroughlysouth-north,paralleltotheaxisoftheNile.From theFourthDynasty, ‘theorientationofpyramids reachedaprecision thatwas trulyextraordinary’.6 How, asked Lauer, did the ancient builders achieve such accurate south-north alignments? He believed the answer was that the ancients made use of stellar

observations at themeridian transit of certain stars.Others before him, such as Edwardsand the astronomerZbynekZäba, agreedwith Lauer’s hypothesis.7 Zäbahad also arguedthat thepyramidbuildersnotonlyusedstars foralignmentbut that theymightalsohavebeenawareofprecession.8

IknewthateachpyramidatGizawassetsothatthesidesofitssquarefacedacardinalpoint. This meant that the monument was, intentionally or not, a fixed compass, easilydirecting due east, north,west or south depending onwhich side of the square base onestood.Despitethis,themainaxisofthepyramidranalongitsmeridian,especiallylookingfromnorthtosouth.Thisisobviousbecausetheentrancetothepyramidwasalwaysonthenorthface,soavisitorproceededsouthwardintoit.Themeridianwasthereforetheprimarycriterionfortheoriginaldesignandlayoutof thegroup.Yetherewasanother ‘anomaly’:the three pyramids of Giza, each set on a meridian, do not align together on a mainmeridianwhenseenasagroupbutare inalignmentalong their southwestaxis,with thethirdpyramidoffsettotheeast.Whatinducedthearchitectstoproducethisoddlayout?The first factor to considerwas thegroundconditionsof theGizaplateau, to see if thegeologyandcontoursof the sitehad forced thisanomalousdecision.But Iknew theGizaplateauwell,andtherewasnothingthatwouldhavepreventedtheplannersfromplacingthe threemonuments in a row along amainmeridian axis. Indeed, thiswould probablyhavebeentheeasierchoice.9Placingthethreepyramidsinanorth-southaxiswouldhavemeanttwomajorquarriestotheeastandwestoftheproject,whichcouldhavebeenusedthroughout the duration of the works. It would also, of course, have facilitated thealignmentproblem,withtheneedtosetonlyonepyramid,thefirst,alongameridian.Thealignmentoftheothertwowouldmerelyhavemeantprojectingthelinefarthersouth.Intheabsenceofmajorengineeringconstraints,therewasreallyonlyoneanswertotheapparently illogical choice: the constraints or criteria which had determined the layoutprinciplewerebasednotonengineeringlogisticsbutonreligiousconsiderations.Butwhatcouldthesebe?Mostof thearchitect friendsIconsultedagreedonasymbolicratherthanpracticalreasonfortheplanoftheGizagroup.Theypointedoutthatmostmonuments—and especially intensely geometrical ones such as the pyramids — were charged withsymbolicconnotations.Thisoftenappliedtotheplacewheretheyweresited,itsorientationandrelativepositiontothegeographyofthearea.Inthiscase,theobviousgeographyandalignmenttoconsiderwasthecourseoftheNile.ThearchitectspointedoutthatthesocalledHistoricalAxisofParis,whichextendsfromtheLouvretothenewdistrictofLaDefenseandgoesthroughtheChampsElyseés,wasorientatedrelativetotheflowoftheSeineadjacenttotheLouvre.10SimilarlyinWashingtonDC,themainaxisofPennsylvaniaAvenuewhichtheFrench architect, L’Enfant, had aligned, constituted anotherhistorical axis linking theWhiteHousewiththeCapitol; it, too, tookaccountof thedirectionof flowof the ‘sacred’PotomacRiver.11ThepyramidbuildersofMemphisundoubtedlyconsideredthemeridionalflowoftheNilewhenplanningtheMemphiteNecropolis.ButatGizathegeneralalignmentofthethreepyramidswasnotmeridionalbutthroughasouth-westaxis.Someexplanationhadtobefound.Themonumentswereobviouslyofsuchimportancetoreligious ideologies that any explanation had to correlatewith the supreme belief in therebirthofthekingswhocommissionedtheproject.

A common denominatorwas clearly at play here, yet it seemed to escape engineeringlogistics.Someotherscientificdisciplinewasrequired.Theobviousastronomical layoutofeach pyramid, based on stellar observations, suggested that we should consider thealignmentsandlayoutsofthepyramidsfromtheviewpointofastronomyaswell.Idecideditwastimetotakeagoodlonglookatthestars.

6GIZAANDTHEBELTOFORION

ManisafallengodwhorememberstheHeavens

—Lamartine,Meditations

Letthembeforsignsandforseasons,andfordaysandyears

—Genesisi,14

SeekhimthatmakeththePleidesandOrion

—Amosv,8

ITheRiseofOrion

ItwasearlyNovember1983and,asisusualatthattimeofyear,thenightskiesincentralSaudiArabiawereremarkablyclear.Thiswasthetimeofweek-endcampingbyexpatriatesin Riyadh in the golden dunes about twenty kilometres outside the sprawling westernsuburbsofthissedatecity.Mywife,Michele,hadpackedtheusualgear:alcohol-freebeer,plentyofdrinkingwater,foodandthesleeping-bags.Mydaughter,Candice,wasonlyfouryearsold,butalreadyaseasoneddeserttraveller.Twoothercoupleswiththeirchildrenjoinedus.Theideawastoselectahighdunesothatthekidscouldplayontheclean,golden-colouredsandwhiletheadultsrelaxedoverhotcoffeeandanelaboratebarbecue.Wewereall lookingforwardtoescapingfromthehardworkandnoplaymoodofRiyadhandthestiflingatmosphereofadeeply Islamic society. Night on the dunes can be very beautiful. Immediately after thespectaculardisplayofthesettingsuncamethedarkness,withthecanopyofastar-spangledskyalmostatarm’slength.Lyinginmysleeping-bag,IcountedthestarsuntilIfellasleep.For some reason Iwoke up at 3 a.m., perhaps subconsciouslymotivated.Oncemore Igazedup,atfirstunsureofwhereIwas.Highinthesouthernsky,archingoverandalmostmarkingforusthecurveofthecelestialequator,wasaluminousbandoflight,resplendentagainsttheinkyblackofspace.ItwastheMilkyWayanditlookedlikeagreatriverinthesky.On itswest ‘bank’wasaspatterofbeautiful stars,brighter thanall theotherswhichsurroundedthem.IrecognisedthemimmediatelyastheconstellationofOrionandwenttowakeupmy friendJean-Pierre,who sharedmy interest inastronomyandwhosepassionforsailinghadnecessitatedhislearningtonavigateusingthestars.Silently,hecamewithmeto theedgeof thedune.Lookingat theverybrightstarnow

highoverthehorizon,heletmeintooneofthesecretsofastro-navigation.‘Doyouknow’,he asked, ‘how to find the rising point of Sirius once Orion has risen?’ I shrugged myshoulders in ignorance. ‘Well, first,’ he said, pointing in the direction of the ‘river bank’,‘youmust find the threestarsofOrion’sBelt.These three formarowandyouextend thealignmentdownwardstothehorizon.Whenthebeltstarshaverisenabouttwentydegrees—roughlytheheightofanopenhandatarm’slengthandwithfingersoutstretched—theywill be followed by Sirius at the place on the horizon where they point.’ He was nowpointing towards the bright star on the horizon, which we both knew was Sirius. Then,almostasanafterthought,heutteredthesewords:‘Actually,thethreestarsofOrion’sBeltarenotperfectlyaligned. Ifyou lookcarefullyyouwill see that thesmallestof them, theoneatthetop,isslightlyoffsettotheeastandtheyareslantedinasouth-westerlydirectionrelativetotheaxisoftheMilkyWay.Alsonoticehow…’AtthispointIcuthimshort.HegavemeapuzzledlookasIquotedthewordsIrememberedonlytoowellfromthePyramidTexts: ‘TheDuathasgraspedtheking’shandat theplacewhereOrionis…[PT1717].OOsirisKing…BetakeyourselftotheWaterway…mayastairwaytotheDuatbesetforyouattheplacewhereOrionis…[PT1717].’Bynowtheothershadwokenupandjoinedus.‘Je tiens l’affaire!’,1 I cried excitedly. I had deliberately chosen the words uttered byChampollionwhenherealisedhehaddecodedthesecretsofEgyptianhieroglyphicwritingandIhopedthatsomeoneinthegroup,afewofwhomIhadinvolvedintheaerialphotopuzzleofGiza,wouldcatchon.Fromtheirexpressionsitwasobvioustheyhadnot.Jean-Pierre kept on looking intensely atOrion. ‘Whathaveyou seen…?’, he inquired,amused.‘ThethreepyramidsofGiza’,Isaidcalmly.‘The what …?’ asked Michele. She had heard endlessly about the star religion of theEgyptiansinthoselastfewmonths.‘Isthisajoke…?’‘No, Iamquiteserious,’and Ipointed toOrion’sBelt.Thusbeganasagawhichwas torunforanothertenyears.

IIRostau:GatewaytotheStars

The idea that the Ancient Egyptian Duat, or heaven, had a counterpart on the land issomethingEgyptologistsknowfromthemanyfunerarytextsextantinthemuseumsoftheworld. The location, however, was always thought to be arbitrary, with no specificcorrelationintended.IknewthatwhatIwassuggestingwasquitedifferent.IreadthatintheNewKingdom theDuat,or rather its entrance,was thought tobeatAbydos, thenanimportantcentreofOsirianworship.ButIhadalsofoundoutthatinthePyramidAgetheDuathaditscounterpartnearMemphis,andthat,inallperiods,theDuatwassaidtohaveacentralentranceorgateinaplacenamedRostau.2

I investigatedfurther,andwhatIcameupwithconfirmedwhatIhadstumbledonthatnightinthedesert.ThewaythethreestarswereslantedinrelationtotheaxisoftheMilkyWay,theoffsetofthesmallstarfromthealignmentofthetwobrighterones,thesouthern

shaft inCheops’spyramid targeted to thesevery starswhen thepyramidwasbuilt—allthiswas toomuchtobecoincidence.Yet, if Iwasright, somethingasobviousas thishadnot only escaped the attention of Egyptologists but had probably done so because of thesolarstampgiventothepyramids.Itwasnotaneasyconsensustobreak,sobeforerushingtoproclaimmyfindingstoEgyptologists,moreresearchwasrequired.ThenotionofRostauwas a starting point. If it could be shown that Rostau, the central gate of the Duat,correlated with the Giza necropolis, the central part of the Memphite-Duat, then weobviously had something. Naturally the deciding factor would be if other pyramids,especially those of the Fourth Dynasty, also correlated with other stars in the region ofOrion.Butfirstthingsfirst:whereorwhatwasRostau?Wallis-Budge, a former Keeper of Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum and a

prolificauthor,hadmadethestartlingcommentthatduringthePyramidAgetheMemphiteNecropoliscontainingthepyramidfieldswasknownastheDuatofSokarofMemphis.Thisgod Sokar, a man with a falcon’s head, was said to be the keeper of the MemphiteNecropolisand,evenmoreinterestingly,wascloselyidentifiedwithOsirisduringtheFourthDynasty.ThiswasconfirmedbyDrEdwardswhowrotethat‘bypyramidtimes,OsirishadbecomeidentifiedwithSokar,thegodoftheMemphitenecropolis…’3IalsodiscoveredthatinmanyfunerarytextsthecentreoftheDuatwascalledRostau.IntheShabakaTexts,4forexample, theMemphiteregion isdescribed: ‘This is the land…[of]…theburialplaceofOsirisintheHouseofSokar.’5

This prompted Selim Hassan to conclude that the centre of the Duat was not onlyidentifiedwithRostaubutwith‘thekingdomofOsirisinthetomb’.6IntheBookoftheTwoWays,whichcontainsfunerarytextsdatingfromtheMiddleKingdomperiod(c.2000BC),wearealsotoldthatRostauisthegatewaytothenecropolisandthatitgivesdirectaccesstotheDuat.Thedeceasedtellsus: ‘IhavepassedontheroadsofRostauonwaterandland;theseroadsarethoseofOsiris;theyareintheSky…’7

JaneSellers,whohasformanyyearsstudiedtheastronomyoftheEgyptiansinrelationtotheirtexts,writesthat‘theinsistenceintheBookoftheTwoWaysthatthetopographyoftheroadstoRostau,thoughinthesky,isonwaterandonland,hintsathowtheEgyptiansconceived of the heavens’. She also suggests that ‘the paths byway ofwater could havebeentheareawhichweknowastheMilkyWay’.8

Rostau is also mentioned in the Pyramid Texts in conjunction with the god Sokar (orSokar-Osiris): ‘ForIamSokarofRostau, IamboundforthePlacewheredwellsSokar…’[PT445].The ‘placewheredwellsSokar’was,of course, theMemphiteNecropolis,but itseemedalsotohaveanastral locationinthevicinityoftheMilkyWay.SowasRostauinthesky,thatisOrion’sBelt,tobecorrelatedwiththeGizapyramids?So far therewasgoodevidence thatRostau in the ‘placewheredwellsSokar’orSokar-

Osiris,wasanactualplaceonland,somewhereintheMemphiteNecropolis.ThisfittedtheviewofstudentsofEgyptiansymbolism,thatitwas‘vitaltothespiritofEgyptianreligionthat thesymbolismshouldbetwofold’, so thateveryaffairofmankindwasregardedasa‘repetitionof somemythicalhappening in the timeof the gods’.9 The Egyptians believedthat thegods, indeed the ‘wisdomgod’Thothhimself,hadbuilt theGizapyramidsduringthegoldenagewhengods livedonearth; the ideawas later impartedto theGreeks,who

alsosaidthatHermes,thenametheygaveThoth,hadbuiltthepyramids.10Iremembered,too,thatinthefamousWestcarPapyrusoftheNewKingdomthepyramidofKhufu,calledthe Horizon of Khufu, was linked to the sanctuary of Thoth, supposedly somewhere inHeliopolis.LookingatarecentlypublishedAtlasofAncientEgypt,11IwasamazedtofindthatRostau

wasnearorindeedatGiza:arealplaceintheMemphiteNecropolis,andtheapproximatelocationwas given as ‘southernGiza’. Indeed, Rundle Clark calls the god ‘Sokar of Giza’seeingthisplaceasbeingtheancientRostau.12ManyEgyptologistsrefertoRostauastheancient name of Giza. Goyon thought it was where the village of Giza is today,13 andRundleClarksaysthat‘Rosetau[sic][is]…themodernGiza,theburial-placeofMemphisand the home of a form of Osiris known as Sokar’.14 Miriam Lichtheim, an eminentphilologist at theUniversityofCalifornia, says thatRostauwas ‘thenecropolis ofGiza’15and Faulkner similarly identified it with the ‘necropolis of Giza or Memphis [and] laterextendedtomeantheotherworldingeneral’.16IntheMiddleKingdomandNewKingdomOsiris iscalledthe ‘augustgodinRostau’,17andit is implicit thatRostauwasregardedastheplaceofgreat ritualwhere the rebornpersoncan ‘go forth into theday’as ‘onewhofollowsthegod(Osiris)inhisprocessioninhisfestivalofRostau…herebeginthespellsoftheFieldsofOfferingsandspellsforgoingforthintotheday:ofcomingandgoingintherealmofthedead[Duat]…’18

ItwasclearthatitcouldbearguedthatRostauwasnotamythicalplacebutwasindeedGiza, and that itwas considered the gateway to theDuat region.What I nowneeded toconfirmwaswhether thecorrelationIcouldseebetweenthethreeGizapyramidsandthestarsofOrion’sBeltwaspartofalargerscheme.

IIITheCelestialRiver

As we have seen, the Pyramid Texts contain astronomical data in that they talk aboutobservationsmadeofOrion,ofSiriusandotherstarsintheregionoftheskytheEgyptianscalledtheDuat.WhatwasthrillingandevocativewasthewaythattheAncientEgyptianscorrelatedtheNilewiththe‘celestialriver’i.e.,theMilkyWay,andthiswasknownevenbytheGreeks. From the timeofHomer, theNilewas associatedwith themythical sky rivercalledeitherOkeanosorEridanus.TheHellenichistorian,A.B.Cook,wasof theopinionthatEridanus(whichtodayisafaintconstellationformedbyastringofstarsjoiningRigeltoAlchermar)was ‘at the outset none other than theMilkyWay’, and that in pre-Greektimes,Okeanos‘simplymeanttheGalaxy’i.e.theMilkyWay.CookalsodrewattentiontoastatementbyHyginusthattheriverEridanuswasidentifiedwiththeNile,andthatitwasalso often called Okeanos (‘Eridanus: hunc alii Nilum, complures etiam Oceanum essedixerunt’).19

The identification of the Nile with Eridanus or Okeanos seems to have been commonknowledge in the classical world. Even Diodorus reported that ‘the Egyptians considerOkeanostobetheirriverNile,onwhichtheirgodswereborn’,20andthechroniclerEusebiussays‘theEgyptiansbelievethattheriverNileistheoceanfromwhichtheraceofgodshas

takenbirth’.21MuchlaterEridanuswasidentifiedwiththeRiverPoinItaly,andsometimeswith the Rhine and even the Rhone, but as R. H. Allen remarks, ‘none of thesecomparatively northern streams suit the stellar position of Eridanus, for it is a southernconstellation, and it would seem that its earthly counterpart ought to be found in acorrespondingquarter.’22

It is not hard to seewhy aNilotic peoplewith a sky religion should see a correlationbetweentheirriverandtheMilkyWay.JustastheNiledividesEgyptintotworegions,sotheMilkyWaydividesthesky. It isquiteprobablethatthisrelationshipbetweentheNileand the MilkyWay was what first gave the Nile dwellers the idea that a cosmic Egyptexistedinthatregionoftheskywhichtheirsoulscouldreachaftertheirearthlyexistence.WallisBudgeexplainsthisratherwell:

TheEgyptians…fromtheearliestdays…depictedtothemselvesamaterialheavenwhereinIslesoftheBlestwere lavedby thewatersof theNile…others again lived in imaginationon thebanksof theHeavenlyNile,whereontheybuiltcities;anditseemsasiftheEgyptiansneversucceededinconceivingaheavenwithoutaNile…23

Reading this, I was not surprised that the Pyramid Texts also tell us of an important‘WindingWaterway’intheeasternskywhichcloselyresemblestheNile,withitsown‘greatflood’and‘fields’ofreedsorrushes:

‘Mayyouliftme[thedeadking]andraisemetotheWindingWaterway,mayyousetmeamongthegods,theimperishablestars…’[PT1759]

‘Befirm,Oking,ontheundersideoftheskywiththeBeautifulStarupontheBendoftheWindingWaterway…’[PT2061]

‘I have come tomywaterwayswhich are in the bank of the Flood of the Great Inundation, to the place ofcontentment…whichisintheHorizon…’[PT508]

‘TheWindingWaterwayisflooded,theFieldsofRushesarefilledwithwater,andI[thedeadking]amferriedoverthereontoyondereasternsideofthesky,tothePlacewherethegodsfashionedme,whereIwasbornnew[reborn]andyoung…Lo,Istandupasastarwhichisontheundersideofthesky…mysisterisSothis,myoffspringistheMorningStar…’[PT343–57]

ItwasnowlookinglikelythatIhadstumbleduponthetruemysteryofthepyramids.TheDuat,which stretchedalong the ‘west bank’ of theMilkyWay corresponded to— indeedwasseenasamirrorimageof-thatregionwenowcalltheMemphiteNecropolis.Itwas,ofcourse,notanecropolisatallintheGreekorwesternsenseoftheword;rathertheElysianFields, the earthly counterpart of the heavenly abode of the king-gods of Egypt — theEgypt,thatis,ofthePyramidAge.

IVDevelopmentoftheOrionCorrelationTheory

The evidence was now mounting that the Ancient Egyptians viewed the area of theMemphiteNecropolisasaterrestrialimageoftheheavenlyDuat.ThroughoutantiquitytheMilkyWaywaslookeduponasacelestialriveranalogoustotheNileandinGizawehad,quite literally, Orion’s Belt on the ground. What I now needed to check was what thePyramidTextshadtosayconcerningthepyramids,notasmetaphorsforareligiousideaorsymbolbutasmaterialstructures.ItwasthenthatIdiscoveredsomethingverycurious:thePyramidTextsmakefewdirectstatementsconcerningthepyramidsthemselves,andtheseareallhuddledtogetherinonelongpassage,knownasUtterance600.InthisUtteranceRa,thesungod,offeredhisbenevolentprotectiontothemonumentinquestion.AsheadoftheHeliopolitanpantheonandancestralfatherofthegods,includingOsiris,thiswasnotunexpected,muchaswemightaskfortheprotectionofGodtheFatherwhile believing in our resurrection through Jesus Christ. Ra, the sun god, might indeedprotect thepyramid and thewholeNecropolis, but itwas throughOsiris that rebirthwasdeemed to be achieved. Finally in Utterance 600 I found what I was looking for: anunequivocalstatementthatconnectedthekingandhispyramidconstructiontoOsiris.Thestatementwas an instruction to his son, the newHorus-king, to proceed to the pyramidfields:‘OHorus,this(departed)kingisOsiris,thisPyramidofhisisOsiris,thisconstructionofhisisOsiris,betakeyourselftoit…’[PT1657].Tounderstandthisbetter,weshouldrememberthatversionsof thePyramidTextshavebeenfoundinnotonebutseveralpyramids.24ItthereforemakessensetosupposethatthisUtterance ismeant not only for one specific king but serves as a general liturgy for alldeparted kings. In the plural Utterance 600 reads: ‘O Horus, these (departed) kings areOsiris, these Pyramids of theirs areOsiris, these constructions of theirs areOsiris, betakeyourselftothem…’[PT1657].I at last understood that we were being told, in plain language, that the pyramidconstructions were to be considered Osiris. As I already knew that the celestial form ofOsiriswasSahu,andthatthisfigurecorrespondedwithourmodernconstellationofOrion,the pyramids were indeed Orion too. The text writers could not have made their intentplainerormorestraightforward,anditsubstantiatedmytheorythatthethreepyramidsofGizaweresymbolsofOrion’sBelt.Mynext stepwas to find furthervisualevidence. Ihadagoodphotographof the threestars of Orion’s Belt and was able to place it against the aerial shot of the three Gizapyramids.Thecorrelationwasstunning.Notonlydidthelayoutofthepyramidsmatchthestarswithuncannyprecisionbut the intensityof the stars, shownby their apparent size,correspondedwiththeGizagroup:therewerethreestars,threepyramids,threeOsiris-Orionkings.AsIreadthewordOsirisIbegantoconjuretheskyimageofOrion,the‘soulofOsiris’.Utterance600wasdealingwithanafterliferitual,notsomuchwiththeembalmedcorpsesof dead kings but with their souls, and more specifically their astral souls which joinedOsiris-OrioninthecelestialDuat.Osirisinthiscasewas,ofcourse,alsoOsiris-Orion.Thus,the passage would read: ‘O Horus, these (star souls of departed) kings are Orion-Osiris,

these pyramids of theirs are Orion-Osiris, these constructions of theirs are Orion-Osiris,betakeyourselftothem…’Suddenly I realised that not only the three Giza pyramids but others too might havestellar positions in the Memphite Necropolis. Now that the Giza group identified withOrion’sBelt,itcouldbeusedasareferenceordatumpointfromwhichtherelativepositionsofotherstarsoftheDuatcouldbelocated.ThetwogreatpyramidsofDashourforexample,andthosewhichhadbeenlocatedatAbuRuwashandZawyatAlAryanwhichflankGiza,might not these also correlate to stars of the Duat? Surely all Fourth Dynasty pyramidswouldhavebeeninvolvedinthemasterplantoforgethesoulofOsirisonthesacredlandofMemphis?Irecalledexcitedlythattwoofthepyramidsinquestion,thoseofDjedefraatAbuRuwashandNebkaatZawyatAlAryan, bore starnames: ‘Djedefra is a SehetuStar’and‘NebkaisaStar’.25A‘SehetuStar’meantastaroftheDuat.Whatstarmightthatbe?Thetemptationtoinvestigatefurtherwascompelling.IlaidoutamapoftheMemphisareaandcompareditwithapictureoftheregionoftheskycontainingOrion.CarefullyaligningtheGizagrouppyramidswiththestarsofOrion’sBelt,IsawthatthepyramidofDjedefraatAbuRuwashcorrespondedwiththestarSaiphorOrion’s ‘leftfoot’andthatatZawyatalAryanrepresentedBellatrixinhis ‘rightshoulder’.Therewere no knownpyramids in locations tomatch other stars such as Betelgeuse andRigel,soIcouldonlyconcludethatthesehadneverbeenbuiltorthattheyhadlongsincebeen demolished and had disappeared under the sands of theWestern desert. Given theruinedstateof thepyramidsofZawyatalAryanandAbuRuwash, this isnotanunlikelysupposition.Fiveof thesevenbright starsofOrionwere thusaccounted for in theFourthDynastypyramids.ThepyramidsofDashour,however,posedaproblem.Theywerenotpartof‘our’modernOrion figure, and itwas onlymuch later that Iworked outwhere they fitted.Whatwasclearatthisstagewasthatwhatwenowcall‘theOrioncorrelationtheory’hadgeneratedamomentumofitsown.It now seemed like the right time to approach the experts and see what they thoughtaboutit.

7THESTARCORRELATIONTHEORY

Ithinkyouhavemadeaveryconvincingcase…

—I.E.S.Edwards,KeeperofEgyptianAntiquitiesattheBritishMuseum(1954–1974),lettertoauthor,October1984

Inmyopinionyourtheoryisnotcapableofindependentverification…

—T.G.H.James,KeeperofEgyptianAntiquities(1974–1984),lettertoauthor,December1983

ITheExpertsSpeak

Late in 1983 I prepared a brief paper with a few hand sketches and posted the OrionCorrelationTheory,as Inowcalled it, to theBritishMuseum. Iwas still living inRiyadhand I knewhownotoriously slow themailwas to Europe. The reply camemuch quickerthan I thought. It was a letter from Professor T. G. H. James, then Keeper of EgyptianAntiquities.ThispositionhadpreviouslybeenoccupiedbyDrI.E.S.Edwardsfrom1954to1974,andmanyothereminentnames,suchasSirWallisBudgeandSamuelBirch,hadheldit.Dr James’s reply leftmenonplussed:he toldme thatwhilehe thought thatmy theoryfitted some of the facts, it would be difficult to accept it as an explanation for theconstructionandplacingoftheGizapyramids.HepointedoutthatthetheorycouldnotbeappliedtothetwopyramidsatDashourandmaintainedthatthereisnorealevidencefromantiquitytosupportit.I was disappointed by the apparent lack of enthusiasm. I agreed with him that manyquestionsstillneededtobeanswered,suchasthematterofthetwopyramidsofSneferuatDashour, but Iwas takenabackbyhis seemingdismissal of the theory. Iwonderedwhatwould constitute ‘independent verification’ and why he thought that ‘there is no goodevidence from antiquity to support’my theory?Were not the statements in the PyramidTexts, theBadawyarticleson theshafts inCheops’spyramid thatpointed toOrion’sBelt,and now the layout plan of Giza, ‘good evidence’? At least sufficiently compelling towarrantacloserlookatthetheory?Ihadobviouslynotstrucktherightchords,andcouldonlyassumethatDrJames’sletterwasatactfulwayofsayingthatthecorrelationbetweenthethreeGizapyramidsandthethreestarsofOrion’sBeltwasnomorethancoincidence.My experience had taught me that collections of coincidences do not occur easily.Coicidence is awordwe all usewhenwe cannot explainwhy there is a convergence ofcertaineventsandfacts.Whatiscoincidencetosome,isnotsotothosewhounderstandthe

links between the events and the facts. The facts before uswere not remote or detachedfrom one another. The Pyramid Texts, compiled in the Fifth Dynasty, were surelyexpoundingeventswitnessedduring theFourthDynasty,which immediatelypreceded thecompilation of thePyramidTexts. These, aswehave seen, told us in nouncertain termsthatthedepartedOsiris-kingbecameastarintheconstellationofOsiris-Orion.ThentherewastheshaftintheCheopspyramidwhichBadawyandTrimbleagreedpointedtoOrion’sBelt when the pyramid was built. There was also the anomalous size and offset ofMenkaura’spyramid,whichcouldonlybeexplainedbyacorrelationplanwithOrion’sBelt.Allthis—andtherewouldbemore—was‘goodevidence’tome,especiallywhenweweretryingtosolveamysterymorethan4400yearsold.Indeed,consideringtheremotenessoftheevent,wewereluckytohaveanyshredofevidenceatall.InSeptember1984I tookashortholidayinEngland.Assoonas IarrivedinLondon, Idecided to pay a visit to theBritishMuseum,meetDr James and seewhat else could bedone to persuade him to take the matter up seriously. Dr James, however, was notavailable.Ayoungassistant,IthinkitwasDrCarolAndrews,wasveryhelpfulandwhenshe saw that the subjectmatter concerned thepyramids, sheadvisedme that itwouldbebetterhandledbyDrEdwards,thepreviousKeeperofEgyptianAntiquities.Althoughhehadretiredin1974,hewasstillveryactiveinthefield,andwascurrentlythevice-presidentoftheEgyptianExploration Society.Therewasnoquestion thatEdwardswas seenbymostscholarsasthesupremeauthorityonthesubjectofEgyptianpyramids,andhisviewswouldnotonlybemorevaluable,butwouldcarrymoreweight.ItwasagreedthatIshouldsendtherelevantpapersas soonaspossible,whichwould thenbe forwarded toDrEdwards. IpostedthesefromFranceaweeklater.HisreplyarrivedinRiyadhinOctober1984,andtheviewsheexpressedcertainlydiffered from thoseofhis successor.The letter is reproducedwithhiskindpermission:1

16October1984

DearMrBauval,

Thankyouforyourletterdated8thSeptember,whichreachedmeafterbeingpostedinFrancelastweek.

Letme say that I foundyour astronomical observations very interesting, and I thinkyouwill see from theenclosed article, which I wrote for the Dows Dunham Festschrift four years ago,2 that I am very much inagreementwithyourcontentionthatthestarsinOrion’sBeltwereanimportantelementintheorientationoftheGreatPyramid.IthinkyouhavemadeoutaveryconvincingcasethattheothertwopyramidsatGizawerealsoinfluencedbyit.Ihavesentaneweditionofmybook(ThePyramidsofEgypt)onthepyramidstothepublishers(VikingPressandPenguinBooks)anditisabouttogoouttotheprinter.Accordingtopresentexpectations,itwillbeoutnextsummeranditwillembodythesubstanceoftheenclosedarticle.

DrEdwardsthenenteredabriefcommentaryonmyideasrelatedtothemeasurementsoftheGreatPyramid,feelingthat,withsuchageometricshape,amathematiciancouldmakeit fitanynumberofdifferentmeasurements.He thengavehisownconclusionsabout thestellarconnotationswhichIhadrevealedtohim:

ThepositionofOsirisintheFourthDynastyisstillveryuncertain.SincetheearliestPyramidTextsdatefromtheendoftheFifthDynastytheydonotprovidemuchevidentialhelp.

InyourcontentionthatthepyramidsareintendedtorepresentstarsIwonderwhetherthetruthisnotthatthe

pyramidswere intended to enable the king to reach the stars. Inmy view thiswas the purpose of the step-pyramidsandthetruepyramids,whichgenerallyembodiedastep-pyramid,wereintendedtoenablethekingtoreachboththesolarandastralheavens.

Iam,

Yourstruly,

I.E.S.Edwards

Though we differed on some interpretations, Dr Edwards’s’ view that I had presented aconvincingcasewasveryencouragingandmuchappreciatedatthisstage.Iwasbeginningtofeel isolated,anditwasgoodtodiscoverthatanauthorityaseminentasEdwardswashighly inagreementwithmycontentionthatthestars inOrion’sBelthadplayedamajorroleintheorientationoftheGreatPyramidanditstwocompanionsatGiza.Afewmonthslater,inJanuary1985,IreceivedaletterfromDrJaromirMalek,director

oftheGriffithInstituteofOxfordUniversityattheAshmoleanMuseum.DrMaleksurprisedmebysayingthathehad‘nospecialastronomicalormathematicalknowledgeandthefewcommentsIcanmakeareofapurelyEgyptologicalnature’.

… I wholeheartedly agree with you that astronomical observations and mathematical calculations played animportantpartinthedesign,construction,andperhapsevensitingofEgyptianpyramids…[and]…inthepaperitself,IwouldbepreparedtoconsiderseriouslytheobservationthattheGizapyramidswerepositionedorsitedinamannerastorepresentthethreestarsofOrion.3

Healsocommentedonthe‘civilcalendar’ofAncientEgypt,andfeltthatmy‘putativedate’foritsintroductionwasincorrect.Theseitems,though,werenotanimportantaspectofmytheoryandhadbeenthesubjectofacademicdebateformanydecades.DrMalekthensaid,in relation tomy suggestion that other pyramids should be investigated in the light of astellarcorrelationsiting:‘Ialsofullyagreethattheothergroupsofpyramidswouldhavetobeexaminedbearingthisinmind,andthis,inmyopinion,istheonlypathonecantaketomakesomeprogressinthematter.’Dr Malek made a final comment on the stellar correlation theory: ‘To write that “the

ancientEgyptianssawthelandofEgyptasbeingan‘image’ofthesky”isoverstatingthecase.Tobasefurthertheoriesonitisunsafe,tosaytheleast.’

I had now to let this be. For the next year I was totally occupied with more pressingconcernsrelatedtomy‘real’workandmypersonallife.ThecompanyIwasworkingwithwasstartinganewprojectinSaudiArabiaandtherewasmuchtokeepmefullyoccupied.Also,mywifeMicheleandIwereplanningtosettleinAustraliaafterourlongstayinSaudiArabia.AnewmemberofthefamilyhadarrivedinDecember1984,oursonJonathan,anditwastimetolookforamorecongenialplacetoraisethechildren.Sydneywaswheretherestofmy familyhadgoneafterourmini-exodus fromEgypt in1967, and it seemed thelogicalplacetoconsider.IdidgotoEnglandinNovember1985andmetDrEdwardsinhishomenearOxford.A

most charming and affable man in his late seventies, Dr Edwards was on his way toLondon,butwehadabriefconversationonthenewstellarideasinthePyramidTextsand

thepyramids.EdwardswasoftheopinionthatscholarshadneglectedtheseTextsformoreexciting subjects, and agreed that the stellar element in the Texts had been ignored.However,hereiteratedhisviewthatthetruepyramidsweresolarsymbols,andthoughtheymight have retained some stellar notions in their design, the influence, he believed,waspredominantlysolar.IsaidpolitelythatIbeggedtodiffer.HesmiledandrecalledthathedidnotknowwhereIcamefrom.Alexandria,Ireplied.‘Ah,Isomehowthoughtso,’hesaid.‘Aplacewherenew ideasoften came from…’.He said that should Iwant topublishmyideas one day, hemight offer some suggestions on thematter, and I assured him that Iwould takehimupon that. Idid; twoyears later. In theyears to comewebecamegoodfriends,andthoughwedifferedonthesymbolicinterpretationofthetruepyramids,itdidnotpreventusfromcontributingtoeachother’sviewsonthepyramidsandallowedustosharemanyhappymomentswithRudolfGantenbrinkafterhemadehishistoricdiscoveryin1993.Butallthiswasstillalongwayoff.Michele, the two children and I arrived in Australia in September 1986.We bought a

houseinSydney’snorthernsuburbsnearmysister’shome,andsettledintothegentlepaceof suburban living. I decided to work part-time and return as well to the issue of thepyramids.Ifound,tomydelight,thattheMitchellLibraryoftheUniversityofSydneywaswellstockedwithEgyptologicalbooks.Manyprofessionaljournalswereregularlyreceivedandoutsiders,likemyself,werefreetomakeuseofthelibraryasguestsoftheuniversity.Iwas to spend many long hours devouring all I could about the Egyptian pyramids,astronomyand religion. I consultedhundredsofbooksandarticlesandmyphotocopyingbill was enormous. Yet once launched, I could not be stopped. I bought a second-handcomputer and began the big adventure of putting my findings and theories into articleform.Iwasnotsurewhereorwhentheymightbepublished,ifatall.ButIwassureofonething:itwasmyresponsibility,andIhadtogetitoffmychest.WhileinAustraliaImadetheacquaintanceofDrJohnO’Byrne,ProfessorofAstronomy

attheUniversityofSydney.Heofferedtodothenecessaryprecessionalcalculationsformeandtoverifymyastronomicalcommentaries.HiscalculationsconfirmedtheaccuracyoftheBadawy-Trimblediscovery.Thesouthernshaftof theKing’sChamber, takentoslope44.5degrees, hadpointed toOrion’sBelt in c.2600BC. Therewas an odd discrepancy, though,whichpuzzledme.Thecalculationsshowedthattheshaftwasaimedmorespecificallyatthecentralstar,AlNilam(EpsilonOrionis),thanatAlNitak(ZetaOrionis)which,accordingtothe Giza-Orion’s Belt correlation, was the star which should correspond to the GreatPyramid. Since the precessional motion was now in its upward cycle,4 I also asked DrO’Byrnetotryformetheslightlylaterdateofc.2500BC.ThisbroughttheshafttargetclosertoZetaOrionis,butnotexactlyon it.Either thedateneededrefining,or theslopePetriehadgivenneeded tobeverified. Itwas then that I remembered the southern shaftof theQueen’s Chamber. DrO’Byrne had shownmewhere to find the ‘rigorous formula’ in thestandard Catalogue 2000.0 to calculate precession, and had said that a good pocketscientificcalculatorwouldbeadequatetogetvalueswithinthearcminute level. Iboughtmyself themostpowerfuloneon themarket:aCasio fx-8000Gwhichcouldmemorise theprecessionalformula.5

I tookPetrie’svalueof38degrees28minutes for theslopeof thesouthernshaftof the

Queen’sChamberandlookedataskymapwithOriononthesouthernmeridian.IthadtobeastarbelowOrion’sBelt.Butwhich?I lookedagain.Sirius,thestarofIsis!WhyhadInot thoughtof thisbefore?Then I remembered: the shaftwas supposed tobeabandoned.Whybotherwithanabandonedshaft?IsupposedthatthiswaswhatBadawyandTrimblehadthought.Well,ittookonlyafewminutesonthecalculator,sowhynottry?Ichoseadateofc.2650BC,alittleearlierthanthatofc.2600BCwhichtalliedwiththeothersouthernshaft higher up the pyramid. I reasoned that the lower shaft would have been starteddecadesbefore,soc.2650BCwasafairestimate.AftertheadjustmentforthepropermotionsofSirius,whicharequiteconsiderable(seeAppendix1),Igotadeclinationof−21degrees20 minutes. Working the altitude for the position of Giza, I got 38 degrees 41 minutes,almost spoton to the38degrees28minutes slopegivenbyPetrie.Wenowhad the twosouthern shaftspointing respectively toOsiris-Orionand Isis-Sirius for theepochc. 2650–2600BC.Coincidence surelyhad tobe ruledout. Iwonderedwhat theEgyptologistswouldmakeofthisnow.

Iwas, however, still troubled by a niggling discrepancy: the southern shaft of the King’sChambershouldreallyhavepointedpreciselyatAlNitak(ZetaOrionis),theloweststarofOrion’s Belt and not the central one. The correlation was too accurate, and so was theastronomicalalignmentofthebaseofthepyramidanditsslopes,tomakeitlikelythatonsuch an important astronomicalmatter the builderswould have ‘missed’ the specific starcorrespondingtothisspecificpyramid,evenifitwasbyonlyhalfadegreeofarc.IworkedouttheprecessionforAlNitakagain,thistimeallocatingitthealtitudeof44.5degreesandworkingbacktheepoch.Thisgavemethedateofc.2590BC.ThenIworkedoutthe epoch for Sirius at altitude 38 degrees 28minutes and got c. 2730BC. This meant anunrealisticallylongperiodof140yearsbetweenthetwoshafts;somuchtimecouldsurelynothaveelapsedbetweenthestartoftheQueen’sChamberandthatoftheKing’sChamber.About twenty years was the limit that I (and others, I was sure) considered acceptable.Something was wrong either with Petrie’s values or with the way the shafts had beenconstructed;theformerseemedmorelikely,inviewoftheprecisionoftheworkelsewhereintheGreatPyramid.Togetadatereadingthatmadegoodsense,varioustrialswiththescientific calculator indicated that the slopes should be slightly steeper for both southernshafts,withtheQueen’satnearer39.5degreesandtheKing’snearerforty-five.Onlythenwouldadateoftwentyyearsseparatingthembeobtained.Thiswouldgiveadatingofc.2450BCfortheGreatPyramid,acenturyorso‘younger’thanhithertoassumed.Couldthatbe possible? And could Petrie’s measurements be slightly out? No one would have theansweruntilRudolfGantenbrinkmeasuredtheanglesagainin1993.Whilepreparingmyarticles,IdecidedtoprobealittlemorewiththeEgyptologists,thistime in the United States. I sent a brief dissertation to the University of California atBerkeley, and inAugust 1986 received a reply fromDr FrankA.Norick, Principal of theLowieMuseum.DrNorickadmittedthatheandhiscolleague,JamesDeetz,were‘fascinatedwithsomeof[my]correlationsandconclusions’.TheydidnotfeeltheywereinapositiontoevaluatethethesisandhadpasseditontoProfessorCathleenKelleroftheDepartmentofNearEasternStudies.Inherreply,shesaidthatshewouldratherwaitforthe‘workofMr

Mark Lehner’, who was conducting a topographical survey of the Giza plateau, to becompleted,butthisiswhatshefeltaboutmytheoryatpresent:heropinionwasthatwhiletherewasampleevidenceinthePyramidTextstoconnectthedeadkingwithOrionshedidnot feel that the layout of the Giza monuments was predetermined by the Orionconstellation.ShethenprovidedconfirmationofaninherentprobleminEgyptologywhichIwasbeginningtosuspectexistedwidelyintheprofession:namelythattheseriousstudyofthe connectionbetweenastronomical phenomenaandAncientEgyptian architecture is initsinfancyandthatitwastakingadifferentformfromwhatshetermed‘the(oftenwild)conjecturesof“pyramidiots”’.Therefollowedherwarning,whichIhavequotedearlier,thattheassociationofcelestialbodies with architecture made Egyptologists uncomfortable and ‘… more afraid thatconnectionsdoexistbetweentheorientation…ofEgyptiantemplesandtheheavens,thanthattheydonot’.Butwhatwastellingwashercommentabout‘pyramidiots’;thiswasthecoreof theproblem.Mentiona ‘theory’on thepyramids,especiallyone that involves thestars,andEgyptologists shyaway.Circulatingmytheory throughthe internationalcircuitof Egyptologistswas not gettingme anywhere; the star correlation stood little chance ofsurfacinginthoseareas.ThebestIcouldhopeforwasencouragementfromothers,suchasDrEdwards.Itwashightimetopublish.Yetwhereandhow?AnothertriptoEnglandseemedinorder.I was determined to take up Dr Edwards’s offer to recommend me to the editor of anEgyptologicaljournal.

IIAForum:DiscussionsinEgyptology

In England, I rented a car and drove to the little village north of Oxford where theEdwardseshadtheirhome,andwhereDrEdwardsandIdiscussedyetagainourfavouritesubject. Engaged in pyramid discussions, Dr Edwards radiates an enthusiasm which isrefreshingly stimulating and his openness to all viewpoints and new ideas is veryappealing.HetoldmeofanewEgyptologicaljournalrunbyhisfriend,DrAlessandraNibbi,whichwas open to non-Egyptologists with a contribution to make. The journal was calledDiscussionsinEgyptology.Ilikedthename;ithadanopenfeelingaboutit.Itseemedthatanarticlehadappearednotlongagobytheengineer,JohnLegon,whohadmadeagoodcasethattheGizagroupofpyramidswaspartofaunifiedplan,thoughLegon’sapproachwasentirelymathematical,withnomentionofthePyramidTextsorstellarideas.6DrEdwardspromisedtorecommendacontributionfrommetoDrNibbi.ThenextdayItelephonedherand she offered to take two articles, provided, of course, that theywere of the style andseriousness expected by her readers. I assured her theywould be, and said Iwould sendthem toher,with the accompanyingphotographs anddiagrams, as soonas I returned toSydney.IsentthemearlyinJune1988,andinJulyDrNibbitoldmethatthearticleswouldappearinvolumes13and14ofDiscussionsinEgyptology(DE).

MicheleandIhadmeanwhiletakenthedecisiontorelocatetoEngland.WeleftAustraliainMay1989andfoundahousehalfwaybetweenLondonandOxford.Thekidswenttothelocal school and I, too,went back to study. I had decided that a postgraduate degree inEuropean business and marketing would come in handy in a united Europe. In theexcitementofmakinganewhomeinEnglandandtheactivitiesofthepostgraduatecourse,Ialmostforgotaboutmyarticles.TheninMayalargeparcelwasdeliveredbythepostman:threecomplimentarycopiesofDiscussionsinEgyptologyvolume13.

1aTheauthorsinfrontoftheGizaPyramids

1bOverheadviewoftheGizagroup

2aTheStepPyramidofZoseratSaqqara

2bTheFifthDynastyPyramidsatAbusir

3aThe‘Bent’PyramidatDashour

3bTheRedPyramidatDashour

4aStatueofMarietteoutsideCairoMuseum

4bMasperothediscovererofthePyramidTexts

5aBurialchamberinthePyramidofUnasshowingthePyramidTexts

5bPyramidTextswithgroupofthreestarsfromUnasPyramid

5cPyramidTextsthatsayUnas-Osiris

6TheGizaoverhead

7ThestarsofOrion’sBelt

8 TheconstellationofOrion

9aThenicheintheEastwalloftheQueen’schamber

9bTheemptysarcophagusintheKing’schamber

10aTheauthorsinfrontofthesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberdaysbeforethediscoveryofthe‘door’byUPUAUT2

10bUPUAUT2

11aUPUAUTIgoingupthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamber

11bIronplatefoundinthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberin1837byR.J.Hill

12aRobertBauvalandRudolfGantenbrinkinMunich

12bDrI.E.S.EdwardsandRobertBauvalon6April1993aftertheshowingoftheUPUAUTvideo

13aTheBenbenStonefromthepyramidofAmenemhetIIIintheCairoMuseum

13bTheSahu-OrionfigureontheBenbenofAhmenemhetIII

14aOrientedironmeteorite‘Willamette’intheSmithsonianInstitute,NewYork

14bOrientedironmeteorite‘Morito ’intheInstituteofMetallurgyMexicoCity

15a(left)Horusholdingthe‘adzeofUpuaut’(UrsaMinor)alignswiththenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber,and,simultaneously,Orion-

Osiris(right)risesintheeast

15bTheOpeningoftheMouthCeremonydepictedinthePapyrusAniintheBritishMuseum

16Artist’simpressionofthestellarlandscape,showingOsiris(Orion)andtheshaftoftheGreatPyramidpointingto hisbelt

TheOrionCorrelationTheorywasatlastofficiallypublished,nearlysixyearsafterIhadmadethefatefulobservationintheSaudiArabiandesert.ThearticleinDE13wasentitled‘AMasterPlanfortheThreePyramidsofGizaBasedontheConfigurationoftheThreeStarsoftheBeltofOrion’,andincludedsixpagesoftext,fourphotographsandtwodiagrams.Itwas written in academic style, lacking the excitement I really felt, sticking to facts andevidence, and heavily cross-referenced and annotated. I made no mention of pyramidsotherthantheGizagroup,andavoidedadiscussionontheshaftsintheQueen’sChamber.Thiswasforlater.Thesecondarticle inDE14,wasentitled ‘InvestigationontheBenbenStone:was itan

IronMeteorite?’. In it I discussed the sacred relic ofHeliopolis in termsof its stellar andOsirianconnotations(seeChapters11to13).Finally,inJanuary1990,DrNibbiacceptedathird article to complete the stellar thesis,with the title ‘The Seeding of the StarGods: aFertility Rite Inside Cheops’s Pyramid?’ This article revealed the Isis-Sirius target of thesouthern shaft of the Queen’s Chamber, and put seriously into question the establishedconsensusthatithadbeenabandoned.Italsocontainedmythoughtsonthepositionoftheopenings of the shafts. Knowing that an important aspect of the rituals had been the

flauntingofithyphallicstatueswhichsymbolisedtheking’spotencyandfertility,andthatafertilityritualwasdescribedinstellartermsinthePyramidTexts,involvingIsis-SiriusandOsiris-Orionwiththementionofastellarphallus(theBeltofOrionshafts?),IbegantoseeevidenceofanextraordinaryfertilityritualinsidetheCheopspyramid,inwhichtheshaftsplayedamajorrole.Theirrolewasnotsimplyinthesendingofthepharaoh’ssoultothephallicregionofOsiris-Orion(theBeltstars)butisforthesymbolicseedingofaHorus-king.TherelevantpassageinthePyramidTextsaddressesOsiris-Orion:

Yoursister(wife),Isis,comestoyourejoicingforloveofyou.Youhaveplacedheronyourphallus(shaft?)andyourseedissuesintoher,shebeingreadyasSothis(Sirius),andHorus-Sopd(astar)hascomeforthfromyouas‘HoruswhoisinSothis’[PT632]

ThearticlepointedoutthatasimilarfertilityritualinvolvingthekingandahighpriestesswasknowntohavetakenplaceinancientMesopotamiainachamberinsidethestepped-pyramidziggurats.7Thisritualinvolvedthe‘MorningStar’,seenasthegreatcosmicgoddessIshtarapparentlyidentifiedtotheplanetVenus,andcommemoratedtheNewYear(Akitu)and the fertility that the flooding of the Euphrates brought to the land. In parallel, theEgyptianscelebratedtheNewYearwiththeheliacalrising,theannualfloodingoftheNile;SiriusbeingthegreatcosmicgoddessIsis(incidentallyidentifiedlaterwithIshtar)andalsoinvolveda ‘MorningStar’.The tentative conclusionwas that ‘the contentsof thispresentarticleshouldcompelustosupposethatafertilityritualnotunliketheoneperformedintheziggurats of Mesopotamia may also have been performed inside Cheops’s pyramid andpossiblyinotherpyramidsaswell’.8

Little did I suspect then that inMarch 1993 Rudolf Gantenbrinkwould prove that theQueen’sChamberanditsshaftshadnotbeenabandonedasEgyptologistssaidbut,onthecontrary,mayhavebeenthemostimportantritualisticelementsofthewholepyramidcult.NeverinmywildestdreamswouldIhavesuspectedthatin1990theIsis-Siriusshaftwouldmakethefrontpagesandthenewsinadozeninternationalnewspapers.9

In the mild spring of 1990 I deluded myself that mymission was over. I had got thetheoryintoprintandEgyptologists,astronomersandotherscholarscouldmakewhattheywantedofthenewstellarfindings.Itwasasifaheavyburdenhadbeenremovedfrommyshoulders; an original ideawhich involves public interestwas a cumbersome load to cartaround.TherehadbeenmanytimeswhenIfeltastrangeanxiety,adisquietingfeelingthatI would not get through, and that the Orion-Giza correlation would be lost again in atimelesszone.Iwasthrilledandrelievedthatitwasover,butIalsofeltacurioussenseofloss.Iwouldmisstheexcitementofresearchandeventhoselong,lonelyhoursinlibraries,butItoldmyselffirmlythatthepersonalquestwasover.So,inMarch1990,asoneunsympatheticEgyptologisthadadvisedmewhenIbeganmy

quest, I resolved to ‘abandon this subject and try to become a good engineer’. I took upfreelance consulting and tried to persuademyself that the pyramidswere best left to the

Egyptologists.ButeachtimeIlookedupattheskyandsawthestarsofOrion,IwonderedaboutthosesilentmonumentsinEgyptandcouldalmostfeeltheirfrustrationatnotbeingunderstood.Tryas Imight Iwasunable toabandon the subject altogether: forone thingtherewasstill thequestionof theDashourpyramidsandhowthey fitted into theplan. ItwasonlyamatteroftimebeforeIwouldbedrawnbackfull-timeintotheOrionMystery.

8THEBROTHEROFOSIRIS

Seth…originallyconnectedwiththeHyades,theV-shaped,head-likepartofourconstellation,TAURUS.AsthebrotherofOsiris,hispositionintheskywasadjacenttoORION…animportantcourtdecisiongavetheofficeofOsiristoHorus,andSethwasbanishedtoapositionbearingthe‘southern’constellationofORION…’

—JaneB.Sellers,TheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt

ITheSouthernPyramidFieldsofDashour

With the awareness that a correlation or duality existed between the sky-Duat and theMemphis-Duatontheground,andthatthecentralregionwasexpressedbytheGiza-Orion’sBeltcor-relation,IhadasortofmapoftheDuatofMemphis.Althoughtheevidencesofarwas compelling, I also knew if the theory was to hold water, not just the three Gizapyramids but the other four pyramids of the FourthDynasty had to be considered in thestellarcorrelationoftheDuatofMemphis.ThesewerethetwolargepyramidsofSneferuatDashourinthesouthernpartoftheMemphiteNecropolis,andthoseallocatedtoNebkaandDjedefraatZawyatAlAryanandAbuRuwash.Inmy firstarticle inDiscussions inEgyptology, Ihad left the issueopenbyasking, ‘doesthismasterplan includeawidercorrelationbetweenthegeomorphyof thesky landscapeaboutOrionandthelandscapeabouttheGizaNecropolis?’1Now,in1992,thisquestionhadtobeanswered.IhadlongbeenawarethattwootherFourthDynastypyramidsites—ZawyatAlAryanandAbuRuwash— flanked the threeGiza pyramids inmuch the sameway as the starsSaiphandBellatrixinOrionflankedthethreestarsofOrion’sBelt.Thesepyramids,aswehaveseen,alsohadstarnames:one,‘DjedefraisaSehetu(Duat)Star’andtheother‘Nebkais a Star’.2 The stars in question had to be those of Osiris-Orion in the Duat, the stellardestiny reserved for these kings. It all fitted neatly together,withmost of the pattern ofOrion — five of its seven main stars — correlated to Fourth Dynasty pyramids in theMemphis-Duat.With‘Bellatrix’locatedsouth-eastofGiza,itwasnotdifficulttoseehowthethreeorfourlittlestarsformingOrion’s‘head’couldfitthethreeorfour3littlepyramidsatAbusir, akilometreor so south-eastofZawyatAlAryan. Indeed, in theWestcarPapyrus,whichspeaksofKhufu(Cheops)andhis‘horizon’(hiscosmicpyramid),specificmentionismadeofthe‘threechildren’ofapriestessofHeliopoliswhoweresaidtohavefoundedtheFifthDynastyandwhoerectedtheirsmallpyramidsatAbusir.4Afifthpyramid,nowlost,isalsobelievedtohavebeenbuiltatSaqqara.5WhoeverinscribedthePyramidTextsinUnas’s

pyramid, andwhoever commissioned them,were living at the closeof theFifthDynasty,andhadondisplayintheMemphisNecropolisallthatwasalreadybuiltthere.Asfarasthetrue geometrical pyramids are concerned, these included all those of the Fourth DynastyplusthethreeorfoursmallerpyramidsatAbusir.InstellartermsoftheOsirianDuat,thesemade up the ‘leg’ (Abu Ruwash=Saiph), ‘phallus’ (Giza=Orion’s Belt), and ‘shoulder’(Zawyat Al Aryan=Bellatrix) of the giant Osiris-Orion. Yet one of his most evocativefeatureswas his fully extended ‘arm’, seen onmany drawings such as the pyramidion ofAmenemhetIII,withtheopenhandcuppingabrightstar. InGreekmythologythisstar isAldebaran in theHyades,andmarks thepositionof themaceofOrion theHunteror theGiant. Their angular distance placed the Hyades roughly in the correlation map of theMemphis-DuatwiththepositionofDashour,whichdemarcatedthesouthernportion.Inowhadaprettygoodideawhereandwhattolookfor.Thepattern of the stellarDuatwasdefinedby the cluster of stars, from theHyades toCanisMajorwithOrioninbetween,allfoundonthe‘westbank’oftheMilkyWay.Onland,intheMemphis-Duat,thiscorrespondedtothepyramidfieldsfromDashourtoAbuRuwash,withGizasomewhereinthemiddle,allfoundonthewestbankoftheNile.WiththethreeGizapyramidssitedinancientRostauandfittingthelocationofOrion’sBeltinthecentreof the sky-Duat, the implication that Dashour was to be correlated to the Hyades wasindicatedby the layout principle of themaster plan.TheGiza grouphad shown that thelayoutwasbasedontheheliacalrisingsofthestarsoftheDuatandtheirprojectiontotheground,eachrepresentedwithapyramidalmonument fixedonameridian.The things tolook at, then,were the heliacal rising of theHyades for c. 2550BC, the estimated time ofSneferu’s reign, and the meridians of each of his allocated pyramids at Dashour. If thishunchwasright,arelationshipbetweenthetwoshouldbefound.

InFebruary1992, justbeforesunset, IwasonaBritishMidlandflightmaking its landingapproach to Cairo. The approach was from the west, the plane flying low over theMemphiteNecropolis, and the viewbelowwas breathtaking. I could see all of themajorpyramids, fromGiza toDashour, theirwest faces catching the orange light of the settingsun.AstheplanecrossedoverGiza,thetwopyramidsofDashourrevealedtheirmeridionallayouts,thatofthenorthernoneoffsettothewestofthesouthernpyramid.LikeGiza,thiswasanother‘anomaly’which,againlikeGiza,wouldbeelucidatedbyastellarsiting.

13.ThePyramidsofDashourshowingmeridionaloffset

The ancient architects again presented uswith a curious discrepancy. After setting theaxisofonepyramidalongameridian, they set theaxisof the secondpyramid some500metrestothewestandthepyramiditselfabout1850metresfarthernorth.6Thiswasanoddchoice.Itwouldhavesavedthemmanyproblemsifthesamemeridianhadbeenused,andwouldhave beenbetter to have the two sites closer so that preliminaries, such as labourhuts,openquarries, ramps from theNileandotherorganisational requirements, couldbedeployed forboth siteswith theworksoneachpyramid staggered to the required rateofprogress.7Again,thischoiceofdifferentmeridiansandthepyramids1850metresfromeachothercontradictedengineeringlogistics.Itthereforehadtobereligiousand,asatGiza,thismeantastronomical.RecallingthattheanomalousoffsetofMenkaura’spyramidhadbeenimposedbytheconfigurationofthestarsofOrion’sBelt,andthesouth-westalignmentbytheslantofthethreestarsrelativetotheaxisoftheMilkyWay,asimilarsituationoughttohaveprevailedfortheHyadesintheskyandDashourontheground.

14.TheRisingoftheHyades

BackinEngland,IagainusedtheSkyglobe3.5computerprogramtosimulatetheriseoftheHyadeswhenthereignofSneferubegan.Myreasoningwasthat,ifKhufu’sreignbeganinc.2450BC,8thereignofhisfatherwouldhavebeguninabout2475BC,sinceSneferuwasbelievedtohavereignedforsomethirty-fouryears.9Adjustingtheepochonthecomputerfor2475BC, I foundthat theHyadeswouldriseheliacallyduringApril.Lookingat theoddtriangularorV-shapeofthisancientconstellation,thetwostarsatthebaseofthetrianglewereAldebaranandanothercataloguedNo.311(EpsilonTaurus).No.311rises first,dueeast, and when it is at three degrees altitude Aldebaran follows. These two stars, seentogetherafterrising,hadtheexact layoutrelativetoeachotherandtheaxisoftheMilkyWay as the two Dashour pyramids relative to each other and the axis of the Nile.TransposingthetwostarsonthecorrelationMemphis-Duatmap,theyfittedthepositionofthetwoDashourpyramids.Thisgaveusthecompletestellarpatternofthesky-Duat,fromtheoutstretchedhandofOsiris(theHyades)tohisleg(Saiph)andtookintoaccountalltheFourthDynastypyramidsandtheclusterofsmallFifthDynastypyramidsatAbusir.Itwasasthoughthemistliftedtoshowanewlandscape,clearandsharpintheimageofOsiris-Sahu.At about this time, while I was looking for the meaning of the Hyades in Egyptian

astronomy,IcameacrossarecentbookwhichconfirmedthatIwasnotaloneinexploringtheinfluencesofstellarprecessionontheAncientEgyptians.JaneB.Sellers,anAmericanEgyptologistwhomwehavementionedearlier,haddoneanelaboratestudyonthissubjectandpresenteditinTheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt.10WhatreallygotmeinterestedinherworkwasthattheHyadesandOrionwereverymuchinhermindtoo.Usingthepowerful

Lodestar V.202 astronomical computer program, she had come up with some startlingfindings.These,coupledwithherknowledgeofancientEgyptianreligionandtexts,madeherworkexactlywhatIwashopingtofind.

IITheLadyofPrecession

Jane B. Sellers is described by her publishers as ‘having spent much of her sixty yearsquestioningpuzzles in the fieldsofastronomyandancientNearEasterncivilisations’.Shecomes across as one of those grand ladies of the stamp of Maria Reiche, the GermanmathematicianwhohasdevotedherlifetostudyingtheNascalinesofPeruneartheAndeshighlands.After getting a degree at Goddard College in Vermont, Sellers studied Egyptology atChicago’sOrientalInstitute.AkeenadmirerofthelateDrGiorgiodeSantillana,historianand author of Hamlet’s Mill,11 she has broken new ground for modern Egyptology bydrawingattention to theneed touseastronomyand,moreparticularly,precessionof thestarsfortheproperstudyofAncientEgyptanditsreligion.Hermainfocus,likemine,hasbeenonthePyramidTextsandtheso-calledMemphiteTheology.Withtheaidofscientificastronomy,shehassoughttoexplainthedevelopmentofthereligiousideasofpre-dynasticandearlydynasticEgypt.Inherwords:

Archaeologists,byandlarge,lackanunderstandingoftheprecession,andthisaffectstheirconclusionsconcerningancientmyths,ancientgodsandancienttemplealignments.Philologists,too, ignoretheaccusationthatcertainproblemsarenotgoing tobe solvedas longas they imagine that familiaritywithgrammar replaces scientificknowledgeofastronomy.Forastronomers,precessioniswell-establishedfact;thoseworkinginthefieldofancientmanhavearesponsibilitytoattainanunderstandingofit.12

AproperanddetailedreviewofSellers’sthesisisoutsidethescopeofthisbook.Briefly,oneofher importantcontentions13 is that theAncientEgyptianshadnoticed theprecessionalchangesofthestarseventhoughtheymaynothaveunderstoodthemscientifically.Shealsofeelsthattheyhadevenworkedouttherateofchange,andbringsarangeofargumentstosupport her views. In all this I fully agreed with her. Precession had to be taken intoaccount if the basis of the religious rituals of an ancient peoplewas to observe the starsdiligently. In Appendix 2 we have provided a full discussion on precession, but a shortparagraphtoexplainitseffectsisinorderbeforeproceedingwithourdiscussion.Precessioniscausedbyaveryslowmotionoftheearth,asortofwobblethattakesabout26,000yearstocompleteafullcycle.Theeffectisnotrealbutapparent,andonlyinvolvesthe stars. The stars do not actually move but appear to move because of the earth’sprecessionalwobble. To show the effect, takeOrion’s Belt as seen fromGiza. Imagine it

sitting on the meridian, due south. Today it is at 59 degrees altitude above the southhorizon.InthetimeofthePyramidAge,c.2500BC,itwasmuchlower,atabout45degrees.Inabout10400BC itwas even lower, at11degrees.Theprecessional effect is also clearlyvisible at the risingofOrion’sBelt in the east: imagineOrion’sBelt justover the easternhorizonatrisingtime.Todayitrisesalmostdueeast,atazimuth91degrees.C.2500BC, itrosefarthertothesouthofeast,atazimuth106degrees.In10400BC,evenfarthersouthofeast,atazimuth169degrees.The full cycleofprecession, ifwemeasure theeffectat themeridian,consistsofahalf-cycleof13,000yearsfrom,say,maximumtominimumaltitude,and another half-cycle of 13,000 years fromminimum tomaximum altitude. For Orion’sBelt,sinceabout10400BCahalf-cyclehasstartedatminimumaltitudeof11degreesabovethehorizon(observedfromGiza).ItthenslowlymovedinanupwarddirectionsothatbythePyramidAgeitwasat45degreesabovethehorizon,andtodayitisat59degrees.This acts as a sort of star-clock for our planet. Knowing the exact rate of precessionalchangeandtheco-ordinateofastar,14wecandetermineitsaltitude,say,atthemeridianforanygivenepochor, ifyouprefer, itsrisingpointontheeasternhorizon.Wededucedthat the southern shaft of theKing’sChamberpointed to the starZetaofOrion’sBelt, soprecessionalcalculationsgiveus,withafairdegreeofaccuracy,theperiodofc.2450BC.ReturningtoSellers’sthesisontheastronomyofAncientEgypt,herprincipalpremisesforfixingcertainprehistoricandearlyhistoriceventsrestedonherbeliefthattheAncientNiledwellers not only noticed precession but focused their attention on the spring equinox.There,Ididnotagreewithher.ItisnotclearwhatimportancethespringequinoxhadforAncientEgyptians,otherthanthesun’sreachingmid-pointinitsannualchanges,theeffectnoticedatrisingorsetting,oratthemeridiantransit.Butthisalsoappliesfortheautumnequinox.ThosewhohavestudiedEgyptianreligionorastronomyagree that theperiodofthe yearwhich dominated themind of the earlyNile dwellerswas,without a doubt, thesummersolstice.IntheepochimmediatelyprecedingthePyramidAge,thesummersolsticecoincidedwiththeheliacalrisingofSiriusandthestartoftheNile’sflood,anditwasonthisfascinating conjunction that many of the cultic ideas were based. The heliacal rising ofSirius also denoted the New Year and served as the basis of calendrical computations;Egyptologists and archaeo-astronomers are at one on this. E. C. Krupp, the well-knownarchaeo-astronomeranddirectoroftheGriffithObservatoryinLosAngeles,wrote:

TheNile,withitsannualflooding,madecivilisationpossibleinEgypt…[it]wastherealrulerofEgypt…TheapparentconnectionbetweencelestialandterrestrialphenomenagreatlyaffectedtheEgyptianviewoftheworld…[they]consideredtheheliacalrisingofSiriustobesoimportantthattheymarkedthebeginningofthenewyear by this event. Even more compelling was the fact that the heliacally rising Sirius and the rising Nilecoincided,approximately,withthesummersolstice…15

TheastronomerJamesCornellwasofthesameopinion:

FromtheverytimethefirsthumanssettledintheNileValley,theperiodiceventofprimeimportancetotheirlives — their very survival — was the annual flooding of the river … this cyclical event, crucial to theestablishmentofEgyptiancivilisation,alsolednaturallytotheconceptoftime…[and]thedevelopmentofthecalendar.…Byhappycoincidence…SiriusfirstappearedinthemorningskyaroundthesummersolsticeandataboutthesametimeasthestartoftheNileflood…thelengthoftheEgyptiansolaryearwastherebysetastheintervalbetweenthesuccessive(heliacal)risingsofthatstar.16

It is crucial in the study of Ancient Egyptian religion in relation to astronomy that theimportanceofthesummersolsticebeclearlyappreciated.Notonlydiditmarktheapogeeofthesun’sannualchangesindeclinationbutitprovidedaroughmarkerforthe‘year’and,moreimportantly,thecomingoftheannualflood.Thislastwasthereal‘mystery’ofEgypt:the fact that thewatersbegan to rise at the timeof the summer solstice and theheliacalrising of Sirius deeply affected the psyche of the Ancient Egyptians. A sort of stellarmechanicalomenwaswitnessed in theskya fewweeksbefore theSirius-summer-solstice-flood conjunction, and this, of course,was the appearance at dawn of fully risenOsiris-Orion.Sellers’sgreatest contribution, inmyview,was tobringhome the fact thatwithout thetool of scientific astronomy and a basic knowledge of observational astronomy andprecession,itisimpossibletointerpretcorrectlythemassoffunerarytextsandritualsand(Imightaddonherbehalf)religiousmonuments.Inthat,shehasrenderedagreatservicetoEgyptology.Anotherimportantpointwhichsheraised,andonewhichwastoenlightenmeinmyDashour-Hyadescorrelation,washerconclusionthatSeth, thebrotherofOsiris,wasfromveryearlytimesidentifiedwiththeHyades.17Shealsodrewmyattentiontotheastronomical connotations in the Memphite Theology, a theological tract based on thelegandary unification of Egypt,18 often also called the Shabaka Texts. In 1987 I hadsuspectedastrongastronomicalvalueinthesetextsbuthadshelvedstudyingituntillater.19Sellers’s commentsnotonly regenerated their importancebut triggered theanswer to theDashour-HyadescorrelationandtiedupaloseendintheMemphis-Duatcorrelation.

IIIABlackStone

Thereisaslabofstone,asingleblockofblackgranitemeasuringabout1.3metresby1.5metres,intheBritishMuseum,classedasItemNo.498.Onitarecarveddozensoflinesofhieroglyphic inscriptions, many unfortunately damaged when this stone was used inmodern times forgrindingwheat.20Somecall themtheShabakaTexts; toothers theyaretheMemphiteTheology.AlthoughthestonedatesfromtheTwenty-fifthDynasty(c.710BC)theinscriptionsarebelievedtobecopiesfromsourcesasfarbackasthePyramidAge.TheAmericanphilologist,MiriamLichtheimdeducedthatthelanguageusedintheinscriptions

ontheShabakastone‘muchresemblesthatofthePyramidTexts’andtakesthisasevidenceofancientsources.21Thisviewisheldbymanyscholars,includingJaneSellers.22

TheShabakaTextsbeginwithacuriousintroductionbythescribecommissionedtocopythe texts. It seems that the pharaoh, Shabaka, wanted to have preserved for posteritycertainancientwritingswhichwereworm-eaten(presumablywrittenonpapyrusorwood)and ordered that they be copied on to a black granite slab, the Shabaka stone. In theancientscribe’swords:‘Thiswritingwascopiedoutanewbyhismajestyinthehouseofhisfather…forhismajestyfoundittobeaworkoftheancestorswhichwasworm-eaten…’[1–2].ThefirstpartofthetextseemstobeasortofSolomon’sjudgementontheapportioningofthe‘TwoLands’(Egypt)betweenSethandHorusafterthedeathofOsiris.Letusbrieflyreiteratethestory:SethwasthebrotherofOsirisandHoruswasthesonofOsiris.Thestorybegins with Seth and Horus being called by Geb, the earth god. Geb was the legitimatehusbandoftheskygoddess,Nut,motherofOsirisandSeth.Assuch,hewasthelegitimatefatherofOsirisand,byvirtueofhisearthrole,thehighestauthorityonterritorialmatters.23Aftersomedeliberation,

HemadeSethkingofUpperEgypt…[and]madeHorusthekingofLowerEgyptuptotheplacewherehisfather(Osiris)wasdrowned,whichisatthe‘divisionoftheTwoLands’.ThusHorusstoodoveroneregionandSethoveroneregion.TheymadepeaceovertheTwoLandsatAyan.ThatwasthedivisionoftheTwoLands.[7–9]

ThisallusiontoOsirisbeing‘drowned’isanotherversionofhisdeath,notatthehandsofSeth,butbydrowningintheNilesomewherenearMemphis.Ayanisthoughttobeoutsidethe north wall of the city ofMemphis, and seems to havemarked a frontier line whichseparatedthekingdomofSeth(UpperEgypt)fromthatofHorus(LowerEgypt).Atthetimethetextwaswritten,thiswouldhaveimpliedalineofdemarcationdividingtheMemphiteNecropolisjustsouthofZawyatAlAryanand,bynecessity,wouldhavecreatedalowerornorthern part of the Duat ofMemphis containingOrion proper (Giza), and an upper orsouthernpartcontainingtheHyades(Dashour).Immediately after taking this seemingly fair decision, Geb had second thoughts andretractedit.HisnewdecisionwastogivebothkingdomstoHorus.This,ofcourse,createdamajor conflict betweenHorus and Seth, and an epic battle ensued,withHorus being thevictor.Horuswasthusthe‘uniteroftheTwoLands’andwassoacclaimedintheMemphiteTheology:‘HeisHoruswhoaroseaskingofUpperandLowerEgypt,whounitedtheTwoLandsintheNomeoftheWall(Memphis),theplaceinwhichtheTwoLandswereunited.[13c-14c].TheTexts then informusof the truemeaningandparticular sanctityof thisholyplaceadjacenttoMemphis:

ThisistheLand…[of]theburialofOsirisintheHouseofSokar(MemphiteNecropolis)…[youmustcall]Isis

andNephthyswithoutdelay,forOsirishasdrownedinhiswater…HorusspeakstoIsisandNephthys:‘Hurry,seizehim…’IsisandNephthysspeaktoOsiris:‘Wecome,wetakeyou…’Theybroughthimto[theland].Heenteredthehiddenportals in thegloryof the lordsofeternity…thusOsiriscameintotheearthat theroyalfortress,thenorthof[theland]towhichhehadcome…Therewasbuilttheroyalfortress…[17c-22]

Isis urgesHorus and Seth to ‘fraternise so as to cease quarrelling inwhatever place theymightbe’.[15c].AswiththePyramidTexts,IgavetheShabakaTextsthechancetospeakforthemselves.They provided an image of the body of Osiris lying along the west bank of the Nile,stretchingoverthedemarcationlinebetweenthesouthernandnorthernpartoftheHouseof Sokar (theMemphite Necropolis). The story has a cosmic ring and suggests the sameimagery in the sky-Duat. In this ‘place’, which is ‘at the north of the royal fortress’(obviouslyMemphis)wearetoldthat‘HorusstoodoveroneregionandSethstoodoveroneregion…thatwasthe‘divisionoftheTwoLands’.There has long been speculation why the dividing line or border between Lower andUpper Egypt wasmade atMemphis. The usual suggestion that it was an ideal strategiclocation isnot really tenable; in later timesMemphis stoppedbeing the seatofpharaohsand the capitalwas transferred toThebes, nearly1000kilometresupstream. It shouldberemembered that Egypt is an elongated country, a 1200-kilometre stretch formed by thenarrowNile Valley. A demarcation line of the ‘two lands’ at Ayan nearMemphiswoulddivideEgyptratherunevenly,withLowerEgyptrunningnorthwardsonly220kilometrestothe Mediterranean coast, albeit with the rich Delta region, whereas Upper Egypt wouldstretch1000kilometresfromMemphistoAswan,hardlyafairparcellingofEgyptfortwofeudingpretenders.Ibegantogettheimpressionthatthe‘land’inquestionwasnotallofEgyptasweknowit,butaholy regionwithacosmicdualityandwhichspecificallycontained the ‘HouseofSokar’ (theMemphite Necropolis). In theMemphite Theologywe are not dealingwith atypical territorialdisputebutwitha cosmicevent,with theprotagonists,HorusandSeth,consideredas‘gods’.AfterthemythicaldeathofOsiris,therealprizetobesharedwasthegod’searthlydomain,thatistheearth-DuatofMemphis,whichnowcontainedthe‘PyramidFields’,thesymbolsofpharaonictheocracyandthematerialexpressionofthestatereligion.Incosmictermsthis‘landofOsiris-Sokar’wasthestarryDuatalongthewestbankoftheMilkyWay/CelestialNile; there, too,Osiriswas lying along a region contained byCanisMajor in the lower sky and theHyades in the upper skywith the constellation ofOrionbetween them.Butwhat, Iwondered,was the ‘border’ that supposedlydivided the lowerskyandtheuppersky?WastheresomefeatureseparatingtheHyadesfromtherestofthestarryDuatofOsiris?I considered the location of Ayan immediately north of Memphis and traced thedemarcationlineasalatitudegoingthroughtheMemphiteNecropolis.Thelinepassedjustsouth of theAbusir pyramid field,with Saqqara andDashour at its south (Upper Egypt),and Abusir, Zawyat Al Aryan, Giza and Abu Ruwash at its north (Lower Egypt). TheoriginaldecisionbyGebwouldhave thusgivenHorus the lowerportionof theMemphis-DuatcontainingthepyramidsofAbusir,ZawyatAlAryan,GizaandAbuRuwash,andtheupperportiontoSeth,containingthepyramidsofSaqqaraandDashour.

ThebodyofOsirisintheskywasthegiantSahusky-image,whichwesawasastridingmanwith one armoutstretched, the open palm cupping a star. The sexual part, i.e., thephallus,isclearlyfixedwiththestarsofOrion’sBelt,andthesemusthaveevokedthesexualpotencyandseedingofthestellarOsiris.IntheOsiris-Isismyth,thecrucialmomentwasthemakingbyIsisofanartificialphallussothatshecouldfertiliseherwombwiththeseedofOsiris,andbecomepregnant.Oddly,thereexistsanancienttextcalledtheInventoryStelawhichisintheEgyptianAntiquitiesMuseuminCairo.24Itsdateremainsamystery,thoughEgyptologists date it at around 1500BC. It was found byMariette in 1800, while he wasexcavatingtheruinsofasmallchapelcalled‘TheHouseofIsis’,nexttoCheops’spyramid.This stela refers to Cheops and theGreat Pyramid and nominates Isis as ‘Mistress of thePyramid’.25 If this is correct, it is tempting to visualise the artificial phallus as being thesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberinCheops’spyramid,whichwasaimedatOrion’sBelt,thephallusregionoftheOsiris-Sahuimageinthesky.ThisremindsusofthatpassageinthePyramidTextsconcerningthestellarcopulationandseedingritualbetweenOsirisandIsis:

Yoursister(wife),Isis,comestoyourejoicingforloveofyou.Youhaveplacedheronyourphallus(shaft?)andyourseedissuesintoher,shebeingreadyasSothis(Sirius),andHorus-Sopd(astar)hascomeforthfromyouas‘HoruswhoisinSothis’[PT632]

What now needed to be deciphered from the Shabaka TextswaswhyGeb had given thesouthernportionoftheMemphis-DuattoSeth,onlytorevokehisdecisionsoonafterwards.Was there an event in the sky-Duat which might have made Geb consider that thecorrespondingMemphis-Duathad to be separated into anupper and lowerportion?WasthereachangeinthepositionoftheHyades,forexample,whichmoveditfromthelowersky into theupper sky c.2500BC?Andwhat feature divided the sky into an upper and alowerpart?

IVTheEquatorintheSky

Seen from theearth, the skyappearsasahugehemisphericalvault covering the flatandapparentlycircularland,itsbottomrimrestingonthehorizon.Inscientificastronomyweseparatetheeastandwestsidesofthiscelestialhemispherebythemeridian,animaginaryline conjured as running overhead from due north to due south. We also separate thecelestial hemisphere into a south and a north side, with an imaginary line, the celestialequator,runningdueeasttoduewest,butthelineisdirectlyoverheadonlyifyouareontheearth’sequator;otherwiseitalwaysinclinestowardsthesouth,26crossingthemeridianlineatanaltitudeequaltoninetydegreeslessthelatitudewhereyouarestanding.Thus,ifyouarenearLondon,thecelestialequatorcrossesthemeridianat90−51=39degrees

altitudeabovethesouthernhorizon.IfyouarenearCairo,itcrossesthemeridianat90−30=60degreesaltitudeoverthesouthernhorizon.Thecelestialequatoris,therefore,theastronomical‘border’whichdividestheupperandlowerskies.JaneSellerswastoconcludethat

Seth…originallyconnectedwiththeHyades,theV-shaped,head-likepartofourconstellation,TAURUS.AsthebrotherofOsiris,hispositionintheskywasadjacenttoORION…animportantcourtdecisiongavetheofficeofOsiristoHorus,andSethwasbanishedtoapositionbearingthe‘southern’constellationORION…27

The gigantic Sahu sky-figure stretched from the Hyades (the ‘southern’ constellation ofSahu)pastOrionproperandfinallytoCanisMajorandSirius.Howdidthecelestialequatordividethis‘land’?RunningSkyglobe3·5,Iwenttoepoch3100BC,whenEgyptologistssaytheunificationofthe two lands of Egypt took place, and then projected the sky-Duat star region (Hyades,Orion and Canis major) on the meridian. The celestial equator passed just above theHyades, meaning that they were in the lower sky (corresponding to ‘Lower Egypt’).Knowingthattheprecessionaleffectcausedanupwardsshiftofthestars,IdecidedtoseewhentheHyades,andespeciallythetwostars,Aldebaranand311(EpsilonTaurus),whichIequatedtothetwoDashourpyramids,wouldcrossthecelestialequatorandmoveintotheuppersky(‘UpperEgypt’).Iwentupthecenturies,3100BC,3000BC,2900BCUNTIL2000BC. IwasastoundedtoseeonthemonitorscreentheeventsoftheunificationasexplainedintheMemphiteTheology.Itwasathrillingsight!Bearinginmindthatthecelestialequatorisatzero declination, and that negative declinations are in the lower sky and positivedeclinations in the upper sky, I refined the dates to the nearest decade and the readingsobtainedarereflectedinthetable.

Epoch Declination

Aldebaran Star311

3100BC 5°35′ −3°29′

2450BC 1°56′ zero

2080BC zero +2°13′

These precession events were very revealing; they showed that at exactly the time KingKhufu (Cheops), the alleged builder of the Great Pyramid, came to power, star 311waspoisedtocrossthecelestialequatorandleavethelowerskyfortheuppersky.Then,inc.2080BC, at the time when the Pyramid Texts were put into the Fifth and Sixth Dynastypyramids, the same happened to Aldebaran. In correlation, this meant that the Dashour

(Hyades)pyramidsnow‘belonged’toUpperEgypt,aterritorialdisputesettlednotbylanddeedsbutbytheprecessionalmysteryofthestars.Nopriestcouldconfrontthedecisionoftheofficeoftheskygods,theGreatEnneadofHeliopolis.ThebasisofarchaeologicalandchronologicalevidenceleadingEgyptologiststodatetheunificationof theTwoLandsatc.3100BCwas thereforenot confirmedbyprecession; thissuggested that it was at a later date, possibly after 2400BC, and thus after the FourthDynasty,notbefore.Precessiondoesnotdependonarchaeologicalorchronologicalinterpretations;itreliesonthenaturalcyclicalperiodoftheprecessionalwobble,andthusbehavesasthetrueepochmarker,agreatstar-clockbehavingaccordingtothelawsofnaturalphysics.Inowbeganto see that the unification was prompted by the shifting further north of a sacreddemarcationlineordividerlatitude,aneventnottobeconsideredasthestartofdynasticEgyptbutareligiousdisputethatoccurredaftertheFourthDynasty.Suchadispute,thoughevidence was scant, was suspected by many Egyptologists including Dr Edwards, whoindicatedapoliticalupheavalatthecloseoftheFourthDynastybynotingthat‘…althoughdocumentary recordsare lacking, the characterof thepolitical eventswhichattended thecloseoftheFourthDynastymaybeconjuredfromanumberofindications’.28

These indications, according to Edwards, are the adoption of the suffix ra in the royalnames:Kharf-ra,Menkau-ra,Djedef-ra,Sahu-raandsoon.Tohimthismeantthatthesolarcultwasgainingauthorityandbecomingthestatecult,becauseoftheincorporationofthesungod’snameintotheroyalnames.Also,theterm‘SonofRa’becamepartofthetitleofpharaohs‘fromtheFifthDynastyonward’,eventhoughtheHorus-name,denotingthekingasSonofOsirisremainedthedominanttitleofkings.29Thereistoo,ofcourse,thematerialevidenceof thedrasticdeclineofpyramidconstruction:FifthandSixthDynastypyramidsbecame smaller and their masonry was of much poorer quality, also an indication ofpoliticalupheavalorculticchange.TheMemphiteTheologyseems,therefore,tonarrateinmythologicalandcosmictermsarealdisputeoverthethroneofEgyptwhichoccurredatthecloseoftheFourthDynasty.Ifthatisso,thegoldenageofOsiris’sreigncametoanendwiththecompletionoftheGizanecropolis,andadisputeensuedoverwhoshouldinherithispharaoniclegacy.Thetitle‘sonofRa’mayhavebeenusedbyapretenderwhoclaimeddirectdescentfromtheheadofthe‘father’ of theHeliopolitan pantheon of gods, theGreat Ennead, to gain supremacy overanypretenderclaimingtobethesonofOsiris.Oddly enough, this seems tobe confirmedby theWestcarPapyrus.30 In 1947,Edwardsdrewattentiontothismysteriousdocument,whichrevealsthestoryofthecomingtopowerofthefirstthreekingsoftheFifthDynasty,asseenbytheAncientEgyptiansthemselves.31Twoofthese,SahuraandNeferirkara,builttheirpyramidsatAbusir.

VThe‘Triplets’ofaPriestess

TheWestcarPapyrushaspreservedanancientlegendconcerningthecreationoftheFifth

Dynastywhich,wearetold,cameaboutwhenahighpriestessofHeliopoliswasseededbyRa,thesungod.32Thiswasatypicalployusedwhenadynasticchangeorcoupwasinthemaking. For example Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great, claimed that Zeus-Ammon had made love to her, making her son the ultimate contender to the throne ofMacedonia and Greece;33 Caesar claimed a descent from Venus, generatrix.34 Divineintervention in matters of dynastic disputes was an easy way to sway the credulouspopulace tobelieve a shakyor even illegitimate claim to the throne.A ‘miraculous’ birthwasalwayseffectiveandaslateastheseventeenthcenturyinEuropetheywerestillgoingstrong. LouisXIVof France for examplewas said tohavebeen conceivedmiraculously,35when after twenty-six years of sterile union between Louis XIII andAnne ofAustria, thecoupleproduceda‘solar’heir,nicknamedDieudonné,(God-given).36

The claimof a solar pregnancy by the priestess ofHeliopoliswas probably a carefullyorchestratedplot and seems tohaveworked.According to theWestcarPapyrus,Ra camedown to earth and seeded the all-too-willing wife of the high priest at Heliopolis. Thisresulted in her giving birth to triplets, all of whomwere to become kings of Egypt: thepharaohs Userkaf, Sahura and Neferirkara. With the Westcar Papyrus, as with theMemphiteTheology, I believewe are dealingwith ahistorical event explained in cosmicterms,whichresultedinthecreationoftheFifthDynasty.Thesitechosenfortheirpyramidsby this new solar dynasty, to express its connection with the Fourth Dynasty and itsdominantastralcultofOsiris,wastheflatregionofAbusir.Hereatripletoflittlepyramidswas built which, in theMemphis-Duat correlation, denoted the ‘head’ of Osiris-Sahu sky-image. I believe there is an astronomical event which connects the story of theWestcarPapyrus with that of the Memphite Theology and which, in turn, explains the curiousvariationintheOsirianmyth,his‘drowning’intheNileattheexactspotwherethedividinglinerunsthroughAyanandnearAbusir.Skyglobe3·5 shows that, inepoch2300BC,which fits theFifthDynastyaccording to thelatest chronology, the sun approached the Milky Way from the west, and reached thewesternshoreinearlyMay(Julian).Thesun‘drowns’initforabouttwenty-fourdays,toemergeontheeasternshoreattheendofMay(Julian).Atthatmomentit is inlinewiththecalculatedrisingtimeofthe‘head’ofOsiris,thosethreelittlestarswhichIcorrelatetothethree littlepyramidsatAbusirontheMemphis-Duatmap.Thehorizonthus joinsboththe‘head’ofOsiris-Sahuandtheplacewherethesun‘emerges’fromthewatersoftheNile.Thisastronomicalevidencesuggeststhattherewas,indeed,anattempttosolarisethecultof Osiris and possibly Osiris himself.37 Clearly the astronomical evidence brought by theHeliopolitanpriestswas theconcurrenceof the ‘drowning’of the sun in thecelestialNileandtheappearanceofthe‘head’ofOsiris-Sahu.ThenameofoneoftheFifthDynastykingswhoplacedhispyramidatAbusir,Sahu-ra,indicatesanattempttomerge,andpossiblytocontrol, theOsirianastral cultby theHeliopolitan solar faction. It seems tohaveworkeduntiltheendoftheSixthoreventheSeventhDynasty,buttheOsiriancultre-emerged,witheven more cogency, in the epoch known as the Middle Kingdom which came after thePyramidAge.38

TheotherversionofthedeathofOsiriswashisbeingkilledbySethandhisbodycutinto

piecesandthrownalloverEgypt.ThesixpyramidsoftheFifthDynasty,39togetherwiththesevenofthegreatFourthDynasty,givesatotaloffourteenwhichcomprisedtheMemphiteNecropolis at the time the Pyramid Textswerewritten. Interestingly, this number ties incloselywithanotherspecificaspectofthedeathofOsirisundertheknifeofSeth;Sethcutupthebodyintofourteenpieces.40AsWallis-Budgepointedout:

latertraditionassertsthatthebodyofOsiriswascutintofourteenorfifteenpieces,andthatovertheplacewhereeachwasburied Isiscauseda sanctuary tobebuilt…these tomb-chapels,or funerary templesofOsirismayrepresenttheAats(theElysianFields)ofOsirismentionedinthePyramidTexts…thetombsofOsirisonearthhadtheircounterpartsinheaven…41

ReturningtotheepicquarrelbetweenHorusandSeth,whichfollowedthedeathofOsiris,wearetoldinthePyramidTextsthatinthegreatfightwhichtookplaceHorus‘losthislefteye’.42Thiscuriousmutilationcanalsobeexplainedbyprecession. InallskymythologiesandespeciallyintheEgyptianone,therealwaysexistedagreatbullintheskyrepresentedbythevastconstellationofTaurus.43ThiscelestialbulliscloselyconnectedwithOriontheHunter, such that classical depictions generally showOrion’s left arm extendingwith hishand up to the ‘head’ of Taurus. Recently, it has been recognised that theMithraic bull,slainbythePersian-Romandeity,Mithra,isofferinganastronomicalscenewhereMithraisOrion and the ‘head’ of the celestial bull is none other than the Hyades.44 This imageryconformswiththeclassicalGreekandRomanrepresentationofOrionandTaurus,withtheHyadesbeingthe‘head’ofTaurus.45Itisthereforeinterestingtonotethatthe‘eyes’ofthebullwereAldebaranandstar311(EpsilonTaurus),thelatterbeingthe‘lefteye’.46Wehaveshownhowstar311crossedthecelestialequatorgoingfromthelowerskytotheupperskyinc.2450BC.WasitthenthatHorus,whowasallocatedLowerEgypt,‘losthislefteye’?ThePyramidTextsmake itclear that theepicduelwhere the ‘eye’ofHoruswas lost isseenasoccurringinthelowereasternsky,onthebanksoftheWindingWaterway:

Horushascriedoutbecauseofhiseye,Sethhascriedoutbecauseofhistesticles,andthereleapsuptheeyeofHorus,whohasfallenonyonder(right)sideoftheWindingWaterway…Thoth(theplanetMercury)sawitonyondersideoftheWindingWaterway…theeyeofHorusfellonThoth’swingsonyondersideoftheWindingWaterway,ontheeasternsideofthesky…[PT594–6]

The celestial location is again somewhere near Orion. We read that when Osiris wasknockeddownnearthebanksoftheNile,hisassailant,Seth,accusesOsirisinfrontofthegodsofhavingstarted the fight: ‘Itwashe[Osiris]whoattackedme…when therecameintobeingthishisnameofOrion,longoflegandlengthyofstride…’[PT959].

ThothandHorusthencometohelpOsiristothesky:

Horus comes, Thoth appears, they raiseOsiris fromuponhis side andmakehim stand…Raise yourself,OOsiris,Isishasyourarm,OOsiris;Nephthyshasyourhand,sogobetweenthem.Thesky(theDuatsky-region)isgiventoyou,theearth(‘Egypt’theDuatofMemphis)isgiventoyou,andtheFieldofRushes,theMoundsofHorus,andtheMoundsofSeth…[PT956–61]

ArethemoundsofHorusandofSethallusionstothepyramids?IntheBritishMuseumthereisamagnificentdocumentdatedtotheNewKingdomcalledthe Chester Beatty No. 1 Papyrus, where we are given details of what happened in thecosmiccourtroomofthegods.47Itseemsthatthecasehadbeengoingonforseveralyearsbeforethe‘HeliopolitanCouncil’andthegods,angeredbythelongquarrel,wereabouttogivetheirfinalverdict.48Itmusthavebeenadifficultone,forintheChesterBeattyNo.1Papyrusmuch ismadeof theefforts surrounding thehandlingof thematterandhow theEgyptiansshowed‘thetriumphof legalityoverbruteforce’.49 Itallpoints toanawkwarddecision on how the ‘Two Lands’ previously ruled by Osiris be divided between the twokings after what was probably an indecisive battle. Seth is persuaded to abide by thedecision of theHeliopolitan Council. As Jane Sellers previously concluded: ‘an importantcourt decision gave the office of Osiris to Horus, and Seth was banished to a positionbearingthe“southern”constellationORION’—thatistheHyadesstars.50

I felt Ihad reached theendof the stellar investigation. Inviewof thehugeamountoftextualandarchaeologicalevidence,therewerestillmanylooseends,butthethickestveil,over the Memphite Necropolis, had been removed and I could now discern a completestellarplan,executedwithpoeticeleganceandgrandeur.IwasstartingtothinkinthedualmodetheancientsofthePyramidAgehaddevelopedsowell:acapacitytothinkintermsoftheskyandtheland,usingthemediumofallegoriesandsymbolstoexpressthecombinedvision.WhentheDuatwasconjureditcameintwoblendedimages,oneoftheskyandtheother of the land. The Nile merged with the Milky Way, and stellar alignments andpositions projected themselves on the Memphite Necropolis, over the meridians andlatitudeswhichgriddedtheclustersofpyramidfields.However,thearticlesIhadpublishedin1989–90madenoallusiontothewidervisionofthemasterplanwhichIhadnowexposed.ItwasAugust1992,nearlynineyearssincethewholeaffairhadchangedthecourseofmylife.IwantedotherstoknowwhatIhadfound,and academic articles do not bring discoveries to a wide audience. Egyptologists had areading backlog of ten years, in some cases twenty, with hundreds of articles, theses,dissertationsandpapersallwaitingtobereviewed.Andeventhen,nothingmuchcameoutofallthismaterial.SoItookthebigdecision:towriteabookwhichwouldpopularisethenewideasandhighlighttheexcitingrevelations.When I told Michele, she heaved a big sigh. For years the family had followed mypersonalquest; thechildrenhadgrownintheshadowof ‘AncientEgypt’, tellingtheother

kidsatschoolthatdaddyworkedwithKingTutwhenaskedwhatmyjobwas.LuckilyI’dhadsomegoodengineeringconsultanciesduringtheyears,andthefavourablesaleofourproperty in Sydney, which had trebled in value in three years, meant that we could befinanciallysolventforanothereightmonths,ayearperhapsbystretchingthebillsalittle.Itwasnowornever.Michelesighedagainandnoddedwithasmile.A good 386 computer with a 40 MB memory, a new word-processing program, theconversionofa spareroomintoanofficeand thebookwason itsway. I felthappyandsurethatthiswastherightthing.Iputasidethetraumasandworriesallnewauthorsface,the doubt of ever getting published and the terrible lacunae when words simply do notcome,and forgedon.ByNovember Ihadalmostcompleteda firstdraft.Then,needingaspecialisedbookwhichI thoughtmightbefoundinOxford,Igavemyself thedayoffanddrovemylittleMini-Rovertothatstimulatingcity.

9INTERMEZZOATTHEPYRAMIDS

Imhotep, thearchitectofZoser…iscreditedbyManethowithhavingbeenthe inventorof theartofbuilding inhewnstone…hisachievementsbecamelegendaryamonglatergenerationsofEgyptians,whoregardedhimnotonlyasanarchitectbutasamagician,anastronomer,andthefatherofmedicine…[and]…theGreekswiththeirowngodofmedicine,Asklepios

—I.E.S.Edwards,ThePyramidsofEgypt

Ofthese(theFourthDynastykings)thethirdwasSuphis,thebuilderoftheGreatPyramid,whichHerodotussayswasbuilt byCheops.Suphis conceiveda contempt for the gods, but repentingof this, he composed theSacredBook,whichtheEgyptiansheldinhighesteem.

—Manetho,Aegyptiaca(epitome),accordingtoEusebius

IAMeetingofWays

DrivingtoOxfordonthatcoldmorning,Ihadtheheateronfullblastinthelittlecar.AtlastIwas rid of a persistent lung infectionwhich I had apparently caughtwhileworking inKashmirinnorthernIndia.Ihadgonethereonashortconsultancy,whichwastobemylastengineering jobbefore gettingdown towriting thebook. It had taken severalmonths ofantibiotictreatmenttocleanouttheinfection,butnow,ontheM40motorwaytoOxfordIfeltfine.I wanted to buy a copy of the Hermetica, an ancient collection of texts written inAlexandriasometimeintheSecondCenturyADbyGreek-EgyptianswhoascribedtheirworkstoHermes Trismegistos, supposedly theAncient Egyptianwisdom godThoth, inventor ofhieroglyphics and science.1 The last English translation was in 1924 by the Hellenichistorian, Walter Scott, and I was hoping to find a copy in a second-hand bookshop inOxford.Asitturnedout,Iwasoutofluck;theirlastcopyhadgoneyearsago,andnooneelse had any either. Just as I was leaving the bookshop, the young assistant called me.Apparently his computer had shown that a small publisher in Dorset, Solos Press, hadbroughtoutapaperbackeditiononlyafewdayspreviously.ItooktheaddressandsaidIwouldorderthebookdirect.Solos Press is owned by Adrian Gilbert. He had started it two years earlier and hadpublishedfourbooks,oneofwhichhehadwrittenhimself.2Hisspecialitywasthere-issueofunusualbookswhichhadbeenoutofcirculationbutwerestillindemandbyspecialised

readers, and his last project had been a new edition of Scott’s Hermetica. I phoned hisdistributorsandaskedforAdrian’shomenumberbutbycoincidencehehappenedtobeathisdistributorswhenIcalled.Aswetalked,we foundthatwehada lot incommon.Likeme,hehadlongbeeninterestedinAncientEgyptianreligionandespeciallythepyramids.Inside this new edition of Hermetica, Adrian had written his own long Foreword aboutAncientEgypt,andIwasintriguedbysomeofhiscommentsandthelinkhesawbetweentheHermeticaandAncientEgyptiantexts.WehappilyexchangedviewsonthisfascinatingsubjectuntilIrealisedthatwehadbeentalkingfornearlyanhour.ItoldAdrianaboutmyforthcomingbookandaskedhimwhetherhewouldbeinterestedinpublishingit.Hesaidhewouldliketoseethetextandweagreedtomeetsoon.Wemetearly inDecember,andwithinanhourwehaddecidedtoco-authoraseriesofbooks,thefirstofwhichwouldbeTheOrionMystery.Adrian’sexperiencewasinvaluable:hequicklyworkedoutawritingplanandinaweekorsoTheOrionMysterywasonitsway.Ihadbeenworking in isolationfar too long,andAdrianbrought freshenergyandimpetusthat got the project off the ground. Being now a team, we decided on further lines ofresearch that we could share between us, so that other neglected aspects of the stellarreligioncouldbedeveloped.Thereweretwomajorlineswhichneededstudyandlinkingtothemainstreamof the thesis: themysterious relic, theBenbenStone in theTempleof thePhoenix,andadevelopmentoftheprecessionalstar-clockeffectsoftheshaftsinCheops’spyramid.3

Soonafterwards,DrEdwardstelephonedtoaskifIhaddoneanystudiesontheshaftsintheQueen’sChamberofCheops’sPyramid.ItoldhimthatIhadpublishedanarticleinDE16twoyearsbefore.HewaseagertoknowwhatIthoughtaboutthemandItoldhimthatmyprecessioncalculationsshowedthatthesouthernshafthadbeentargetedtowardsSiriusand thatmyconclusions, therefore,were thatneither theshaftsnor theQueen’sChamberwasabandoned.Hesaidthathewasn’ttoosureaboutthat,andwasgoingtosendmeanarticle he hadwritten on the subject whichwas due for publication the following year.4Then he suddenly told me that a German scientific team, working under Dr RainerStadelmannoftheGermanArchaeologicalInstituteinCairo,wereexploringtheseshaftsatpresent.ThiswasimportantnewsandIdecidedtotakeatriptoEgyptassoonaspossible.Adrian and his wife, Dee, an amateur photographer who was already working on thepicturesforourbook,decidedtheywouldcometoo.WeplannedtoleavearoundtheendofFebruary1993,whichwouldgivemetimetoarrangefortheinterviewsIwantedtosecureinEgypt.IwasespeciallykeentomeetDrStadelmannandfindoutmoreabouttheshaft;Iwas, of course, hoping to get new data on the slopes and solve the discrepancies whichPetrie’sreadingweregiving.BytheendofFebruaryAdrianandIhadcompletedthefirstdraftofTheOrionMystery.Wewerenottoknowthatunexpectedeventswouldsoonforceustorewriteit.WeneededabreakanditseemedthiswasagoodtimetogotoEgyptanddosomefieldworkaswellastakingphotographsforthebook.AformalmeetingwithDrStadelmannhadbeenarrangedby my contacts in Cairo for the first week of March. The international press had beenrumblingonaboutfundamentalistterrorisminEgypt,buttheproblemseemedtobemostlyinUpperEgyptandCairowasquiet.ItelephonedmycousininEgypt,JosetteOrphanidis,and asked if tourists were restricted in that area. Quite the contrary; the Egyptian

authoritieswereanxious toplaydown theproblemandwerebendingoverbackwards tomakesurethattouristsenjoyedtheirvisits.Andbecausethevolumeofvisitorshaddroppedradically,thearchaeologicalsiteswerefreeoftheusualcrowds.ItwastheidealtimetogototheCairoarea,andespeciallypropitiousfortheitinerarywehadinmind.OffwewentfromLondonon26February.

IIAFatefulMeetingattheIsis-SiriusShaft

AdrianandDeestayedattheoldVictoriaHotel,agrandeépoquehotel in thebusydistrictnearRamsesSquare;IstayedwithJosetteandherhusband,John,inthequieterresidentialdistrictofMaadi.Theweatherwasgloriousandnot toohot.Wewere inhigh spiritsandDeewaseagertogetherfirstshotsoftheGizapyramids.ButthefirstshotwasnotfromDee’scamerabutarealexplosionatTahrirSquare,notfar

fromtheEgyptianMuseum.Terroristshadplacedapowerfulbombinasmallandcrowdedcoffee barwhere tourists and,more especially, students from theAmericanUniversity inCairogatheredfortheirmiddaybreak.Twotouristswerekilledandfourteenothers,mostlylocalpeople,werebadly injured.Wewereadvisednot towanderabout in centralCairo,andtostickto themajor touristsiteswhichwouldnowcertainly receive thebest securityEgyptcouldmuster.Itwouldbeevenbettertokeepawayfromthecrowdsanddoourownthing,whichiswhatwehadinmindanyway.Thefirstthingwedid,ofcourse,wastovisitGiza.ItwasoneofthosegloriousCairene

dayswhentheweatheristender:agentle,warmsunwithlimpidblueskyandasoftbreeze.Wewalkedforseveralhoursaroundthepyramidplateau,breathingthesoporificairofthedesert,richinoxygen.Westartedourtourfromthesouth-west,whereahighknollaffordsthevisitoramarvellousviewover thewholenecropolis.To thenorth-eastwere the threegiants, with Menkaura’s closest and the Great Pyramid farthest away. Even from thisdistance, a kilometre or so, itwas awesome.We spoke little, preferring to ‘listen’ to themonuments.Wewalkeddown to the thirdpyramid, the smallest. Standingbefore its south face,we

were confronted by a wall of stone, and our heads had to be tilted back to see the skyabove. The two larger pyramids disappeared from sight and, without their size forcomparison, the thirdpyramidwas a giant in its own right.We climbedoneof the littlesatellitepyramidsbehindus,andsattheretakinginthefulleffectofthemassiveenterprise.We then walked to the east face, and the third pyramid was dwarfed as the two othersloomed before us. We passed the east temples with their huge blocks of stone, someapparentlyweighingover200tons,andadmiredthefinejointing.Then,afteraten-minutewalkwewereat the footof thesecondpyramid,Khafra’smasterpiece. It is impossible toexplain theeffect thishasonthehumanmind;somanytimes Ihadstoodthereandeachtime I was awed, humbled and then exhilarated by the sight that towered towards theheavens.Wedecidednottoenteritbuttoproceedtothemainobjective:theGreatPyramidanditsmysteriousshafts.

WeclamberedthefewcoursesonthenorthfaceofKhufu’s(Cheops’s)pyramidwhichledtotheMa’amounentrance,andinwewent.Wewenttothefootoftheascendingpassageandlookedup:beforeuswasalonganddimlylitrectangulartunnelshootinghighintothepyramid. Crouching in awed silence, we began to climb deep into the monument. Afterwhatseemedlikeanendlessjourney,wereachedthejunctionoftheGrandGalleryandthehorizontalpassagewhichleadstotheQueen’sChamber.IlookedatAdrianand,almostoutofbreath,said ‘Isis’.Henodded.Crouchingagain,thistimeonalevelfloor,wemadeourwaytowardstheQueen’sChamber.Itwas27February1993;ineightdaysfromnowRudolfGantenbrinkwouldbemakingthesamecrouchedwalkcarryingthemetalcasecontainingthetinyrobot,andstartinghisexplorationofthisshaft.TheChamberwas empty of tourists— a rare occurrence, butwith the bomb at Tahrir

Square,theywerestayingintheirhotels.Westoodthere,thethreeofus,andgazedatthewalls, at the vaulted ceiling and the great ‘niche’ on the east side; then I pointed to theopeningofthesouthernshaft.OnlythreeweekslaterGantenbrinkwouldmakehishistoricdiscovery.

IIIARobotandaDoor

During thenext fewdayswevisitedakaleidoscopeof ancient sites—Saqqara,Dashour,Abusir,andalsothebustlingbazaarsofoldCairo.AtSaqqaraanoldreisandfriendofmine,Ibrahim,complainedofthedropintourists,thegaugeofhisweeklyincome.Maalesh,Itoldhim: that magical, all-soothing word which loosely translates as ‘never mind, it doesn’tmatter’.WemadehisdaybytakingaspecialtourtothefewclosedmastabasoftheFifthandSixthDynasties inthesouth-eastsideofZoser’spyramid.Thewallsofthesemastabaswerecoveredwithexquisitecarvingsofdaily scenes,andwith few tourists coming to seethem,theancientpaintworkhadsurvivedalmostunscathed,richincolouranddetail.Herea cowgiving birth to a calf, aided by twonakedEgyptians; there amother dressing heryoung, around her baskets of dates, oranges, melons and figs; young men fishing withspears on reed boats, their catch of Nile perch bursting out of the reed baskets. It wasmovingtoseesuchvividscenesofpeoplewholivedheremorethan4000yearsago,buttheatmospheredissipatedwhenagroupoftourists,whohaddecidedtobravethebombscares,arrivedwith cameras clicking and guides shouting commentaries and instructions. Itwastimetogo.I sawDr Stadelmann on 2March. A charming and friendlyman in his forties, hewas

frankabouttheworkinsidetheGreatPyramid.Heexplainedthatithadbeenstartedearlyin1991,undertheprojectteamleader,RudolfGantenbrink,anengineerandspecialist inrobotics,andthatitconsistedmainlyinimprovingtheventilationoftheGreatPyramid.As we have said, the Cheops Pyramid is unique; not only is it the largest and most

geometricallyperfectofthemallbut,unliketheothers,itcontainsanelaboratesystemofabove-ground chambers. It is also the one most visited by tourists and this has hadunfortunate consequences which could not have been foreseen when it was built. Eachpersonleavesbehindabouttwentygramsofwatervapourinbreathandperspiration,and

the air inside the pyramid had become unhealthy and overly humid. Not only was thisuncomfortableforthetourists,whowerepayingtogoinside,butitwascausingleachingofsalt crystals inside the passages and chambers, making the porous limestone act like asponge.Inplaceswaterwasdrippingfromtheceiling.Saltandmineralswithinthestonewere dissolved by the excessive condensation and seeped through to the surface, formingunsightlygrowthswhichwouldeventuallycauseflaking.Somethinghadtobedonetostopthis process before the limestone blocks began to crumble and the whole edifice becameunsafe.ThetaskoffindingasolutiontotheproblemwasputinthehandsoftheGermanArchaeologicalInstituteandtheycalledRudolfinasaconsultanttocarryoutthework.Themostobvioussolutiontotheimmediateproblemofhumiditywastoincreasetheairflow throughout the pyramid. This was not so difficult because there were already inexistence two small shafts running from theKing’sChamber (theuppermostof the three)through thecoreof thepyramid to theoutside. It seemed likely thatonce theseair-shaftshadbeencleanedandmade toworkmoreeffectively, theatmosphere inside thepyramidwouldimprove.Accordingly,RudolfandhisteamdesignedandbuiltamachinecalledUPUAUT(meaning‘openeroftheways’inAncientEgyptianandoriginallythenameofajackalgodassociatedwiththedead).ThisdevicehadacameramountedonitandcouldbehauledupanddowntheshaftsbypulleysandcablesfixedintheKing’sChamber,allowinginspectionoftheductsfromtheinside.Oncethedebrisofcenturieshadbeenremovedfromtheshafts,aseriesofheavydutyelectricfanswerefittedintothemsothatfreshairwouldconstantlybedrawnupintothepyramid.Bythissimplemeansthehumidityinsidewasbroughtdowntotheambientlevelofthedesertoutside,makingtheatmospherehealthierforvisitorsandsafeguardingthepyramidfromfurtherdeterioration.This first phase of the work was now complete and Ganten-brink had returned to hishome inMunich, tobringbackanew robot, UPUAUT 2, to explore the shafts in theQueen’sChamber.Unlikethefirstrobot,ithaditsowntractionsystemsothatitcouldclimbupanddown the shafts unaided. It also carried headlights, a laser guidance system and a smallvideo camera, to send back pictures to a monitoring console. UPUAUT 2 was a highlysophisticatedrobotandlookedlikearemote-controlledmoonbuggy.Gantenbrinkwasnotduebackuntil6March,andStadelmannsaidhewouldarrangeameeting for7March. Isaid this was cutting it fine for me, since we were leaving Egypt that day. StadelmannhopedGantenbrinkmightseemeontheeveningofthesixth,buthecouldnotpromisethis.

IVAMeetingWithGantenbrink

On5March,afteralongeveningwalkontheGizaplateau,withtheconstellationofOrionputting on a wonderful display at the meridian, I left a note at his hotel for RudolfGantenbrink. Iwashopinghewouldbeable to seeme the followingeveningandgiveabriefinterview.Thenext eveningmycousinJohn returned fromwork inhisgleamingwhiteMercedes,whichunfortunatelyattractedahordeofstreetbeggars.ItwasnotanormalsightinMaadi,

asJohnandIknew;itwasasignofthetimes,andthingswerefarworsethantheEgyptianauthorities wanted to admit, even to themselves. John then drove me to Gantenbrink’shotel, where the receptionist said he had just arrived with two colleagues and had leftinstructionsformetocallhisroom.RudolfGantenbrinkisayoungandhandsomemaninhislatethirties.Hegreetedmeinfriendly fashionandaskedme to joinhimandhis team fordinner.Withhimwas a filmproducer from LosAngeles, Jochen Breitenstein.5 Gantenbrink explained that theywouldresumeexplorationinthesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberthefollowingday;tonighttheywantedtorelaxoveragoodmealandafewbeers.Wetooktoeachotherimmediately,andtheconversation,ofcourse,wasofEgyptandthePyramids.Wetalkedoftheworryingpolitical situation brewing in Egypt and the pitiful condition of the archaeological sites.JochenBreitenstein felt very strongly about this, andwas depressed that themonumentswere suffering from lack of attention and vandalism by tourists who were not properlysupervised.GantenbrinkwasparticularlyconcernedwiththeSetiIcenotaphatAbydosandthe tomb at Luxor. He said that the wonderful paintings and reliefs, many depictingastronomical scenes,hadsufferedbadly fromvandalismandperhapsevenmore fromthealarming increase in humidity. The Seti I tomb, like many others such as the tomb ofTutankhamen, was now closed but little was being done about repairing it because fewknowhowtoproceed.Apparentlytheroofofthecenotaphwasslowlycollapsing.Rudolf’sinterestinEgyptologyhadbegunwhenheheardoftheshaftsandrealisedthathisrobotscouldhelpinthissortofexploration.Hehadalreadytakenhisnewrobot,UPUAUT2,abouttwentymetresupthesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber,showingthattheshaftwasnotabandonedbyitsoriginalbuilders.Theyhadstoppedtheexplorationtomakesomemodifications to themachine so as to godeeper into the shaft.Gantenbrinkhadno ideahowdeep,butsaidwemightbesurprisedbywhatmightbefoundintheend.Hewonderedwhatmyprognosiswasnowthathehadbeentoldofmyastronomicalfindings.Isaidthatwhateverwas foundwouldbe something todowith Isis andOsiris, something connectedwiththeirstellaridentity.HesmiledandassuredmeIwouldbeoneofthefirsttoknowtheresults.Healsopromisedtosendmehisnewmeasurementsontheslopesoftheshafts,andhinted thatPetrie’smeasurementswerenot quite right. Thiswas excitingnews.Thedatawouldbereadywithinaweekorso,andhepromisedtofaxmethenewreadingassoonashehadclearance todo so.Wepartedwith theusual exchangeofaddressesandhoped tomeetagain.ItwasquitelatewhenwegotbacktoCairothatevening,thoughthestreetswerefullofpeople.ThiswasRamadan,themonthoffasting,andtheCaireneslovedtocomeoutlateatnight to ‘smell the breeze’ of the Nile. I picked up Adrian and Dee and drove throughHeliopolis and to the airport. They had returned the night before from Luxor and wereeagertotellmeaboutthewonderfulsightstheyhadseen.ItoldthemofthemeetingwithGantenbrink,andweallagreedthatwehadaccomplishedmorethanwehadhoped.

VUPUAUTattheEndoftheShaft

IdecidedtotackletheprecessionproblemswiththeshaftsassoonasRudolfsentthenewmeasurements.BytheendofMarch,IhadsentafewfaxestoGantenbrinkremindinghimofthedataIneeded,buthadreceivednoreplies.Iassumedhewasbusyandwouldattendto itwhenhe could.Deep in our own research,we forgot abouthis explorationuntilweheardonthenewson30MarchthatabombhadexplodedinthepyramidofKhafra.Thestorywas confusingand itwasnot clearwhathadactuallyhappened. I sent a fax toDrStadelmannaskingifRudolfwasallright,butgotnoanswer.OnthefirstofAprilIdecidedtotelephone:Stadelmannwasnot inCairoandRudolfwasbackinMunich.Stadelmann’ssecretaryassuredmethatithadnotbeenabombbutafaultyelectricalconnectionwhichhad caused the explosion in the second pyramid. It was then that I received a fax fromRudolfapologisingforthedelayandgivingthemeasurements fortheslopesof theKing’sChambershafts.AsIsuspected,theywereslightlydifferentfromPetrie’sandconsequentlyfrom those used by Badawy and Trimble in their calculations.6 The table shows thecomparison.

Shaft Gantenbrink Petrie

King’sChambersouthernshaft: 45°00′00′ 44°30′00′

King’sChambernorthernshaft: 32°28′00′ 31°00′00′

Queen’sChambersouthernshaft: 39°30′00′ 38°28′00′

I realised immediately that because all slopes were slightly steeper than previouslyassumed,theageoftheGreatPyramidwouldproveslightlyyounger,andIquicklydidthecalculations.Thesouthandnorthshaftsof theKing’sChamberwere targeted toA1Nitak(ZetaOrionis)andAlphaDraconisrespectively;thesouthshaftoftheQueen’sChambertoSirius.ThedatesIgotwere:

The conclusion was inevitable. The Great Pyramid was built somewhere between 2475BCand2400BC, thusanaverageepochofc.2450BC.Thiswasnews. IquicklycalledDrNibbiandsheagreedtotaketwoarticles,oneinDiscussionsinEgyptology26andtheotherinthefollowingissue.7

The real excitement was that Rudolf’s latest measurements confirmed that the twosouthernshaftswerebuiltataboutthesametimeandthatthetopshaftpointedtoAlNitak,theloweststar inOrion’sBelt(andnotAlNilam,themiddlestar),whichcorrespondedtotheGreatPyramidintheOrionCorrelationTheory.Thethreeshaftsnowlockedinperfectlytothestarsandtheepochofc.2450BC.RudolfhadnodatayetonthenorthernoneintheQueen’sChamber,buthethoughtitmightbecloserto39degrees.Aquickchecksuggested

thesamedateofc.2450BCforthecentreofthefourstarsformingthe‘head’ofUrsaMinor,theLittleBearconstellation.8

Rudolfhadtoldmeofhisdiscoveryonthetelephoneandon4AprilavideotapearrivedfromMunich.IquicklyputthetapeinandwatchedastherobotappearedoutsidetheGreatPyramid. Rudolf put the robot into the opening of the southern shaft in the Queen’sChamberandthenguideditwiththecontrolsonaworktopinsidethechamber.Therobotbeganfilminginsidetheshaft.Slowlyandlaboriouslyitclimbed,goingupwardsforaboutsixty-fivemetresbeforecomingtoastop.Infrontofit,clearlyvisible,waswhatlookedlikeaminiatureportcullisslab,ofthesortusedbytheEgyptianstosealoffaburialchamber.Attachedtotheslab,orslidingdoor,weretwocopperfittings,oneofwhichwasbroken,afragment of it lying on the floor of the shaft. This last part of the shaft was linedwithpolishedTura limestone,whichas far asweknowwasused inside thepyramidsonly forliningchambersandwasconsideredsacredby thepyramidbuilders. Itcouldalsobeseenfromthemovementoftherobot’slaserbeamthattheslabattheendoftheshaftwasnotfully in contact with the floor but left a gap of about half a centimetre; there was atriangular chip removed from one corner, providing a tantalising glimpse of a groovedchannelandadarkrecessbeyond.Thoughnotconclusive,thevideoevidencewasthatwhatwewerelookingatwasahatchwayleading,perhaps,tosomehiddenchamber.IgrabbedthephoneandcalledRudolf.Icongratulatedhimontheamazingdiscoveryandwediscussed thedetails that Ihadobservedon thevideo.Hewas,of course, reluctant tospeculatewhatmightbebeyondthe‘door’,buthehadtroublehidinghisexcitement.Itoldhimthiswasbignewsandthatheshouldgotothepress;infact,Iwasreallysurprisedthatnothing had come out in the Egyptian papers.He had heard that theywere preparing astatement,buthewasnotsure.IurgedhimtoconsiderlettingmegototheBritishmediaandatleastmakesurethatthestorynamedhimasthediscoverer.IdecidedthatIshouldtry The Times or the Daily Telegraph. I called the Telegraph and got one of the editors,ChristineMcGourty;aninterviewwasarrangedandthestorywasduetoappearon7April.Meanwhile I asked Rudolf if I could show the tape to Dr Edwards, and he agreed. Heallowedmetoshowittoanyonewhowasinterested,provideditwasnotbroadcastonTVchannelsorphotographstakenfromit.IcontactedAdrianandsuggestedhecomeoverrightaway.

15.OrientationofthefourshaftsintheGreatPyramid

On6April,thedaybeforethearticlecameoutintheTelegraph,AdrianandIarrangedtoshow the tape to DrMalek and his colleagues at the Griffith Institute at the AshmoleanMuseum.Theywerestunned,andavigorousdebateensuedastowhatexactlywehadallseen.One thingwascertain; therewasnodoubting the importanceofRudolf’sdiscovery.Even assuming that no chamber existed beyond the slab, thiswas the first time that anyancient metal has been found inside the pyramid and if the copper fittings on the doorturnedouttocontainmorethanabout2percentoftin,theentirebronzeagewouldhavetoberedated(Appendix8).Eventhescepticsinouraudiencecouldn’thelpbeingexcitedatthepossibilityofafindcomparablewithTutankhamen’stomb.We thendrove toDrEdwards’shomeand showedhim the tape.Hewas thrilled at thediscovery,andwonderedifmoredatawereavailable.WecalledRudolfinMunich,andheandDrEdwardshadalongconversation.DrEdwardswantedtoseethetapeseveraltimes,each timepickingoutnewdetailsandaskingmorequestions.Hewas,of course,keen toknowhowfartheshaftextendedabovetheflooroftheKing’sChamber.Aroughcalculationshowedthatitwentabouttwentymetresabovethatlevel,andthisalonesuggestedthattheQueen’sChamberhadnotbeenabandoned.Itwaspyramidhistoryinthemaking,andDrEdwards suggested thatRudolf should come toEngland immediately togivea talkat theBritishMuseum.ThenextdaytheTelegrapharticleappeared. Itwasonpage4andbarelyadozen lineswere devoted to the discovery. Dr Edwards said he’d had trouble finding it; surely itdeservedmorethanthis?Rudolfwassatisfiedwiththecontent,buthetoowassurprisedatthe small spacedevoted to it. I contactedChristineMcGourtyandasked if theywerenotinterested indoing somethingbigger. She said that theEasterHolidayswere comingandmosteditorswereeagertotieuptheirstoriesbeforethen,andwithoutpicturestherewasnot much they could do. Rudolf and I agreed that I should go to Munich to discuss thequestionofpicturesthathemightprovideforme.Rudolf showedme various video tapes on the shafts and one which he thought wouldespeciallypleaseme.Itwasthefilmingofthe‘Orion’shaft,thesouthernoneoftheKing’sChamber.IthadbeentakenbyUPUAUT I,andthepictureswerebreathtaking,thefaintspeckoflightfromtheoutsideofthesouthfaceofthepyramidbecominglargerandlargeruntilitwas a sizeable rectangular opening. Rudolf’s assistant, who was on the outside of thepyramid,standingprecariouslyonthefaceofthemonument,pulledtherobotoutandthevideo camerakept on filming the stunningviewof the secondand thirdpyramids belowandtheNileValleytotheeast.Itwasforme,inmanyways,farmoreexcitingthanthefilmshowingthe‘door’.UPUAUTI,inawaytheancientarchitectswouldneverhaveimagined,hadmadethevoyageofthesoulofKhufuthroughthenarrowshaftleadingtothestars.

I returnedtoEnglandonthe tenthofAprilwithsixphotographs for thenewspapers.TheTelegraphsaidthattheymightconsiderdoingsomethingafterEaster,butthatIwasfreetotryotherpapers.EventuallythestorycameoutintheIndependenton16April.ThatsamedayChannel4Newscontactedmeandwearrangedtoshowsomeof thephotographsonthe seven o’clock bulletin that evening. Rudolf was interviewed by telephone and DrEdwardsmadealiveappearance.Tooursurpriseandexcitement,whenaskedwhatmight

bebehindthe‘door’,EdwardssaidhethoughttheremightbeastatueofthekinggazingoutattheconstellationofOrion.9TheOrionMysteryhadmadeitontonationwidenews.ThenextfewweekssawusbusywiththeBritishMuseumconference,whichtookplaceon22April,onemonthafter thehistoricdiscovery.10Adrianand IorganisedRudolf’sarrivalwith UPUAUT 2 and the technical preparations for the video and slide showing. Many ofEngland’stopEgyptologistswerethereandeagertoseethefilms:GeorgeHart,anexperton Ancient Egyptian religion; Richard Parkinson, a specialist in Egyptian texts; CarolAndrews,aseniormemberoftheprofessionandoldfriendofDrEdwards;T.G.H.James,the previous Keeper; Dr VivienDavies, the present Keeper, andDr Robert Anderson, theDirectoroftheBritishMuseum.SuchaneminentgatheringwasagreathonourforRudolf,who returned the gesture by a surprise donation of UPUAUT 2 to the BritishMuseum on thecondition‘thatImaybeallowedtoborrowitwhentheexplorationresumes’.Assuringhimthat the famous robot was in good hands, Dr Davies and his colleagues wished him asuccessfulcontinuationofhiswork.Therewasnospeculationaboutwhatmightbebehindthe‘door’,buttherewasnodoubtthateachpersontherehadhisorherownidea.Inthemeantime,Rudolfhadotherplans:hisambitionwastocreateafoundationforthepreservation and restoration of monuments in Egypt, and he hoped that his high-techapproach was going to rouse the interest and raise adequate funds for this cause. HisimmediateconcernwasthealarmingdeteriorationoftheSetiItombandcenotaph,whichwas to be the first task of his new foundation. He began the legal and administrativepaperworktocreatetheUpuautFoundation,andannouncedthatitspurposewasto‘doforarchaeologywhatJacquesCousteauhaddone foroceanography’:popularisea fascinatingworldwhichhadbeenforgotten.Adrianand Iwereworkingonabig conferenceplanned for21Juneat theFédérationNationale des Travaux Publics in Paris. Through this I met Professor Jean Kerisel, whopresidedat theconference.Kerisel,anactiveman inhisearlyeighties, is regardedas thegrand engineer of Egyptian archaeology. Holder of the Légion d’Honneur, the Croix deGuerreandalonglistoftitlesandimportantpostsinscientificengineering,heisatpresentthe Secretary-general of the Franco-Egyptian Society in Paris.11 His advice in the comingmonthwouldbeinvaluable.TheParisconferencewasaresoundingsuccessforRudolf,withmanyofthebignamesinFrench Egyptology present: Jean-Philippe Lauer, author and expert on the Saqqara step-pyramids; Jean Vercoutter, author and president of the French Egyptological Society,previously the famous Mission Française d’Egyptologie, begun under Napoleon; JeanLeclant,discovererofpyramidtextsinSaqqaraandSecrétaire-Perpetueldel’AcademiedesInscriptions et Belles Lettres,where 150 years ago Champollion hadmade his celebratedannouncement of the deciphering of hieroglyphics, and many other prominent membersand scholars of the scientific sectors of France. Kerisel had been interested in my OrionCorrelation Theory and the recent precession calculations relating to the shafts, and hadaskedme to show a few overhead slides to Jean Leclant and others who had expressedinterest.LeclantseemedtoagreethatthePyramidTextswereexpressingtextuallywhattheFourth Dynasty had expressed in the astronomical-architecturalmedia of themonumentsthemselves.ManyoftheFrenchresearcherspresentfeltthatthestarreligionofthePyramid

Textsneededafreshapproach.Atlastmymissionwasreachingitsgoal.ThelatestmeasurementsfortheshaftsconfirmedtheuncannyaccuracyofthebuildersoftheGreatPyramidwhentheyfocusedonSiriusandOrion’sBelt.Sincethechanceswerethatthey had been aware of precessional changes, they probably knew that the shafts weremarkinganepoch(c.2450BC). InEgyptianreligioustextsweoftenhearoftheFirstTime,whenOsiris ruledEgyptduringa firstgoldenage.12Whenwas thisFirstTime?Could theshaftsbeusedwithprecessiontoworkthisout?AndwasittodowiththeprecessionalcycleofOrion’sBelt?The excitement surroundingRudolf’s discovery had now to be put behind us aswe gotbacktoourownproject.WedecidedtolookmoredeeplyintothequestionofprecessionalcyclesandwentbacktoSkyglobe3·5toworkoutwhenOrion’sBeltbeganitslastcycle.

10THEGREATSTAR-CLOCKOFTHEEPOCHS

WeknowontheauthorityofMosesthatlongeragothan6000yearstheworlddidnotexist…

—MartinLuther

Theworldwascreatedon22October,4004BCatsixo’clockintheevening

—JamesUssher,AnnalsoftheWorld,1650

…manwascreatedon23October4004BCatnineo’clockinthemorning…

—DrJohnLightfoot,1859,theyearCharlesDarwinpresentedhiswork

IThe‘FirstTime’inAncientEgypt

ToknowthetruthaboutEgypt’spast,weshouldperhapsheedthewordsofthewisevizier,Ptahhotep,wholivedintheFifthDynastyduringthePyramidAge:

GreatistheTruth,enduringisitseffectiveness,forithasnotbeendisturbedsincetheTimeofOsiris…1

Everycivilisationhas lookedfar into itsmythicalpastandprovideditselfwithadivinepedigree. For the Greeks this was the Olympian epoch, when the gods fraternised withmortals,asHomerdescribedintheIliadandtheOdyssey.FortheHebrewsitwasthetimeofGenesis and the Patriarchs, expounded in the Old Testament. For the Egyptians, whosecivilisation preceded the Greeks and the Hebrews, the first golden age, when godsfraternisedwithhumans,wascalledTepZepi,whichtranslateslooselyastheFirstTime.2

Theybelieved that thesystemofcosmicorderand its transference to the landofEgypthadbeenestablishedalongtimebeforebythegods.Egypthadbeenruledbyaraceofgodsformanymillenniabefore itwasentrustedtothemortalyetdivine lineofpharaohs.Thepharaohswerethesacerdotalconnectionwiththegodsand,byextension,representedthelink with the First Time; they were the custodians of its established laws and wisdom.Everythingtheydid,everyaction,everymove,everydecreehadtobejustifiedintermsoftheFirstTime,whichservedasasortofcovenantofkingship,toabidebyandtoexplaintheiractionsanddeeds.Thiswastruenotonlyforthekingandhiscourtbutappliedtoallnaturalevents:themovementofthecelestialbodies,theunexplainedphenomenaofnatureandtheebbingandrisingwatersof theNile. Itwouldnotbeanexaggerationtosaythateverything a pharaoh did was connected with the First Time; hence, the careful re-enactmentofmythicaleventswhichcouldbeeithercosmicorsecularorbothcombinedina

dualitybythepowerofsymbolsandrituals.ItisnotsurprisingthatthisblissfulFirstTimewasinvariablyreferredtoastheTimeofOsiris.3

TheruleofOsirisonearthwasseenasEgypt’shappiestandmostnobleepochandwasbelievedtohavebeeninthedistantabyssoftime,longbeforethatwhichEgyptologistsarewillingtoacceptasrealistic.WhentheEgyptiansbuiltthepyramids,theywerethinkingofanimportanteventthatrelatedtotheFirstTime;whateverthatmighthavebeen,wenowknowithadsomethingtodowiththestarsand,moreparticularly,thestarsofOrionandthestarSirius—thecosmiclandsofthesouls.Whatmakes the First Time so interesting is not just that the Egyptianswere adamantaboutitsrealexistencebutwouldpridethemselvesonbeingabletocomputeitsepoch,andindeedanyepochintheirpast.Todothattheywouldneedtobeawareofprecession.

IIThePriest-AstronomersofHeliopolis

Therehadbeena tendency to thinkof thePyramidAge,and thus thegreatpyramids,asbeingofoneepoch,onespecificdynasty,withaspecificgroupofkings.Yettheenterpriseattests something far more grandiose and developed than a temporary surge of creativepowerduringtheFourthDynasty.Allevidencesuggestsagreatplantofreezetimeinstoneor,betterstill,tomakethestonesthemselves‘telltheFirstTime’.Ananalogymayclarifythepoint.Areligiousmonumentisoftennottheexpressionofitsepochbutthattheepochwastechnicallyandartisticallycapableofexpressingtheoriginsofapastgoldenage.WhenSirChristopherWrenbuiltStPaul’sCathedralinLondoninthelateseventeenthcentury,heusedmoderntechnologyandartinarchitecturalcountenanceandsymbolismwhichhadChristianityasitssource.Itwouldbepreposteroustosuggestthatthereligionwascreatedbytheepochwhenthecathedralwasbuilt.ThesameappliestotheVaticanBasilicaofStPeter’s andothermonuments.Christianityhad itsgoldenagewhenJesusroamedtheland,andthecathedralisalaterepoch’sexpressionofitinthenew-foundmaterialabilitytobuildsuchedifices.ThereligiousexpressionofWren’sorMichelangelo’sprowessdrawsonideasformulatedinthefirsttothefifthcenturyAD.Howold,then,werethereligiousideasexpressedinthearchitectureoftheGreatPyramid?Centuries,millenniaormore?WhenwastheFirstTime?WehaveseenthatGastonMaspero,whodiscoveredthePyramidTexts,believedthatthereligious ideas they expressedwere several thousands of years older than the version hefoundinUnas’spyramid.4Wehaveseentoothatmanyphilologistsagreethatmuchoftheircontent is derived from sources going back to pre-dynastic times. Maspero proposed anantiquityofatleast7000years,5butmostEgyptologiststodayfindthisdifficulttoaccept,claimingthatitdoesnotfitthearchaeologicalevidence.Archaeologicalevidence,however,hasprovednotoriouslyfaulty,asintheabandonmenttheoryfortheQueen’sChamber.6

WhatdidtheEgyptiansfeelabouttheageoftheirreligion?AndwhatdidtheGreeks,forinstance,believeaboutEgypt’sancientorigins?IthasbeencommonsporttopittheAncientEgyptiansagainstthephilosophical‘genius’

oftheGreeks.EgyptiansagesaresaidtohavebeenbutpoorrelativestoSolon,Pythagoras,Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. As for the sciences ofmathematics and astronomy, expertssuch as Parker and Neugebauer felt that the mathematics was rudimentary calculationschildrenof ten could tackle, and the astronomy simplyquaint observationof the stars tointerpet superstitious beliefs and the doings of the gods. Whatever skills the Egyptiansmighthavepossessed, say theseexperts, their astronomywas lessdeveloped than thatoftheBabyloniansandtheGreeks.7YetsuchviewsareatoddswithwhattheAncientGreekssaidoftheEgyptiansagestheymadecontactwithintheearlypartofthefirstmillenniumBC.

MostAncientGreekandRomanauthorsbelievedemphaticallythatPythagoras,PlatoandevenHomerreceivedtheirphilosophyfromtheAncientEgyptians.8Diodorus(firstcenturyBC)tellsus:‘ThemosteducatedofGreekshaveanambitiontovisitEgypttostudythelawsandprinciplesofamostremarkablenature.Althoughthiscountrywasclosedtostrangers,thoseamong theancientsknown tohavevisitedEgypt:Orpheus,Homer,PythagorasandSolon…’9

ThegreatStrabo(64BC–AD25)hadthistosay:

The Egyptian priests are supreme in the science of the sky.Mysterious and reluctant to communicate, theyeventuallyletthemselvesbepersuaded,aftermuchsoliciting, to impartsomeof theirprecepts;althoughtheyconcealthegreaterpart.TheyrevealedtotheGreeksthesecretsofthefullyear,whomthelatterignoredaswithmanyotherthings…10

InhisfamousHistories,Herodotus(c.485–425BC),tellsus:

ItisatHeliopolisthatthemostlearnedoftheEgyptiansaretobefound…allagreeinsayingthattheEgyptiansbytheirstudyofastronomydiscoveredthesolaryearandwerethefirsttodivideitintotwelveparts,andinmyopiniontheirmethodofcalculationisbetterthantheGreeks…ThenameofnearlyallthegodscametoGreecefromEgypt…11

DionChrystomenos(AD30)alsopointedout:‘TheEgyptianpriestsmuchmockedtheGreeksbecause,onmanythings,theyhaveneverknownthetruth…’What seems tobeclear is that theEgyptianpriestswere regardedby theGreeksas the

keepersofgreatastronomicalwisdomwhichitwasnoteasytopersuadethemtodivulgetostrangers,whomtheyregardedasunworthyoftheirhighlevelsofculture.Indeed,strangersenteredEgyptonlywithgreatdifficultyinancienttimes—andpresumablyevengreaterinthe Pyramid Age. In the days of the Fourth Dynasty the primitive Greeks would haveappearedasbarbariansandotherEuropeansasnomorethancavementothesophisticatedandtechnologicallyadvancedEgyptianswhobuiltthegreatpyramids.ItwasnotuntiltheSaitePeriod (c.663BC) that foreignerswereallowed to enterEgypt freely,12 and learn itsmysteries.

SchwallerdeLubicz,themodernphilosopher,spentmostofhislifeshowingthatAncientEgypt was the true repository of philosophy and astronomy (which he termed ‘sacredscience’).Hewasconvincedthatmodernscholarsaresimplynotreadingtheancientsrightand that ‘there are many revisions to be brought to our judgements regarding ancientpeoplesofwhomonlytracesremain’.13

However,inaletterIgotfromaprominentEgyptologistworkinginCairo,Iwastold

Wehavenottheslightestproofthatthey[thepyramidbuilders]hadanytheoreticalorsystematicknowledgeofmathematics.They[hada]reallycute[sic]methodofdoingarithmeticaloperations…Iimaginetheytooktheyearly[Nile]inundationforgranted…Inmyopinionit’sinvainthatwelookforanymysteryinthepyramids,foranysecretmessageleftintheirtexts…14

Tousitisobviousthatthereisagreatmysteryhere,andthatitistimetobravethebarrierofexpertsandtrytodiscernitsmeaningandmessage.

IIIWhoSpeaksforAncientEgypt?

Schwaller de Lubicz pointed out that ‘there has never been a greater distance betweenconsciousnessesthanthereis inourtimebetweenWesternmentalityandthementalityoftheAncientEgyptiansages.’15KurtMendelssohn,whohad studied theEgyptianpyramidsformanyyears,putitthisway:

ThemaindifficultywhichEgyptologistsfacetodayis…thestateofmindofhumansociety5000yearsago…althoughman’sspiritualworld-picturehaschangedbeyondrecognition,thelawsofphysicsremainunaltered…theknowledgethatthesesamelawswereoperativeandhadtobeobeyed5000yearsago…providesareliablelinkbetweenthepyramidbuildersandourselves.16

Oneofthelawsofphysicsthatcouldbemostusefulintheunderstandingofthepastis,ofcourse,thePrecessionalmotionofourplanetanditseffectontheapparentpositionofthestars.TheviewnowamongEgyptologists—andindeedamongallstudentsofhistory—isthat

dynasticEgyptbeganc.3100BC.Beforethisepocheverythingisreferredtoaspre-dynastic,and,as farasgeneral textbooksareconcerned,Egyptmayaswellhavenothaveexistedbeforethen.WearetoldthatthefirstkingofEgyptwasMeneswhounifiedEgyptinabout

3100BCandsetuphiscapitalatMemphis.ButtheconceptofdynastieswasunknowntotheAncient Egyptians; as they saw it, there had always been, from the First Time, a line ofdivinekings,theHorus-kings,rightfulheirstothekingdomestablishedbyOsiris.TheepochoftheFirstTimewasalwaysperceivedasgoingbackwellbeyondthereignofMenes.From the beginning of scientific Egyptology, which is considered to have begun withChampollion’s deciphering of the hieroglyphs in 1822, there was confusion as to whenMenes’sreignhadbegun,letalonetheageofreligiousideas.Champollionplacedtheepochof theFirstDynasty at c.5867BC, andwehave listed the refinementswhichbrought it to4400BC.Brugsch’ssystemofchronology,basedonthreegenerationspercentury,wasagaindrastically ‘refined’ to c. 3400BC; the date has finally settled around c. 3100BC inmost oftoday’s textbooks. The technical reasons for all this hopping about since Champollion’sestimates are too tedious to review here. They were a mélange of textual analysis,astronomicalcalculations,carbondatingandastrongdashofpersonalguesses.ThemodernexpertswouldnotlettheAncientEgyptiansspeakforthemselves.The Egyptian source most commonly used was from a native priest named Manetho,probablyhighlyeducated,ahighpriestperhaps,whospokeGreekandlivedinLowerEgyptduringthereignofPtolemyIIPhiladephus(347–285BC).Manetho’sworkhasnotsurvived;we have only the commentaries on it by Sextus Africanus (c. AD221) and Eusebius ofCaesarea (c. AD 264–340).We have therefore to assume thatManetho’s royal chronologywasderivedfromreliablenativesources.Manethogroupedthepharaohsintothirtyhousesor dynasties; he also provided the Greek versions of pharaonic names: Khufu becameCheops, Khafra became Chephren, Menkaura Mycerinos and so on. Until the latenineteenthcentury,Manetho’s so-calledKing’sList17was theonlydipstick to testAncientEgyptian chronology. Other sources used laterwere the Abydos List from theNineteenthDynasty, the Saqqara List also from theNineteenthDynasty, the Turin Papyrus from theSeventeenthandthemysteriousPalermoStone,whichgivestheannalsofthekingsofthefirst five dynasties.18 It is Manetho, however, who has most influenced modernchronologists.

ManethoascribedgreatantiquitytopharaonicEgypt,andspeaksofanepochlongbeforeMenes which is quite mysterious. Sextus Africanus, who commented onManetho’s work,wasthefirstChristianhistorianwhodevotedhistimetoproducinga‘universalchronology’,most of which is compiled in his Chronographiai, which covers the time of ‘creation’ toAD221.AfricanusnaturallyreliedontheBibleasthefoundationofhisdating,andattemptedto synchronise the chronologiesof ancientEgypt,Chaldea,GreekmythologiesandJudaichistorywiththenewvisionsofChristianity.Thechronologicalcocktailheproduced,thicklylacedwithbias,canhardlybeimagined.EusebiusofCaesareawasthepersonalchroniclerofConstantinetheGreat,championandfounderofRomanChristianity,soperhapsalittlebiasisinvolvedtheretoo.EusebiuswasmoreconcernedwiththeformulationofatheorytomakehistoryconformwiththeChristianviewsofConstantineandprovethevalidityofthedeification of Constantine as Christianity’s first imperial saint. In short, both SextusAfricanusandEusebiuswerebiasedtowardsbiblicalandespeciallyRomanChristianviews

ofhistory.AccordingtoEusebius,Manetho’schronologyshowedthreedistinctepochsbeforeMenes:theruleofdemigodsfollowedbytheHorus-kings,togetherlasting15,150years;thenapre-dynasticlineofkingslastingafurther13,777years:thismeant28,927yearsbeforeMenes.Such great antiquity, and thus wisdom, bothered Eusebius. He therefore concluded: ‘The“year”Itakehowevertobealunaroneconsistingofthirtydays:whatwenowcallamonththeEgyptiansused to styleayear.’19 In thisway,Eusebius compressed28,927years into‘lunaryears’andreducedthosebeforeMenesto2206.DiodorusofSicily,ontheotherhand,gaveatotalof33,000yearsbeforeMenes.20ButperhapsmoresignificantarethecommentsintheTurinPapyrus,anoriginalEgyptiandocumentdatingfromtheSeventeenthDynasty(c.1400BC).ItwasfoundinEgyptintheearlynineteenthcentury,andwassoldtotheTurinMuseuminItaly.ThethirdepochbeforeMenescannotbedecipheredduetodamagewheretheperiodisgiven;thetwootherepochsarelistedasof13,420yearsand23,200years,atotal of 36,620.21 Egyptologists dismissmuch of this as reference not to historical but tomythical epochs. So, were the Ancient Egyptians and later the Greeks wrong about theantiquityofEgyptiancivilisation?Weknow thatCro-Magnonman, the earliest exampleofhomosapiens ormodernman,came on the arena of species evolution about 50,000 to 100,000 years ago. ScientificevidencesuggeststhatthesizeandshapeofCro-Magnonman’sbrainwassimilartothatofmodern man. Yet only 134 years ago Charles Darwin was viciously ridiculed for his‘heretical’ theory of evolution, and aroused anger from the experts and clerics whomaintainedthattheworldhadbegunwithGenesis,inc.4004BC.‘Ilaughed…tillmysidesweresore’,wroteAdamSedgwick,aBritishgeologist,inalettertoDarwinintendedtoridiculehistheories.SamuelWilberforce,bishopofOxford,declaredbeforetheBritishAssociationofSciencethatDarwin’stheorywasa ‘rottenfabricofguessand speculation’, and Louis Agassiz, a renowned Professor of Geology and Zoology atHarvardUniversity,cried, ‘ItrustIwilloutlivethismania’.22HowoldthenwasCreation,accordingtosomecontemporariesofDarwin?DrJohnLightfoot,vice-chancellorofCambridgeUniversity,wrotein1859that‘manwascreatedon23October4004BCatnineo’clock inthemorning’.23Acentury later, scientistsagreedthatourplanetwasatleast4·5billionyearsoldandthathominids,theancestorsofhumans,hadlivedoveronemillionyearsago.Thenin1979thepaleoanthropologistMaryLeakeyfoundafootprintpreservedinvolcanicash,believedtobethefootprintofanearlyhominid,possiblyanancestorofhumans,datingto3.6millionyearsago.Yetaccordingtopresentarchaeologicalevidence,wehavemovedfromcavedwellerstospacetravellers inlittle more than 5000 years. Could archaeological evidence again be wrong and couldEgyptiancivilisationbemucholderthanmodernscholarsconcede?

Wehave alreadymentioned thebennuor phoenixbird, andhow it provided theAncientEgyptianswith thenotionof creationandcosmic cycles related to the stars.24 It seems itwasthephoenix,returningafteralongperiodofabsence,whoopenedanewgoldenage.R. T. Rundle Clarkmentions a period of 1460 years,25 and in his extensive study of the

Egyptianphoenix,mentionsthissamedateandalso12,954years.26FourteenhundredandsixtyyearsistheSothicCycle,whichwasbasedontheobservationoftheheliacalrisingofSirius and its shift of one day every four years in relation to the 365-day calendar,completingafullcycle in4×365=1460years.27Butwhatarewetomakeof thevastperiodof12,954years?Whatcyclewasthat?DiditalsoapplytoSirius?Forthosefamiliarwith precession and its effects, 12,954 years is immediately familiar. It is a half-cycle ofprecessionofabout26,000yearsand,sofarasvisualeffectisconcerned,denotesthetimeforastartoreachitsmaximumandminimalrangeofaltitude/declinationchange.Let us take a hypothetical star and assume it started its upward precessional cycle of13,000 years; imagine that it crossed the south meridian at, say, 12 degrees above thehorizon. Every year it seems to havemoved a fraction higher, at the rate of roughly 12arcsecondsperyear.Afteralittlemorethantwocenturiesitcrossesthemeridianatabout13degreesaltitudeandsoon.Afterabout13,000yearsitreachesitsmaximumaltitudeof,say, 55 degrees above the horizon. It begins to go down at the same rate to reach itsminimalaltitudeof12degreesinanother13,000years,backtowhereithadstarted,readytobeginanothercycle.Sellershasdemonstratedcogentlythattheancientshadnotonlydividedthezodiacintotwelvepartsbutwereawarethatittookthesun2160yearstotravelthrougheachpartorage.28Theresultof2160×12=25,920years,theprecessionalcycle.Thishugeperiodoftime,thoughdividedintoepochsoragesof2160years,andtheseinturninto360degreesorportionsof72years(72×360=2160years),wasthefundamentalbasisofthebeliefinanEternalReturnofthefirstgoldenage.AthoroughstudyledSellerstomakethisforcefulstatement: ‘I am convinced that for ancient man, the numbers 72 … 2160, 25,920 allsignifiedtheconceptoftheEternalReturn.’29

ThesymbolofEternalReturnwas,ofcourse,thephoenix,thefabledbennu,andwehaveseenhowinthePyramidAgeitsrelicor ‘seed’, themysteriousBenbenStone,waskept inthe Temple of the Phoenix at Heliopolis. More importantly, the stylised replicas of theBenben Stonewere placed on top of great pyramids. Could these pyramids— andmoreespeciallythegreatpyramidsofGiza—beanomnipotentexpressionoftheEternalReturn,theprecessionalreturn?TheshaftsintheGreatPyramidareapowerfulindicationthatthisapproachisontherighttrack.

IVTheEternalReturnofthe‘FirstTime’

Wetendtothinkoftimeassomethingobservedwhenwelookatourwristwatchesorclocksoracalendar.Takeawaythesethingsandhowarewetoknowwhattimeitis?Howdoweknowwhichyearorepochitis?Unlessweareastronomersorkeennavigators,mostofusdon’thaveaclue.The ancient astronomer-priests of Heliopolis knew the secrets of time, because theyobservedandstudiedtheapparentmotionofthestars,themoonandthesun.Ifwedidtoofor long enough, most of us would arrive at a variety of calendrical conclusions: the

divisionsofhoursinaday,thenumberofdaysinayear,thenumberoflunarmonthsinayear.Fewwouldknow,however,howtofixayearwithamarkersothat in,say, fourorfivecenturiessomeonecoulduseourmarkerandtelltheepoch.Theastronomer-priestsofHeliopolisknewhow todo this,and thiswasprobablyoneof thegreat secrets theykeptjealously for themselvesand, later, from theGreeks.The secretwas theawarenessof theprecession of stars and the ability to calculate the rate of change for those ofOrion, theHyadesandSirius.30

16.ThePositionoftheconstellationofOrionthroughtheages

It is customary to attribute the discovery of precessional motion to Hipparchus ofAlexandria(c.180–125BC),butmanyscholars,Zäba,Sellers31andSchwallerdeLubicz32,forexamplehavearguedthattheAncientEgyptianshadworkeditoutlongbeforetheGreeksand probably prior to the Pyramid Age. We have seen how the Greeks attributed theirastronomicalknowledge to theEgyptianpriestsofHeliopolis andMemphisandheld thatthe sages ofHeliopolis knewmanyof themysteries of the stars.Wehave also seenhowscholarsofthePyramidTextsagreethatthestellarcultwasanelementintheliturgywhichmight predate the Pyramid Age by several centuries, perhaps several millennia. TheEgyptians’ special interest was observing the rising of stars and their transit at themeridian,with particular reference to Sirius and the stars ofOrion, so itwas practicallyinevitable that they noticed the effects of precession on these stars. As a simple rule ofthumb,precessioncausesachangeindeclinationofjustunderhalfadegreepercenturyforthese stars. Itwouldhave takenacentury, twoat themost, for theAncientEgyptians tonotice the effects of precession. Taking Zeta Orionis (Al Nitak) to exemplify the case,calculations show that the change in risingpoint between, say, 3000BC and 2800BCwouldhavebeen1.3degreesofarcasseenfromHeliopolis:

3000BC:Azimuth 110.4degrees

2800BC:Azimuth 109.1degrees

Variation 1.3degrees

This is nearly three times the apparent size of the full moon and impossible not to be

noticedbystargazerswhoconstantlyrecordedtherisingofstars. If theobservationsweremade at themeridian transit, the apparent variation in altitude over the horizon wouldhavebeen:

3000BC:Altitude 42.5degrees

2800BC:Altitude 43.5degrees

Variation 1.0degree

This gives one degree of change; again, noticeable to the naked eye. Thus if theAncientEgyptians were aware of the fact that the stars shifted slowly and that this was easilymeasurableatmeridiantransit,theconclusionisinevitable:thearchitectwhodesignedthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberintheGreatPyramidandintentionallydirectedittoZetaOrionis,knewthatthisstarwouldeventuallychangealtitudeandalsoknewthatthestarwas‘fixing’apoint(c.2450BC)inthegreatcycleoftime.It seems reasonable to conclude that the architect also knew the rate of precessionalchange.TheTableshowsthechangesindeclinationandaltitudeatthemeridiantransitofAlNitakover13,000years.

Year Declination AltitudeatMeridian

AD2550 −1°50′ 58°11′

AD2500 −1°50′ 58°11′

AD2000 −1°54′ 58°07′

AD1000 −2°59′ 57°02′IBC −5°13′ 54°48′

1000BC −8°28′ 51°33′

2000BC −12°38′ 47°23′

2450BC −15°01′ 45°00′

10000BC −48°39′ 11°22′

10400BC −48°53′ 11°08′

10450BC −48°53′ 11°08′

[Source:SKYGLOBE3·5]

Looking fromHeliopolis, the lowestpointmarking thestartdateof thatcycle is10400BC,when Al Nitak had a declination of−48 degrees 53 minutes and it was 11 degrees 08minutesoverthesouthernhorizonatitsmeridiantransit.Thehighestpointmarkingtheend

date of that cycle is about AD2550, when the star would stay for a few decades at adeclinationaround−1degree50minutesandataltitude58degrees11minutesover thesouthhorizonatitsmeridiantransit.33Butwhatnowemergesfromthevisualpictureofthesouthernskyattheepochc.10400BCisthis:ThepatternofOrion’sBeltseenonthe ‘west’of theMilkyWaymatches,withuncannyprecision,thepatternandalignmentsofthethreeGizapyramids!Inc.2450BC,when theGreat Pyramidwas built, the correlationwas experiencedwhenOrion’s Belt was seen in the east at the moment of heliacal rising of Sirius, the perfect‘meridian tomeridian’patterns, i.e.,when the two images superimpose in perfectmatch;thisiswhenweseetheFirstTimeofOrion’sBeltinc.10450BC.Itcannotbecoincidence that suchaperfectarrangementof the terrestrialandcelestialcentral portion of the Osirian Duat, Rostau, occurs at the start of the great precessionalcycle at 10450BC. Why such a remote date? Why provide us with a precessional markerdefinedbythesouthernshaft, thatis, theBeltofOrionshaftoftheKing’sChamber?Whydid the architectwho designed this shaft and probably thewhole pyramidwant to drawattentiontothisremoteFirstTimedateofOsirisinc.10450BC?

VTheTimaeus:10450BC

If a stargazer watched Orion’s Belt from the region of Heliopolis c. 10450BC, and thenrecordedormarked thealtitudeat themeridianor risingpointon thehorizon,hewouldunwittinglyhavefixedtheFirstTimeofOsiris.Isthereanyindicationthatthiscouldhavehappened?

17.PositionsofRisingandCulminationofOrionthroughtheages

18 .Ataround10400BCthepatternintheskywasmirroredonthegroundbythepyramids

Werecall that Strabowrote in c.20BC, about one hundred years afterHipparchus, that‘theEgyptianpriestsaresupreme in thescienceof thesky’and that itwas theywhohad‘revealed to the Greeks the secrets of the full year [emphasis added], whom the latterignoredaswithmanyother things…’34Herodotus,writingc.450BC, about threehundredyears before Hipparchus, said that it was ‘at Heliopolis that the most learned of theEgyptians are to be found … all agree in saying that the Egyptians by their study ofastronomydiscoveredthesolaryearandwerethefirsttodivideitintotwelveparts…35

The question has to be asked: was the Giza Necropolis and, specifically, the GreatPyramidand its shafts,agreatmarkerof time,a sortof star-clock tomark theepochsofOsirisand,moreespecially,hisFirstTime?We are, of course, aware that 10450BC is far too remote for archaeologists andEgyptologiststoentertain,butthesefindingschallengethemtoexplain—ordispute—themountingastronomicalevidence.Readers of theGreek classicswill undoubtedly bring tomind the Timaeus dialogues ofPlato,wherehe revealed the tragic events of the lost civilisationofAtlantis. The story is

reportedtoPlatobyCritias,whosaidhegotitfromSolonwhenhevisitedthecityofSaisinLower Egypt.36 It had been told to Solon by Egyptian priests who said that mysteriouspeoplefromaplacecalledAtlantishadinvadedmuchoftheMediterraneanbasinaswellasEgypt some ‘nine thousand years’ ago, and that records of them still survived in Egypt.AnotheraspectofPlato’sTimaeuswhichhasaconnectiontoourthesisishisstatementthatthesoulsofhumansarethestarsandreturntothosestarswhentheydie.Platosaysthatthedemiurgemade‘soulsinequalnumberwiththestarsanddistributedthem,eachsoultoitsseveralstar…andhewhoshouldlivewellforhisduespanoftimeshouldjourneybacktothehabitationofhisconsortstar…’.37

Thereare,too,theso-calledHermeticTexts,writteninEgyptaroundAD200,38whicharesaidbyscholarstodrawheavilyonPlato’sTimaeus.39TheunknownauthorsoftheHermeticTextsclaimed,however,thattheirwisdomcamefromtheancientbooksoftheEgyptians.40InAsclepiusIIIoftheHermeticTexts,Hermes(theEgyptianwisdomgodThoth)41askshispupil: ‘Didyounot know,OAsclepius, thatEgypt ismade in the imageofheaven…?’42This question is intriguing, for Asclepiuswas associated by theGreekswith Imhotep, thelegendary sage and astronomer-architectwhodesigned the first step-pyramid at Saqqara.TheAncientEgyptianssaidThothwasresponsibleforthewritingofthesacredbookskeptatHeliopolis,severalofwhichdealtwiththesecretsofthemotionofthestars.43

Tworesearchersinpyramidstudies,W.R.FixandMarkLehner,havebeenboldenoughto say that the ‘Atlantis’ events in Egypt are likely to have happened in 10400BC.44 Thisdeductionisfascinating,becauseneitherauthorwasusingastronomytodeducethisremotedate;bothwerealludingtotheso-called‘readings’ofEdgarCayce,anAmericanclairvoyantwhodiedin1945.45Cayce46insistedthattheGreatPyramidwas,atleastinitsdesignstage,started around 10400BC, and that the lost records of Atlantis would be rediscovered in a‘hiddenchamber’ in the last twentyyearsof thismillennium.47 Itwould seem thatRudolfGantenbrinkisjustintime!Throughout thisbookwehave tried to staywith the facts.Butmuchaswe try to resistsuch unscientific statements, the Edgar Cayce ‘readings’, seen from the vantage point ofhind-sight,areeerie,whenitisknownthathediedin1945and,asfarasweknow,nevervisitedEgypt.We need now to look into themyth of the phoenix and its egg, the sacred Benben ofHeliopolis.

11THESEEDOFTHEPHOENIX

The legendof thephoenix transmitted fromcentury to centuryand fromgeneration to generation, is lost in thedimnessofitsorigins…

—Abbate-Pacha,‘LePhenixEgyptien’

… his relatives ordered that his body should be mummified in the best possible way, so that his soul and hisintelligence,whentheyreturnedsomethousandsofyearshencetoseekhisbodyinthetomb,mightfindhis‘genius’therewaiting,andthatallthreemightenterintothebodyandrevivifyit,andlivewithitforeverinthekingdomofOsiris…

—Wallis-Budge,TheMummy

ITheFlightoftheFire-Bird

OneofthestrangestandleastunderstoodmythsofAncientEgyptconcernsthebennubirdor phoenix.Adescriptionof the symbolism itwas intended to invoke is givenbyRundleClark:

OnehastoimagineaperchextendingoutofthewatersoftheAbyss.Onitrestsagreyheron,theheraldofallthingstocome.Itopensitsbeakandbreaksthesilenceoftheprimevalnightwiththecalloflifeanddestiny,which‘determineswhatisandwhatisnottobe’.ThePhoenix,therefore,embodiestheoriginalLogos,theWordordeclarationofdestinywhichmediatesbetween thedivinemindandcreated things…Inasense,when thePhoenixgaveouttheprimevalcallitinitiatedallthose[calendrical]cycles,soitisthepatronofalldivisionoftime,anditstempleatHeliopolisbecamethecentreofcalendricalregulation.1

This confirmswhatwe suspected, that the notion of the phoenix is closely related to theGreat Pyramid as the epoch and timekeeper of pharaonic kingship, both mythical andhistorical. The shafts from the King’s andQueen’s Chambers are calendrical in that theypoint towards specific starsand fixed theirprecessionalandothercycles; thephoenix,ontheotherhand,wastheheraldorbringerofthesecycles.Thereisthereforealinkbetweenthephoenix and thepyramid as timekeepers of the stars ofOrion and, by extension, the‘soul’oftheOsiris-kings.IntheBookoftheDead(Chapter17)thequestionisasked:‘Whoishe?…IamthegreatphoenixwhichisinHeliopolis…Whoishe?HeisOsiris…’,leavinguswithlittledoubtwhowastheEgyptianphoenix.The phoenix also had another important function: it was the bringer of the life-giving

essence,thehikě,aconceptakintoourideaofmagic,whichthegreatcosmicbirdcarriedtoEgyptfromadistantandmagicallandbeyondtheearthlyworld.AccordingtoRundleClarkthis ‘was“theIsleofFire”…theplaceofeverlastinglightbeyondthelimitsoftheworld,wherethegodswerebornorrevivedandwhencetheyweresentintotheworld’.GiventhatthephoenixiscloselylinkedtothesoulofOsiris,andissaidtocomefromthe‘placewheregodsarebornorrevived’,itsoriginsbeyondtheworldare,quiteclearly,theDuat.The story of the phoenix was recorded in more prosaic terms by Herodotus when hevisitedEgypt:

Thereis[a]sacredbirdcalledthephoenix.Ihaveneverseenitmyselfexceptinpictures,foritisextremelyrare,onlyappearingaccordingtothepeopleofHeliopolis,onceinfivehundredyears,whenitisseenafterthedeathofitsparent.Ifthepicturesareaccurateitssizeandappearanceareasfollows:itsplumageispartlyredandpartlygold,whileinshapeandsizeitisverymuchlikeaneagle.They(theHeliopolitans)tellastoryaboutthisbirdwhichIpersonallyfindincredible:thephoenixissaidtocomefromArabia,carryingtheparentbirdencasedinmyrrh;itproceedstothetempleofthesunandthereburiesthebody.Inordertodothis,theysayitfirstformsaballasbigasitcancarry,then,hollowingouttheball,itinsertsitsdeadparent,subsequentlycoveringovertheaperturewithfreshmyrrh.Theballisthenexactlythesameweightasitwasatfirst.ThephoenixbearsthisballtoEgypt,allencasedasIhavesaid,anddepositsitinthetempleofthesun.Suchistheirmythaboutthebird.2

Although told in the usual storytelling style of the Greek chroniclers, Herodotus actuallydiscussedthismatterdirectlywiththepriestsofHeliopolisandwemaysupposethathehadnoreasontoalterthefacts.Whatismorelikely,however,isthatheunwittinglyalteredthesymbolismofhowtheEgyptianprieststhemselvesunderstoodtheattributesofthephoenix.‘Arabia’, forexample,stoodfor the ‘east’, the landbeyondthehorizonwherethesunandstarsrise,thatis‘theplacewherethegodsareborn’.ThephoenixcametoEgypttolayitsegg,theterm‘ball’inHerodotus’staleimpliesafairlylargespecimen.Herodotusalsosaysthatitismadeof‘myrrh’,aresincommonlyusedintheprocessofmummification.3

WhatwasitthattheEgyptianslookeduponastheeggorseedofthephoenixwhichwaslinkedtothesoulofOsirisand,consequently,thestellarritualsofrebirth?Aswehavesaid, theEgyptianscalled thephoenix thebennu. JohnBaines,ProfessorofEgyptologyatOxfordUniversity,pointedoutthattherootwordben,wasgenerallyusedbytheAncientEgyptianstodenotesexual,procreationalorseedingideas,suchas‘thesemen’,‘tocopulate’,‘tofertilise’andsoon.4Interestingly,inSemiticlanguagesthewordbenalsomeansseedinthesenseofson.5Thedirectconnectionbetweenthebennu/phoenixbirdandtheBenbenStonekeptinthetempleofthebennu/phoenixhasbeenmadeinChapterOne.The fact that the Benben Stone was conical has also been established by manyEgyptologists.6 In averyancient steladating from theFirstDynasty, thephoenix is seenperchedonsomeobject,whichRundleClarkcalleda‘stoneperch’.7Lateritwascommonlydepictedperchedonapyramidionoraperchfixedonapyramidion.VariousopinionsareexpressedbyEgyptologistsastowhatorwhotheEgyptianphoenixwas,buttheconsensus

isthatitsometimesrepresentedthesoulofRa,atothertimesthesoulofOsiris,andatyetothers the ‘MorningStar’.8RundleClarkalso rightly said that ‘thebirdand the stone– ifstoneitis–arelinkedtogether’,9andthatKurtSethe,thefirstacclaimedtranslatorofthePyramidTexts,identifiedtheBenbenStonewiththesacredconicalstonesoftheGreeksandSyrians,the‘OmphalosorBaetylos’,atermusedbyhistorianstosignifysacredstoneswithcosmicattributes.10 Indeed, in theearliestknowndepictionof theBenbenStoneonwhichthe phoenix is perched, the Stone is not pyramidal, aswas previously thought; its slopesbulge a little, showing that it was conical.11 It is clear, too, that the Benben Stone wasconsideredarelicofimmensevaluebythepyramidbuilders,sovaluablethatitwasplacedin theholyofholiesofHeliopolis, in the focalpointof the ‘Mansionof thePhoenix’andreplicasofitplacedonthetopofgreatpyramids.12

Theconclusionmustbethatthephoenixwasasymbolofdivineprocreationandrebirth,thismagicalqualitycharacterisedbytheseeditdepositedinHeliopolis.What,then,wastheseedofthephoenix?

IITheSeedThatFellFromHeaven

We tend to think ofmeteorites as stones that fall from the sky, though ‘falling star’ and‘shooting star’ are still used as visual metaphors. The fall of meteorites is spectacular.Historical accounts are in close agreement that a fierymass appears in the sky; shootingdown, it sometimes leaves a luminous trail, and its fall is accompanied bywhat is oftendescribedas ‘thunder’.13Meteorites enter the earth’s atmosphereat greatvelocitybut arethen slowed down by the friction of the air and great heat is generated around themeteorite.Thisreleaseofheat,whichignitesitssurface,causesthefireballappearance,thehot gasses which incandesce around it making the fireball appear quite large. As themeteorite tears itsway through the air, it also produces shockwaveswhich resound likecannonfireorthunder,whichisprobablywhyinearliertimesmeteoriteswereassociatedwithstormgodssuchasHaddadinPhoeniciaandZeusinGreece.14

Therearetwosortsofmeteorites:stoneandiron.Theiron,forobviousreasons,tendtobeblackandoftenlargerthanthestonevariety,sincetheysufferlittleornodamagewhenthey hit soft ground. Also, when entering the earth’s atmosphere, some iron meteoritesretaintheirdirectionofflightratherthanrollabout.Thesearecalledoriented,thatis,theymaintain their orientation as they fall, like an arrow or pointed cannon shell. As theseorientedmeteorites are heated during their fiery fall, their front part tends to melt andtaper down and, when found usually have the characteristic shape of a cone. Two goodexamplesarethelargeconicalmeteoritesknownas‘Morito’and‘Willamette’.15

There is evidenceof religious cults basedon the venerationof sacredmeteorites in theancientworld.ItiswellknownthattheGreeksregardedDelphiasthe‘navel’oftheworld.However,theomphalosstonewhichmarkedthespotwasnottheoriginalfetishofDelphi.Therewasoriginallyaroughstone,believedtohavebeencastdowntoearthbythetitanKronos.16TheDelphiansbelievedtheirstonetobetheonecastdownbyKronosandcalleditZeusBaetylos,a termusually takentomeanmeteoritebyhistorians.17Extantdrawings

showtheZeusBaetylosasovoidinshape,andaboutthesizeofacannonball.Inviewofitscosmic origins and characteristic shape, the Zeus Baetylos was almost certainly ameteorite.18AsimilarstonewasshowntothehistorianPausanias(secondcenturyAD)atthetown of Gythium, which the locals called Zeus-Kappotas (Zeus fallen down). This wasprobablyalsoameteorite.19Pliny(AD23–79)alsoreportedthata‘stonewhichfellfromthesun’ was worshipped at Potideae and that others had fallen at Aigos-Potamus and atAbydos,neartheHellespont.20

ThecultofmeteoriteswasparticularlyrifeinPhoeniciaandSyria.AtEmessa(Homs),forexample, was the shrine of the god Ela-Gabal or Elagabalus, where a sacred relic wasdescribedas ‘ablack,conical stone’; thechroniclerHerodianus tellsus that theEmessians‘solemnly assert it tohave fallen from the sky…’Not far fromEmessa, in the temple ofZeus-Hadad,atHeliopolis-Baalbek,were‘blackconicalstones’.21Zeus-Casios,acounterpartofZeus-Hadad,hadhis abodeonMountCasios andalsohadabaetylos sacred to him. InancientPhrygia(centralTurkey)theGreatMotheroftheGods,Cybele,wasrepresentedatthetempleofPessinusbyablackstonesaidtohavefallenfromthesky.22TheCybelecultwasparticularlywidespreadandwasadoptedbytheRomanswhotookitasfarasFranceandEngland.23

Therearemanyotherexamplesofmeteoriteworshipinmanyplacesoftheworld.24Thisis quite understandable because ancient man saw the meteorite as the materialrepresentationoftheskygodsand,perhapsmorespecifically,thestargods.Wesurelydonot need any further examples tomake the point that the Benben Stone kept inside theTempleofthePhoenixmayhavebeenaconicalmeteorite.Thatmeteoritesplayedamajorroleintheformationofreligiousideasandintherebirth

culthasbeenknowntoEgyptologistssince1933.In-depthstudiesonthesubjectweremadebyG.A.Wainwright,aBritishEgyptologistand formerassistantofFlindersPetrie.Theseappeared in the Journal of EgyptianAntiquities from 1933 to 1950.Wainwright traced theevolutionoftheEgyptian‘meteoriticcult’anditsassociationwithseveralimportantgods;inparticular,heshowedthatthe‘aniconic’(likeacone)formoftheThebangodAmunwasameteoriteknownas theKa-mut-f,25 quite typical,Wainwright remarked, of small, pear-shapedironmeteorites.26

IIITheIronBonesoftheStarGods

Although the pyramids were built before the bronze and iron ages, meteoritic iron wasknowntotheEgyptiansofthePyramidAge.27TheAncientEgyptiannameforironwasbjaand, according to Wainwright, ‘meteorites consist of bja’.28 The word bja is mentionedrepeatedlyinthePyramidTextsinconnectionwiththe‘bones’ofthestarkings:

‘Iampure,Itaketomyselfmyiron(bja)bones,IstretchoutmyimperishablelimbswhichareinthewombofNut…’[PT530]

‘Mybonesareiron(bja)andmylimbsaretheimperishablestars.’[PT1454]

‘Theking’sbonesareiron(bja)andhislimbsaretheimperishablestars…’[PT2051]

Asthesepassagesshow,therewasabeliefthatwhenthedepartedkingsbecamestars,theirbonesbecameiron, theheavenlymaterial (meteorites)ofwhichthestargodsweremade.Such cosmic iron objects were the only material evidence of a tangible land in the skypopulatedbystarsouls,anditwaseasytoseewhythestarswerethoughttobemadefrombja.Sincethesoulsofdepartedkingswerethestars,theytoohadbonesmadeofiron.29

This brings us back finally to the Benben Stone of Heliopolis, which I30 and manyEgyptologistshaveassociatedwithameteorite.Wallis-Budgewas the first to suggest thattheBenbenStonewasarelicsimilartotheBlackStoneoftheKa’aba.ThesameideacreptintothemindofEgyptologistJ.P.LauerwhowrotethattheBenbenwasprobablyaBethylor a meteorite.31 It is thus quite likely that a large oriented iron meteorite fell nearMemphis at some time in the third millennium BC, perhaps during the Second or ThirdDynasty.FromdepictionsoftheBenbenStone,32itwouldseemthatthismeteoritewasfromsixtofifteentonsinmass,andthefrightfulspectacleofitsfieryfallwouldhavebeenveryimpressive. The fall would have been presaged by loud detonations caused by the shockwaves, andeven indaylight a fireballwith a long,pluming tailwouldhavebeenvisiblefrom considerable distances. This fire-bird would have evoked the notion of a returningphoenixcrashinginfromtheeast(accordingtotheEncyclopaediaBritannica,allmeteoritesfollowthepathof thesun).Rushingto thespotwhere it landed,peoplewouldhaveseenthat the fire-bird had disappeared,33 leaving only a black, pyramid-shaped bja object orcosmic egg (the oriented iron meteorite). They would then have taken it to the ancienttempleofAtum,tobeplacedonthesacredcolumnveneratedthere.34

IVTheSeedThatIsOsiris

ThePyramidTextsarefullofreferencestotheseedofRa-Atum.TheseedinquestionisthatfromwhichOsiriswascreatedinthewomboftheskygoddess,Nut,MotheroftheStars:‘ORa-Atum,makethewombofNutpregnantwiththe“seed”ofthespirit(Sahu)thatisinher.…[PT990]…Pressureisinyourwomb,ONut,throughthe“seed”ofthegodwhichisinyou…’TowhichtheOsiris-kingresponds, ‘It is Iwhoamthe“seed”ofthegodwhichis inyou[PT1416–7]…theOsiris-kingisanimperishablestar,sonofthesky-goddess[1469]…ORa-Atum,thisOsiris-kingcomestoyou,animperishablespirit…yoursoncomestoyou…’[PT152].The two-step process of the stellar transfiguration of an Osiris was briefly discussedearlier,35 where we saw how the corpse was first made into an Osiris-mummiform, thenplacedinsidetherebirthchamberofthesepulchre,wherehewastospiritualisehimselfintoa star soul.We learnt that theword formaking amummy inAncient Egyptianwas, notsurprisingly,Sahu,synonymouswiththenamegiventotheoriginalOsiriswhenhebecametheLordoftheDuat.36Thedramaticactofgivinglifetothemummywasnotexpectedtohappenbyitselfbutdependedonthedevotionandactionofthedeadking’seldestson,the

new Horus-king who before his coronation was probably called Horus-the-Elder.37 Thecrucial dramatic ceremony this Horus had to carry out was called ‘the opening of themouth’,whichrequiredthattheembalmedbodyofhisfather,nowinfullOsirianregalia,beplaceduprightinfrontofasmallstandonwhichwasalotusplantinfullbloom.Thelotussymbolised the ‘four sons of Horus’ (the king’s grandsons38), who in turn symbolised the‘four cardinalpoints’.39Wearing ahawk-mask, theHorus slowly approached themummyand, assisted by his ‘four sons’, picked up a smallmetal cutting instrument, similar to acarpenter’sadze,andstruckorcutopenthemouthoftheOsiris-king.Thefoursons,usingtheir ‘fingers’ (apparently made of bja), performed the same ritual. These rites wereextremelyancientandaredescribedinthePyramidTexts:

‘OKing,Ihavecomeinsearchofyou,forIamHorus;Ihavestruckyourmouthforyou,forIamyourbelovedson;Ihavesplitopenyourmouthforyou…withtheadzeofUpuaut…withtheadzeofiron…’[PT11–13]

‘… your children’s children together have raised you up, [namely] Hapy, Imsety, Duamutef and Kebhsenuf,[whose]namesyouhave[wholly]made.[Yourfaceiswashed],yourtearsarewipedaway,yourmouthissplitopenwiththeirironfingers…’[PT1983–4]

There are three important aspects of this rather bizarre ceremony which demanded ourundividedattention.ThefirstwasthattheadzeinstrumentandalsothefingersofthefoursonsofHorusare said tobemadeofbja (meteoritic iron).40ThiswaspickedupbyG.A.Wainwrightin1931,anddiscussedindetailinalandmarkarticleentitled‘IronInEgypt’.41Wainwright rightly argued that it was because of the ‘heavenly’ qualities of bja that theceremonywasbelievedtoevokethemagicfortheescapeofthesoultothestars.42This isnowawell-acceptednotioninEgyptology,andwasrecentlyrepeatedbyDrBerndScheel,anexpertinancientEgyptianmetal-workingandtools,whowrote

Ironwas[a]metalofmythicalcharacter.Accordingtolegend,theskeleton[bones]ofSeth…wasofiron.Ironwascalledthe‘metalofheaven’becauseforalongtimetheEgyptiansknewonlymeteoriciron,whichhasahighnickelcontent.Becauseofitssupposedlydivineorigin,meteoricironwasusedinparticularfortheproductionofprotectiveamuletsandmagicmodeltoolswhichwereneededfortheritualcalledthe‘openingofthemouth’,aceremonywhichwasnecessarytopreparethemummyofthedeceasedforlifeafterdeath.43

WhatWainwrightandalsoMercer,theCanadianEgyptologistwhotranslatedthePyramidTextsin1952,noticedwasthattheadzeusedforopeningthemouthwasshapedintheformof the constellation of UrsaMajor, which the Egyptians calledmeshtw, the Thigh.44 TheGerman Egyptologist, Bochardt, had, however, argued that it was more probably UrsaMinor.45AbovineforeleghasthekneebendingforwardsandthusfitsbettertheshapeofUrsaMinor.Inanycase,theseconstellationsformapairinthecircumpolarregionofthesky andare in the region targetedby the twonorthern shafts in theGreatPyramid.Theimportantcardinaldirectionforthiscuriousmeteoriticandstellarceremonywiththeking’smummywas, then, the circumpolar north, the focal point of which is the celestial pole.

DuringthePyramidAgethiswasmarkedbythestarAlphaDraconis,theprecisetargetofthe northern shaft of the King’s Chamber. The northern shaft of the Queen’s Chamberpointed to the ‘head’ of Ursa Minor, made up of four stars which, in all probability,representedtheadzeusedbyHorusintheceremonyofthe‘openingofthemouth’.InthePyramidTextsthisinstrumentiscalled‘theAdzeofUpuaut’[PT13].Upuautwas,aswehavesaid,theJackal-godwho‘openedtheways’andheisclearlyrepresentedinthefamous Zodiac of Dendera, now in the LouvreMuseum, as the circumpolar Horus figureholdingUpuaut.Thenorthernshaftsarenotonlysetmeridionallybut,unliketheirsoutherncounterparts leading to Osiris-Orion and Isis-Sirius, they have a curious architecturalanomaly, which has perplexed Egyptologists and recently has been queried by RudolfGantenbrink,whoexploredthemin1992–3.

19.TheZodiacofDenderah(PtolemaicPeriod)NoteconstellationsofSahu-Orion(Osirisfigure)precededbyTaurus;thestarSirius(Isis)

overruminatingcowfollowsOrion

Duringtheconferenceon21June1993attheFNTPinParis,whereGantenbrink,Edwardsand Iwereamong thespeakers,Rudolf raised thequestionof thisanomaly.47HepointedoutthatwhenheguidedhisrobotupthenorthernshaftshecametothejunctionwheretheymeetwiththeGrandGallery.BecausetheGrandGalleryisinthedirectpathoftheshafts,bothhad tobegivenapronounced ‘kink’westward tobypass theGallery.Rudolf,who ispragmatic and a thorough rationalist, said he could understand that the architects andbuildersmight havemade amistake in putting the opening of the northern shaft in theQueen’sChamberdirectlyinlinewiththeGrandGallery,andthenhadtodetourtobypassthis huge obstacle. What he could not understand, was why this was repeated for the

northern shaft in the King’s Chamber. He asked the attending Egyptologists – Edwards,Leclant,Lauer,VercoutterandKerisel–whattheythoughtofthis.Althoughallareexpertson the pyramids of Egypt, no answer was forthcoming. Rudolf then adduced the logicalconclusion:thedetourorkinkwasnotamistakebutadeliberatedesignfeature.Moreover,theseshaftshadbeengivenmoregentlekinksastheyranpasttheGrandGalleryandthenrevertedtotheiroriginalcourse.Whatwasnotrealisedatthetimeoftheconferencewasthattheshafts,withtheirkinks,appearedtobeshapedintheformofthesacredadze.Thattheywerealsodirectedtothecircumpolar constellations, one of which symbolised the stellar adze, making this veryunlikely tobeacoincidence. Itnowseemedcertain that theceremony for theopeningofthemouthhadbeenperformed,perhaps several times, inside theQueen’sChamber.48WecouldvisualisetheHorus-sonbeingledintotheQueen’sChamberoftheGreatPyramidtomeetthemummyofhisdeadfather:‘OHorus,thiskingisOsiris,thispyramidofthiskingisOsiris, this construction of his is Osiris, Betake yourself to it …’ [PT 1657]. And Horusexclaiming:‘OKing,Ihavecomeinsearchofyou,forIamHorus;Ihavestruckyourmouthforyou,forIamyourbelovedson;Ihavesplitopenyourmouthforyou.Iannouncehimtohismotherwhenshelamentshim,Iannouncehimtoherwhowasjoinedtohim.’[PT11–12].

20.InternallayoutoftheupperchambersoftheGreatPyramidandassociatedshaftsNotekinksinthetwonorthernshafts

Horus performs the potent ritual then presents his four sons, the dead king’sgrandchildren:‘Isplitopenyourmouthforyou…IopenyourmouthforyouwiththeAdzeof Upuaut, I split open yourmouth for youwith the Adze of Ironwhich splits open themouths of the gods…’ [PT 13]. ‘.. your children’s children together have raised you up,[namely]Hapy,Imsety,DuamutefandKebhsenuf,[whose]namesyouhave[wholly]made.[Yourfaceiswashed],yourtearsarewipedaway,yourmouthissplitopenwiththeirironfingers…’[PT1983–4].Apriestthenactsforthedeadkingwhohasbeenstruckbytheastralpowerofthebja,and says: ‘I ampure, I take tomyselfmy iron (bja)bones, I stretchoutmy imperishablelimbswhichareinthewombofNut…’[PT530]…‘Mybonesareiron(bja)andmylimbsaretheimperishablestars.’[PT1454]…‘Theking’sbonesareiron(bja)andhislimbsaretheimperishablestars…’[PT2051].

What now astounded us, however, was to discover whence the Horus was summoned tobetakehimself to the ‘pyramid that isOsiris’.Hebeganhis journey towards the pyramidfrom a place directly due north. According to French Egyptologist Goyon49 this waspreciselyon themeridional lineof theGreatPyramid,15–75kilometresaway, the siteoftheancientcityofKhem,latercalledLetopolisbytheGreeks.Itprovidedtheson-priestinchargeoftheopeningofthemouthceremonywiththetitle,HorusofLetopolis.50

LetopolisactuallyexistedbeforethePyramidAge,51andmanyEgyptologistsbelieved ithadservedasthecentralgeodeticmarkerforallothersitesinthearea.52This,accordingtoGoyon, was especially the case for the meridional sighting and alignment of the GreatPyramidand,consequently,thewholeGizaNecropolis.53Anevenmorecuriousrevelationwas that, according to Wainwright, the city of Letopolis was the ‘Thunderbolt City’, so-calledbecauseitwaslinkedwithameteoriticcult:‘…sincetheEgyptianreligionincludedaveryimportantceremonyof“OpeningoftheMouth”ofthedeadKingwithtoolsmadefrommeteorites, it isnoaccident that thechief“Openerof theMouth” livedat thethunderboltcityofLetopolis…’54

InanatlasofAncientEgypt,55we found that Letopoliswas, asGoyonhad said, aboutfifteen kilometres due north of the Great Pyramid. What Goyon had not said was thatLetopoliswasalsoduewestoftheTempleofthePhoenixatHeliopolis.Itthuswasonthegeodetic point adjoining the meridian of the Great Pyramid and the latitude of theHeliopolis,wheretheBenbenStonewaskept.LetopoliswasasignposttoRostau,the‘roadsofOsiris in the sky’56 It also linked, by latitude andmeridian, theBenben Stonewith itsstylisedreplicaontopoftheGreatPyramid.Finally,itbroughttogether,tomeetinsidethepyramid,thestellaradzeofthecircumpolarstarswiththeroadstoOsirisinthesky,whichcouldonlybethesouthernshafts.TheseleadtothelandofOsirisintheskyand,ofcourse,totheDuat.Asifthiswerenotmysteriousenough,attheendofoneofthesesouthernshaftswastheclosed door which Gantenbrink hoped to open. Assuming that the door concealed achamber, might it have beenmodelled on the secret chamber of Thoth spoken of in theWestcar Papyrus? More particularly, could it contain something of perhaps greater

significancethanamummy,astatueorotherfuneraryequipment?WenowturnedourattentiontoHeliopolis,wheretheBenben‘Phoenix’shrineoncestood.

12THEROADSOFOSIRIS

IhavetravelledbytheroadsofRostauonwaterandonland…thesearetheroadsofOsiris;theyareinthesky…

—fromtheBookoftheTwoWays,writtenontheinsideofcoffinsoftheMiddleKingdom,ElBersheh

IWhereistheBenbenStone?

LookingatamapoftheMemphis-HeliopolisregionasitwaswhentheGizapyramidswerebuilt,wesee that thepositionofHeliopolis,andwhere thegreatobeliskofSesostris I (c.1970BC) stands today,1 is on a line that extends from the south-east corners of the threepyramids of Giza. This was brought to my attention by Dr Gerhard Haeny of the SwissInstituteofArchaeology inCairo, ina letterhewrote tome in1986.He said that ithadbeenpointedouttohimthatthesouth-eastcornersofthethreepyramidswereinalignmentand that if that line was extended, it attained the site of the obelisk of Heliopolis. Hewonderedifthisobeliskperhapsreplacedanearlierconstruction.2

21.TheBenbenthroughtheAges(a)TheoriginalBenbenofHeliopolisasitmayhavelooked(b)ApyramidsurmountedbyapyramidionorBenben

(c)AnobelisktippedbyaBenben-T

Actually the Sesostris I obelisk did replace an earlier landmark, and an important andmysteriousoneatthat.WheretheobelisknowisatHeliopolis,thereoncestoodtheHouseorTempleofthePhoenix.AndinthistemplewaskeptthesacredBenbenStone.SesostrisI,who restored the sacred city ofHeliopolis, confirms that his obelisk replaced the BenbenStone–presumablybythen‘lost’–forheorderedaninscriptiontobecarvedonastelaatHeliopolis:‘MyBeautyshallberememberedinHisHouse,MyNameistheBenbenandmynameisthelake…’3

WhatSesostrisappearstoimplyisthatthepyramidionorBenbenmakingtheapexofhisgreatobeliskwasnowraisedinthehouseortemplewheretheoriginalBenbenStonehadstood not long before. James Breasted tells us that ‘this objectwas already sacred as farbackasthemiddleofthethirdmillenniumBC,andwilldoubtlesshavebeenvastlyolder’.4Headds, ‘anobelisk is simplyapyramidupona loftybasewhichhas indeedbecome theshaft.’5 However,many questions remain.Whowas Sesostris I?Whywas it necessary tomark the place of the Benben Stone with an obelisk? And where had the Benben Stonegone?Toanswerthesequestions,weneedtolookatthehistoryofAncientEgyptaftertheOldKingdom.ItseemsthattherewasmuchpoliticalandsocialupheavalinthereignofAmenemhetI(c.1990BC),fatherofSesostrisI.Thisisattestedbyseveralwell-preservedpapyrustexts,inoneofwhichAmenemhetIgiveswhatatfirstsightseemsratherMachiavellianadvicetohisson:

HearkenwhichIsayuntothee,thatthoumayestbekingoftheearth…hardenthyselfagainstallsubordinates,thepeoplegiveheedtohimwhoterrorisesthem,approachthemnotalone, fillnotthyheartwithabrother,knownotafriend,normakeforthyselfintimates…foramanhasnopeopleinthedaysofevil.Igavetothebeggar,Inourishedtheorphan…buthewhoatefrommyhandmadeinsurrections…6

Yetthisterriblepessimismseemstobemitigatedbyamessianichopeofareturnofa‘GreatOne’, expressed by a solitary scribe, Ipuwer, in the reign of Amenemhet I.7 This text isknown to Egyptologists as ‘the admonition of an Egyptian sage, Ipuwer’, who wasundoubtedly a priest at Heliopolis. It is the lament of a sage-priest who finds muchconfusion at court and in the land. There seems to be total chaos, with the populaceentering and defiling the temples once carefully guarded by the priests; holy inscriptionsare defaced, departmental offices are raided, and so on.8 The text clearly refers to theaftermathofarevolution,withthechaosandkillingswhichfollowsuchevents:‘Behold,the

districtcouncilsofthelandareexpelled…amansmiteshisbrotherandthesamemother.Whatistobedone?’9

Thesage-priestisobviouslyaddressingthecourt,whichseemstobeinemergencycouncilandatalosswhattodonext.10Ipuwer,apparentlytheonlyonewiththesenseandcouragetospeak,says:‘ThedistrictsofEgyptaredevastated…everymansays“weknownotwhathashappenedtotheland”…civilwarpaysnotax…whatistreasurewithoutrevenue?…woeismeforthemiseryofthistime.11

Thenhespeaksofagreatmessianichope,obviouslyintendedforthesonoftheoldanddiscredited Amenemhet I, who seems to have lost control over the people and the land.Ipuwercallsforafullresumptionofthesacredritualsandobservancesatthetemples,andreminds them of the time when an ‘ideal king’ had ruled Egypt in justice and peace:‘Remember…itissaidheistheshepherdofallmen.Thereisnoevilinhisheart…Whereishetoday?Doeshesleepperchance?Beholdhismightisnotseen…’Ipuwermakesastrangeallusiontosomething‘concealed’withinthepyramid,something

hefearsmightnotbethereanymore:‘thatwhichthepyramidconcealedhasbecomeempty…’Whatever the pyramid concealedwas something of great value, indeed something soimportant that Ipuwer found it necessary to voice a powerfulwarning about it at court.Whilewecannotbesurewhat itwas that soconcerned Ipuwer,Sesostris I,whoseems tohave fulfilled Ipuwer’s messianic hopes, placed a great obelisk to mark the place whereoncehadstoodthemostsacredof‘pyramids’,theBenbenStone.PerhapstheknowledgeofwhathadoncebeenconcealedinsidetheGreatPyramidhadbeenlost.Certainly,whenthepyramidwasopenedmanycenturieslaterbytheCaliphAlMa’a-moun,nothingwasfound.However,onefurtherhoperemained.CouldthegeniusarchitectwhodesignedtheGreat

Pyramidhaveensuredthat‘thatwhichwasconcealedinit’,wasimpossibletofindandevenmore impossible to reach? Impossible, that is,withouta littlemechanical robotguidedbyelectronicdevices?

IISignposttotheBenbenStone

Let us take a look at the geographical environment where this drama may have takenplace.ThedistancefromGizatothesupposedpositionoftheTempleofthePhoenix,goingnorth-east,isabouttwenty-fourkilometres.ThedistancefromGizatoLetopolis,goingduenorth, is just under sixteen kilometres, and that from Letopolis to the Temple of thePhoenix,dueeast,abouteighteen.

22.GeodesicsystemlinkingBenben‘Beacons’atHeliopolis,LetopolisandGizaandfinalrouteoffuneralprocession

BothLetopolisandHeliopolisarementionedmanytimesinthePyramidTextsandwereimportant religious centres in the Pyramid Age. Seen together, Letopolis and Heliopoliswere aligned along a latitude and straddled the riverNile.12 In the so-calledBook of theTwoWays,written on the inside of coffins of theMiddle Kingdom, El Bersheh,13we aretold,‘IhavetravelledbytheroadsofRostauonwaterandonland…thesearetheroadsofOsiris;theyare[also]inthesky…’.ItisclearthattheroadsofRostau(Giza)wereacrosswaterandthenonland,twomajor

geodetic arteries or ways. This seems to define a religious procession starting fromHeliopolisandtravellingduewest,acrosstheNiletoLetopolis, thenduesouthonlandtoGiza,ancientRostau.WemaythussupposethatbeforeGizatherewasagatewayintotheNecropolis proper, symbolising the Gate of the Duat. We may also conjecture that theregion which encompassed the cities of Heliopolis, Letopolis, Memphis and the pyramidregionwas a vast sacred site, a symbolic landscapewith its counterpart in the sky nearSirius,OrionandtheHyades,alongthebanksoftheMilkyWay.Wearesatisfiedthatthecasehasbeensubstantiatedasfaraspresentevidenceallows,buttherearethesetwomajorsites,HeliopolisandLetopolis,toaccountfor.ThesecitiesalsoplayedacrucialpartintheroyalrebirthritualsofthePyramidAge,foratHeliopoliswastheBenbenStone,symbolofOsirian rebirth, and at Letopolis was the Horus of Letopolis priest responsible for theopeningofthemouthoftheOsirianised-king,andwherethesacredadzeinstrumentsofbjawerekept.14Wheredotheselocationsfitintotheskycorrelationmap?EgyptologistGeorgesGoyon, inhisbookLeSecretdesBatisseursdesGrandesPyramides:

Kheops,commentsonthepositionandalignmentoftheGreatPyramid:

Themonument[was]placedunderthestellarprotectionofthegodHorus,lordofKhem(Letopolis)…InordertodirectthemonumenttowardsthesacredcityofKhem,theastronomersdeterminedthenorthtargetingthenorthstar,thepolar(AlphaDraconis)…TherecentdiscoveryontheprincipleoforientationisbasedonthefactthatallEgyptianpyramidsoftheOldKingdomareorientedsothattheirnorthcoincideswithasacredsiteoranother

pyramidwhichbelongedtoaveneratedancestor…Cheops’spyramid[isaligned]onKhem(Letopolis-Aussim)…15

GoyonbelievedthatallEgyptianpyramidsof theOldKingdomwere linked toageodesicsysteminvolvingameridionalgridacrosstheMemphisregion.Althoughheemphasisedthemeridian looking north, this same line is the south meridian if you direct yourself 180degrees the opposite way, and it is likely that both the southern and the northern starsystemswere used by the ancient builders to fix themonuments on ameridian.16 This isseen in the southernandnorthernshaft systems inCheops’spyramid,where the southernshaftsweredirectedtoZetaOrionisandSirius,andthenortherntoAlphaDraconisandthestarBetaUrsaMinor(Kochab)intheheadofthisconstellation.GoyonvisualisedthemeridionallinkbetweentheGreatPyramidandthecityofLetopolisinan ingeniousway.He lived inEgypt formanyyearsandwas theEgyptologist toKingFaroukI;17hespentmuchofhistimeinvestigatingtheMemphis-Heliopolis-Letopolisregion,andfeltitnecessarytoask:

DidtheEgyptiansofthePyramidAgealreadyhaveastronomicalandgeodeticknowledgemoreadvancedthanweaccordthem?Didtheyknowthegeographyoftheircountrymuchbetterthanwethink?Hadtheyalready,inthethirdmillenniumBC, measured and gridded their land, in amanner claimed later by the Greek philosopher-mathematicianssuchasThales,Pythagoras,Eudoxis,Plato,Democratis…?18

AccordingtoGoyon,theGreekgeographerStrabo19saidtherewasagreatobservatorynearLetopolis called Kerkasore,which is also reported byHerodotus,20who says that EudoxisandPlatomadeobservationsthere.21GoyonaskswhethertherewasnotinthePyramidAge‘anothercause,anorderofgeodesyandmathematics?’22Muchsuggeststhattherewas,andthat theoriginalgeodeticcentreswereHeliopolisandLetopolis,whichestablishedabasiclatitude and meridian. It was on this meridian that the unknown astronomer-priest,probablyImhotepasChiefoftheObservers,fixedthepositionofthefutureGreatPyramid,theworkofwhichbeganinthereignofCheops(Khufu).The correlation map of the terrestrial and celestial Duats of the Pyramid Age wasestablishedwhenthefullsky-imagesoftherisenOsiris-OrionandIsis-Siriuswereseenovertheeasternhorizon:themomentwhenthesunwasrisingonthedayoftheheliacalrisingofSirius and near the summer solstice. Looking more closely at this sky-image, asreconstructedby theSkyglobecomputerprogram,we see that the risingpointofSirius isabout26.5degreessouthofeastandthat thesunrisepoint isabout26.5degreesnorthofeast.Sirius liesalmostdirectlybelowOrion’sBeltandmorepreciselyZetaOrionis,whichcorresponds in the correlation map with the Great Pyramid. The horizon thus links the

sunrisepointandthestarSirius,sweepingalonglinewhichdividesthevisibleworldandtheinvisibleworldbeneaththehorizon.AtthispointthesunisontheleftsideoftheMilkyWay,andSirius,directlyopposite,isontherightside,sothelinebetweenthemhastocrossthecelestialriver.Aswediscussed inChapterone,Heliopoliswas the suncityparexcellence,on theeastbankoftheNile,andthecityofLetopolis,onthewestbank,isoppositeHeliopolis.23Goyonconfirmedthatthereseemtohavebeentwohighpoints,ormounds,oneatHeliopolisandthe other at Letopolis, from which the geographers made their geodetic sightings byobservinggildeddiscson topofpillarsorobelisk-likemonuments.24 It is likely,however,thatthegildedobjectatHeliopoliswasnotadiscbutapyramidion,probablytheBenbenitself gildedwith gold-leaf and put (as Frankfort andMercer25 believed) on the pillar ofHeliopolis,whichoriginallybelongedtoAtum.26

A fairly implicit text from theMiddle Kingdom, now in the LouvreMuseum,27 addressesOsiris:

HailOsiris,sonofNut[skygoddess]…whoseaweAtumsetintheheartofmen,gods,spiritsandthedead;towhomrulershipwasgiveninHeliopolis;greatofpresenceinDjedu[theOsirianpillar28]; lordoffearinTwo-Mounds;greatofterrorinRostau[Giza]…suchisOsiris,kingofgods,greatpowerofheaven,ruleroftheliving,kingofthosebeyond[thehorizon]…whoownsthechoicecutsinHouse-on-High,forwhomsacrificeismadeatMemphis…29

An alignment link between the mound of Heliopolis and that of Letopolis, using gildedreflectors such as Goyon described, establishes the horizon of a terrestrial Egypt (theterrestrialDuat)asthespecific latitude(east-west line)whichlinksupHeliopolis, theSunCity,with Letopolis, the city ofHorus, son of Isis andOsiris, and, in astral terms as thePyramid Texts say,Horuswho is in Sirius [PT 632].Heliopolis is therefore positioned tomarktheplaceofsunrisewhentransferredonthesky-correlationmap,whichiseastoftheMilkyWayanditsterrestrialcounterpart,theriverNile.ItcanalsobeseenthatHoruswhoisinSothis,i.e.,thestellargodofLetopolis,marksthepositionoftheheliacalrisingofthestar Sirius. In this completed sky-correlationmapwe thus have the full expression of theOsirianDuat,notonlyinitsvisibleformintheskybutofits‘time’,denotedbytheheliacalrisingofSiriusandtherisingsunnearthesummersolsticeastheybothalignontheeasternhorizon.With this geodedic linkage or ‘road’ established between Heliopolis and Letopolis, thegreatfuneraryprocessioncouldthenproceedfromthe‘SunCity’toLetopolisandcollectthe‘Horus’ and his ‘four sons’. ‘Horus’ brought along his magical adze and his ‘four sons’probablyactedaspallbearersforthecoffinoftheOsiris-king.Ingreatpompandgrieftheprocessionheaded forRostau (Giza), gateway to theDuat, theOsirian kingdomon earthandinthesky.WebegintoseewhatwasmeantbyHorussaying,‘Ihavetravelledbythe

roadsofRostauonwaterandonland…thesearetheroadsofOsiris;theyareinthesky…’. In Rostau the coffin was placed in a temple, probably at the north entrance of thepyramid.Eventually thecoffin,whichmayhaveresembledagoldenformofOsiris,30wastakenintothepyramidandprobablyplacedintherebirthorQueen’sChamber.JudgingfromlaterdrawingsintheBookoftheDead,themummywasthenstooduprightwith its facetowardsthenorthernshaftof thechamber,perhapsrepresenting theadzeofUrsaMinor(thoughtheshaftwasofcoursesealed).Itisalsopossiblethatthemummywasstored temporarily in themysterious niche on the east wall of the chamber. Standing infrontofthemummywastheHorus,carryinghisadze,withitspotentastralconnotations,andleadinghisfoursonsandanyothercelebrantspresent.Thentherewastheceremonyoftheopeningofthemouth,givingnewstellarlifetothemummifiedking.IftheopeningofthemouthritualdidtakeplaceintheQueen’sChamber,itisprobablethatitwastimedtocoincidewithwhenthestarKochabwasalignedwiththenorthernshaftofthechamber.When theOsiris-Orionmummywasdeemed tohavebeen struckwith themagical forcethatbroughtaboutastralrebirth,thestarofthepharaohwasborn.SincetheancientnameoftheGreatPyramidwas‘theHorizonofKhufu’,inastraltermsthismeantthatthe‘starofKhufu’wouldhavetobereborn,i.e.,toriseovertheeasternhorizon,andinc.2450BC thisactuallyhappened.ForasthetipofthecelestialadzestruckthemeridianandalignedwiththenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber,Khufu’sstarAlnitak(ZetaOrionis)appearedonthehorizon!Osiris-OrionKhufuwas indeed reborn as a starwhen the tip of the celestialadzestruckmidnightonthecircumpolarmeridionalclock.31

AswiththeoriginalOsiris,thelastearthlydutyoftherebornkingwastoseedthewombofIsis-SothisandensureasuccessortothethroneofEgypt.Theremayhavebeensomesortof ritual enactment of the stellar copulation between Osiris-Orion and Isis-Sirius, asdescribedinthePyramidTexts[PT632],mayhaveinvolvedthesouthernSiriusshaftoftheQueen’sChamber.Hisearthlydutiescompleted,theOsiris-king(themummy)wasprobablytakenoutoftheQueen’s Chamber, up through the Grand Gallery and into the King’s Chamber. Anotherceremonymayhave takenplacehere: the ‘weighingof theheart’before themummywasplacedfacingthechamber’ssouthernshaft.Nowcamethegreatdramaticmomentwhenthesoul of the star king liberated itself from thematerialmummiformand rose, through thesouthern shaft, towards the stars inOrion’s Belt, the phallic regionofOsiris-Orion in thesky.Therethestellarkingmetthestellarformofhisconsort,Isis-Sirius,tocreateandgivepowertothenewHorus-king,Horuswhois inSirius: ‘Yoursister(wife) Isiscomestoyourejoicingforloveofyou.Youhaveplacedheronyourphallusandyourseedissuesintoher,she being ready as Sirius, and Horus-Sopd has come forth from you as Horus who is inSirius.’[PT632].

23.TheRisingofAlNitakc.2450BC

From this passage it is tempting to deduce that the southern shaft of the Queen’sChamber,targetedtowardsSirius,servedasacosmiclinkbetweenthephallusoftheOsiris-kingandthewombofIsis,(symbolisedbytheQueen’sChamber).Theremaythereforehavebeen another ritual nine months later for the birth of the new Horus, some form ofcoronationceremonyconfirmingthenewkingaspharaohofthetwolands.

The‘HorizonofKhufu’,i.e.TheGreatPyramid

Viewed in this light, the Great Pyramid becomes the centre of the most importantceremoniesofstateanditisdifficulttobelievethatitcouldhavebeenusedonlyoncefortheburial of Khufu and then sealed up for ever.While the presence of the granite plugsblockingtheascendinggallerycannotbedenied,wecannotbecertainwhenitwasthatthepyramidwaseventuallysealed.32

Gantenbrink’s remeasured angle of the southern (Sirius) shaft of the Queen’s Chambergaveusthechancetoconfirmthesymbolicarchaeo-astronomicallinkagebetweenthisshaftand the southern (Orion’sBelt) shaftof theKing’sChamber.33However, it shouldalsobenoted that there are physical links between the two southern shafts, forGantenbrinkhasallowed us to reveal that directly above the place where the door is (at the end of thesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber)thereisasmallnichecutintothesouthern(Orion’sBelt)shaftoftheKing’sChamberwhichpassesdirectlyaboveit.34Thisgivesageometrical,andprobablyastructural,linkbetweenthetwoshaftsofthesortweexpectedtofindasanoutcomeoftheritualsdescribedinthePyramidTexts.ItshouldalsobenotedthattheQueen’sChamberliesdirectlyovertheeast-westaxisofthepyramid,andthusononeaxiallineofthepyramid’scapstoneattheapex,whereoncestoodaBenbenorpyramidion.35ThesizeofthisBenbenisnotknown,sinceitdisappearedlongago.36Indeed,someresearchershavesuggestedthatitwasnotplacedonthetopoftheGreatPyramidatall.37

TheGreat Pyramid is linked toHeliopolis by a geodetic system, so, symbolically, there

wasasignpostatLetopoliswhichlinkedtheplaceoftheBenbenStoneatHeliopolistothespot marking the centre-line of the Great Pyramid and thus the line through the twosouthern shafts towards the stars of the rebirth cult. Is this a clue that the end of thesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChambermaybelinkedinsomewaywiththeBenbenStone?Since22March1993theworldhasbeenfacedwiththerealitythatthereisadoorattheendof this shaft. So a further question is: could the originalBenben Stonebebehind thedoor?FurtherstudyoftheWestcarPapyrusandillustrationsfromtheBookoftheDeadprovideuswithexcitingpossibilities.TheWestcarPapyrustellsusthatKhufuwasdeeplyinterestedin finding the secret number of the chambers of Thoth, supposedly kept in a shrine atHeliopolis,sothathecouldbuildthesameforhispyramid.38ThemanyillustrationsoftheopeningofthemouthceremonyshowthemummystandingwithitsbacktoasmallshrinetoppedbyaBenben.Ifweacceptthatthemummyislookingnorth(inthedirectionofthecircumpolarconstellations),represented,inthesedepictions,bytheadzesofHorusandhisfour sonswho stand in front of themummy, the shrinemust be to the south side of therebirthroom. Inmanyof these illustrations, theshrine is showntohavea littledoor.Wesuspect thatthesouthernshaftof theQueen’sChambermayleadtosuchashrine.Nowifwesuppose that theBenbensurmounting it is indeed theoriginalBenbenofHeliopolis,afurtherintriguingpossibilitypresentsitself.AccordingtoauthorssuchasWilliamLethaby,theBenbenofHeliopoliswasitselfashrine,39believedtocontainthelostbooksofThoth,which,iftheyexistedwouldhavebeenwrittenintheFirstTime,whenOsiriswastherulerofEgypt.Thisagainties inwiththepredictionofEdgarCayce40 that, in the lastyearsofthepresentcentury,asecretchambercontainingrecordswouldbefoundinthepyramid.41Ifthispredictionturnsouttobetrue,wecouldbeonthebrinkoffindingthearchetypesofthePyramidTexts.TheGreatPyramidmightnot,afterall,bemute,asMariettebelieved.Finally,though,wehavetoask:whatifthereisnothingatallandthemysterygoeson?Wewillbecontentthat,eveniftheBenbenStoneandtheshrineofThotharenotattheendof this narrow shaft, we have, for the first time, discovered the true mystery of thepyramids: an earthlymapof the stellar landscapeofOrion the eternal homeof the star-kingsofEgypt.

EPILOGUE

Somethingelse,however,wasdiscoveredinsidethechannels[oftheQueen’sChamber]viz.alittlebronzegrapnelhook;aportionofcedar-likewood,whichmighthavebeenitshandle;andagrey-granite,orgreen-stoneball…’

—CharlesPiazziSmyth,TheGreatPyramid:1878

I.TheFutureoftheUpuautProject

Inthelongterm,Rudolf’sbighopeforthefutureistobringarchaeologytothepublicinanexciting way and to raise global interest in the preservation of ancient sites around theworld.WiththisinmindhehascreatedTheUpuautFoundationinMonacoandisnowinthe process of putting together a specialised team of researchers and explorers. He haskindly asked me to be involved. In the short term, there still remains Gantenbrink’sexploration of the northern shaft – possibly before Christmas 1993 – and, of course, theclimaxofhisworkwhenthelittledoorisopenedinthesouthernshaftinFebruaryorMarch1994.

2.MysteriousRelicsofCheops

InearlySeptember1993,that isnearlysixmonthsafterRudolf’sdiscoverywithUPUAUT 2 inthe Great Pyramid (22March 1993), I came across a rather startling passage in CharlesPiazzi Smyth’s book of 1878, The Great Pyramid, where I read an account of the ‘newlydiscoveredAir Channels in theQueen’s Chamber’. Smyth described howWaynmanDixonandDrGrantfirstdiscoveredtheshaftsinthischamber:

Perceivingacrack(firstIamtold,pointedoutbyDrGrant)inthesouthwalloftheQueen’sChamber,whichallowedhimatoneplacetopushinawiretoamostunconscionablelength,MrW.Dixonsethiscarpenterman-of-all-works,bynameBillGrundy,tojumpaholewithahammerandsteelchiselatthatplace…

Smyththennarratedhowalsotheopeningwasfoundforthenorthernshaftand,too,howDixonandGrantlitfirestocheckforoutletsontheoutsideofthepyramid:

Fireswerethenmadeinsidethetubesorchannels;butalthoughatthesouthernonesmokewentaway,itsexitwasnotdiscoverableontheoutsideofthepyramid…

Butthenfollowedamysteriouscommentwhich,evenmorethanacenturylater,mademejumpoutofmyseat:

Somethingelse,however,wasdiscoveredinsidethechannels,viz.alittlebronzegrapnelhook;aportionofcedar-likewood,whichmighthavebeenitshandle;andagrey-granite,orgreen-stoneball…8325grains[about0.850kilograms]…

Thiswastheveryfirst timeIhadheardofthis. Ireadon.Smythwentontoexplainhowthese relics or ‘curiosities’ had ‘excited quite a furore of interest, for a time, in generalantiquarian,anddilettante,circlesinLondon;butnothingmorehascomeofthem’.IfounditoddthatIhadnotheardaboutthisbefore.MyfirstreactionwastoassumethattheEgyptologistswerewellawareoftheexistenceofsuchrelics.Irememberedthecopper‘fittings’thatRudolfhaddiscoveredinthesouthernshaft.Itappearedthathehadnot,afterall, been the first todiscovermetal inside theGreatPyramid. Iwonderedwhathewouldmakeof this. I immediatelycalledRudolf inMunichand,as Ihadanticipated,hewasasastonished about this as I was. We both wondered why no Egyptologists had thought itimportanttoinformusofDixon’samazingfindinsidethechannelsintheQueen’sChamber.Perhapstheyassumedthatwealreadyknewofthis.IthencalledDrI.E.S.Edwardsbut,tomygreater surprise,he, too,hadneverheardof such items foundbyDixon–norhadhecomeacrossPiazziSmyth’s report.Heofferedtocheckwith theBritishMuseum. It turnedout that no one there could remember anything of thismatter. LaterDr Spencer,who isresponsibleforthearchives,alsoconfirmedthatnosuchitemswererecordedintheannalsofthemuseum–letalonetherelicsthemselvesbeingthere.Thiswasmostmysterious.WhatcouldhavehappenedtotheseancientrelicsfromCheops’spyramid?WeretheybroughttoLondonafterPiazziSmythexaminedthem?Fromhisaccount,thisseemedtobethecase.ItwasthenthatIthoughtofcallinganamateurastronomerIknewinScotland.Heputme in touch with Professor Hermann Brück and Mary Brück. Professor Brück had beenAstronomer Royal for Scotland 1957–1975 and his wife was a lecturer in astronomy atEdinburgh University. They were the authors of several books, most recently acomprehensive biography of Piazzi Smyth. I telephonedMary Brück and she toldme sheremembered seeing some drawings in Piazzi Smyth’s personal diary of these relics. Shekindly offered to research thematter. A few days later she reported that she had foundmanyinterestinglettersandnotes,andsuggestedIcometoEdinburgh.TwoweekslaterIdrove to see the Brücks in their lovely home in Penicuik, near Edinburgh. To my greatdelight,MaryBrückproducedacopyofPiazziSmyth’sdiagramsshowingtheancientrelicsand also, more interestingly, the various written accounts on them by the two Dixonbrothers,WaynmanandJohn.1FromtheaccountsofPiazziSmythandtheDixonsIfeltthatthereweregoodchancesthattherelicsmightbefoundsomewhereinLondon.

3.SecretChamberFever

The Dixon brothers seem to have been deeply involved with Piazzi Smyth since at least1871. They, too, sensed the possibility of a ‘secret chamber’ in Cheops’s pyramid.On 25November1871,forexample,JohnDixonreportedtoPiazziSmyththathisyoungerbrother,Waynman,wasverybusyworkingonabridgeconstructionprojectinEgyptandmadethismysteriouscomment:

Iammorethaneverconvincedoftheprobabilityoftheexistenceofapassageandprobablyachambercontainingpossiblytherecordsoftheancientfounders–assoonasIhaveadecentplandrawnIwillsendyouacopy…

JohnDixonwent toEgyptandwhenhereturnedon8April1872,wroteagain toSmyth,saying that Waynman was still very busy, and that ‘I am satisfied I am on the clue toanotherpassage!’On2September1872aletterwaswrittenbyJohnDixoninLondontoPiazziSmyth:

IamgratifiedthatourboringsandscratchingsatthepyramidhaveresultedinaninterestingdiscoveryofpassagescloselyapproachingtheQueen’sChamber–Iseehe(Waynman)hassentyouacopyofhisreport.IamanxioustohavemorebyMonday’smailandshallsendyouacopyofhisletterifhehasnotdonesodirect.Ithinktheblockedentrancetothem[theshafts]ratherupsetsthetheory(?).IhavefurthersuggestedtodrillthewestwallsofbothChambersi.e.theKing’sandQueen’s,alsotoseeifbysmokeandfiringpistolinthepassagestheycanbysight,soundorsmelldetectanyconnectionwiththoseoftheKing’s.Possiblytootheconcussionmaybringdownanyarticlesthathavetakenthebenefitof…[the]‘angleofrest’andarelyingupinthepassages…

Then on 15 November 1872, John Dixon wrote a letter to Piazzi Smyth and mentionedagainthe‘DixonsPassages’:

I’ve justgotback fromahurriedvisit toEgypt– seen thenewpassagesorchannels in theQueen’sChamber(Dixons Passages) – brought home the tools found in one – a bronze hook a granite ball doubtless aweightweighing1lb30z–andapieceofoldcubitfiveincheslong…

4.TheMissingCigarBox

A few days later, on 23November 1872, two letters followed from JohnDixon to PiazziSmyth.InoneletterDixoninformedSmyththathehaddispatchedtherelicstohim:

Theserelicsarepackedinacigarboxandcarriedbypassengertrain.TheyconsistofStoneBall,BronzeHookandWoodsecuredinglasstube…copy,photooranythingyoulikewiththem…butreturnthemwithoutdelayasmanyarecallingtoseethemandwhennextweekTheGraphichasadrawingofthesein…therewillbearush…IsthereanychancetheBritishMuseumgivingafewhundredfortheserelics?Ifso,I’dspendthemoneyinagreatclearanceandexploration[ofthePyramidbase]…I’llbegthemaftertheirexistence[therelics]becomeknown…

In the second letter Dixon discussed Smyth’s ‘theory’ that these shafts in the Queen’sChambermighthavebeen‘airchannels’:

YourremarkastotheterminologyofthenewchannelsisforcefulandgoodbutIdissentfromadoptingontoohastyanassumptionthetheorythattheyareairchannelsfortheobviousreasonthattheyhavebeensocarefullyformeduptobutnotintothechamber.That5inchesofsocarefullyleftstoneisthestumblingblocktosuchasupposition.Andagain,oneatanyrateofthemIamconvincedfromitsappearance–socleanandwhiteasthedayitwasmade–cannothaveanyconnectionwiththeexternalatmosphere.Itwashere(inthenorthpassage)wefoundthetools…

Thenowfamouscigarboxwiththerelicsinsidearrivedsafelyon26November1872inthehandsofPiazziSmythinEdinburgh.Heenteredthisinhisdiaryandalsoproducedafull-size sketch of the metal ‘tool’. Piazzi Smyth also correctly noted that the ‘tool’ was ‘…strangelysmallanddelicatefor[beinga]GreatPyramidimplement…’On the 4 October 1993 I went to the Newspaper Library of the British Library at

Colindale.IlookeduptheDecember1872issuesofTheGraphicand,intheissue7December1872IfoundJohnDixon’sarticleonp·530(text)andp·545(drawings).Fromthese,andPiazziSmyth’sowndiagramsandcommentariesoftherelics,Iconcluded

that the ‘bronze tool’ or ‘grapnel hook’ was an instrument used for a ritual, probablysomething to dowith the ‘opening of themouth’ ceremony. It remindedme of a snake’sforkedtongue.Sucha‘snake-like’instrumentwasactuallyusedinthisceremonyandsomegooddepictionscanbeseeninthefamousPapyrusofHuniferattheBritishMuseum.Thediscoveryof this implement insidethenorthernshaft,whichwenowknowpointedtothecircumpolarconstellations—theskyregionwhichisidentifiedwiththisceremony—addsfurther support to this thesis. Professor Z. Zäba, the astronomer and Egyptologist, hasarguedthataninstrumentcalled‘Pesh-en-kef’,andshapedverymuchlikethe‘tool’foundinthechannelbyDixon,was,inactualfact,usedinveryancienttimesintheceremonyofthe‘openingof themouth’. Furthermore,Zäbaproved that the ‘Pesh-en-kef’ instrument, fixedonawoodenpieceandinconjunctionwithaplumbbob,wasusedtoalignthepyramidwiththepolarstars.Itnowseemedverylikelythatapriestplacedtheritualistictoolsinsidethe

northernshaftfromtheothersideofthewalloftheQueen’sChamber.Where could these relics benow? If not at theBritishMuseum, thenwhere? I took thediagramsof therelics toDrCarolAndrewsat theEgyptianAntiquitiesDepartmentof theBritishMuseum,butsheseemedcertainthattheywerenotintheirkeep.Herfirstreactionwasthattheitems,judgingfromthediagrams,didnotlook‘oldenough’,andshethoughtperhapstheywereputintheshaftsatalaterdate.ButIremindedherthattheshaftswereclosedfrombothendsuntilWaynmanDixonandDrGrantopenedthemin1872.ThegoodstateofpreservationwasactuallyexplainedbyJohnDixon ina letterdated2September1872:

Thepassagebeinghermeticallysealed,therewasnoappearanceofdustorsmokeinside—butthewallswereascleanasthedayitwasmade…

Dixonwasright,ofcourse.Withsuchasealedsystemtherelicswerefreefromaircorrosion.I gave Dr Andrews my opinion that the ‘tool’ was a Pesh-en-kef instrument, and also asightingdeviceforstellaralignments.DrAndrewsfavouredthelatteridea,butsaidthatnoPesh-en-kef instrument of this shape was known before the Eighteenth Dynasty. I thenshowedthediagramstoDrEdwards inOxfordandhe, too,wascompelledtosupport thisideabut, unlikeDrAndrews,he recognised the instrument as a typeofPesh-en-kef.BothRudolfGantenbrinkandItendtoagreewithhimonthis.

5.Cleopatra’sNeedleandVictorianMemorabilia

The next place to checkwas at the Sir John SoanesMuseum at Lincoln’s Inn. John andWaynman Dixon seemed to know the curator, Dr Bunomi, at the time and so did PiazziSmyth.Butthearchivistthere,MrsParmer,wasclearthatnosuchitemswereevergiventotheMuseum.ItoldherofBunomi’sinterestinPiazziSmyth’stheoriesandhowhehadbeenveryexcitedbythearrivalofCleopatra’sNeedleinLondon.ApparentlyDrBunomidiedin1876,duringtheearlystagesoftheoperationtobringtheobeliskfromAlexandria.Whilewe talked,MrsParmer remembereda curiouseventaboutDrBunomi: afterhisdeath,hehad had placed on the roof of the museum a Doulton ware type jar full of curiousmemorabilia.Itwas then that I suddenly rememberedJohnDixon’s involvementwith theCleopatra’sNeedle affair. Both he and his brother, Waynman, had been contracted by Sir ErasmusWilsonandSirJamesAlexander to supervise the transportationof theobelisk toLondon.But it was Johnwhowas primarily involved in the last stages of the operation and theerectionofthemonolithattheVictoriaEmbankment.ThestoryappearedintheIllustratedLondon News of the 21 September 1878. I drove to the monument and read thecommemorationinscriptions;one,onthenorthfaceofthemonument,read:

ThroughthePatrioticzealofErasmusWilson,F.R.S.,thisobeliskwasbroughtfromAlexandriaencasedinanironcylinder.ItwasabandonedduringastormintheBayofBiscay,recoveredanderectedonthisspotbyJohnDixon,C.E.,inthe42ndyearofQueenVictoria(1878).

According to the Illustrated London News of 21 September 1878, all sorts of curiousmemorabiliaandrelicswereburiedinthefrontpartofthepedestal.ThesewereputtherebyJohnDixonhimself inAugust1878during theconstructionof thepedestal, inside twoDoulton ware jars. Among the strange items were ‘photographs of twelve beautifulEnglishwomen, a box of hairpins and other articles of feminine adornment… a box ofcigars…’CouldJohnDixonhaveputtheancientrelicswhichheoncekeptina‘boxofcigars’undertheLondonObelisk?ItelephonedanhistorianoftheEnglandNationalHeritage,MrRogerBowdler, but he did not think they had any details of the items under the Obelisk. HesuggestedItrytheRecordOfficeoftheMetropolitanBoardofWorks,whoapparentlywereresponsible for the operations to raise the obelisk in 1878. A frustrating search in thearchivesbroughtnoresult.AnothersearchintheNationalRegisterofArchivesalsoprovedadeadend.

Entry26November1872fromPiazziSmyth’sdiary(bykindpermissionofDrW.Duncan,SecretarytotheRoyalSocietyofEdinburgh)

DiscoveriesintheGreatEgyptianPyramid1.OriginalCasingStonefromNorthSide

2.GraniteBall,1lb30zweight3.PieceofCedar,apparentlyaMeasure

4.BronzeInstrumentwithportionofthewoodenhandleadheringtoit.ThelastthreeitemswerefoundinthenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberin1872.

We cannot helpwondering if these ancient relics— indeed, perhaps the very sightinginstruments thatwere used to align theGreat Pyramid to the stars—are in a cigar boxunderCleopatra’sNeedle inLondon.Orperhaps they lieelsewhere, insomedarkatticorcupboardinoneofthemanyLondonantiquarianshops.Weshall,perhaps,neverknow.

Postscript

It had been supposed that John Dixon and Piazzi Smyth erroneously described the ‘tool’foundinthenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberasbeingmadeofbronze.Egyptologistshad always told us that the Bronze Age only occurred in Egypt the Middle Kingdom.Copper, therefore, was mistaken for bronze by the Victorians. To my surprise, on 2November 1993, I was informed by Dr A. J. Spencer and Dr Andrews, both AssistantKeepersoftheDepartmentofEgyptianAntiquitiesattheBritishMuseum,thattwovesselsoftheSecondDynasty,previouslythoughttobecopper,werenowconfirmedtobemadeofbronze. Thismeant that the description given by Dixon and Piazzi Smythwas, after all,correct! It alsomeans that the Bronze Age had already started in Egypt centuries beforeeveryonehadassumed.ItwasatthattimethatDrSpenceralsokindlyallowedmetophotographanironplatefoundin1837byaBritishengineer,J.R.Hill,stuckwithinajointinsidethesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberofCheops’spyramid.Ithadbeennecessaryto‘remove[it]byblastingthetwooutertiersofthestonesofthepresentsurfaceofthepyramid’.MrHillandotherswithhimthenpresentedcertificatesstatingthattheironplatewascontemporaneouswiththepyramid,andthendepositedtheancientrelicattheBritishMuseum.2

Theironplatemeasures26cmby8.6cm.In1926DrA.Lucas,thedirectorofthechemicaldepartment at theDepartment ofAntiquities inEgypt, examined it and ‘thought that theironwascontemporaneouswiththepyramid’;strangely,whenhewastoldthatitwasnot

meteoriciron,hefeltcompelledtochangehismind.3Thematterlaydormantformorethanfiftyyears,untilin1989,twoeminentmetallurgists,DrElGayarofthefacultyofPetroleumandMineralsatSuezandDrM.P.JonesofImperialCollegeinLondon,jointlyperformedchemicalandmicroscopic testson themysterious ironplateand, to theannoyanceof theBritishMuseum,concludedthat‘theplatewasincorporatedwithinthePyramidatthetimethatstructurewasbuilt’.4Theirchemicalanalysisalsorevealedmysterioustracesofgoldandthey conjectured that the iron plate might have been covered with gold. They alsoconcluded that the plate was originally 26cm × 26cm (oddly, 26cm is exactly half anancientEgyptian royal cubit, themeasurementknown tohavebeenusedby thepyramidbuilders) and thus probablywas used to cover themouth of the southern shaft some fewmetresfromtheouterfaceofthemonument.IftheconclusionsofElGayarandJonesareaccepted—andweseenoseriousobjectionstothemsofar—itmeansthattheIronAgetoobeganmanycenturiesbeforeEgyptologistshadthought!Asyet,the‘Dixonrelics’havenotbeenfound.ThemysteryofthegreatCheopscontinues.

Appendix1

ASTRONOMICALINVESTIGATIONCONCERNINGTHESO-CALLEDAIR-

SHAFTSOFCHEOPS’SPYRAMID

VirginiaTrimble

ThepyramidofCheopsatGizaisuniqueamongthemonumentsofEgyptinseveralways.Notonlyis it thelargest,bestbuilt,andmostthoroughlysurveyedofthepyramids,but itpossesses several architectural features not found elsewhere. Among themost obvious ofthesearetwoshaftsleadingnorthandsouthoutoftheKing’sChamberandslantinguptoopenonopposite faces of themonument.Although thenorthern shaftmakes an averageangle with the horizontal of about 31 degrees and the southern one an angle of 44.5degrees,becausetheKing’sChamber is locatedsouthof theverticalaxis fromtheapexofthepyramid, thetwoshaftsopennearlyat thesameheightonthenorthernandsouthernfaces.1

Thepurposeoftheseshaftshasnotbeendetermined,butithasfrequentlybeenheldthattheywereintendedsimplyforventilation,hencethename‘air-shafts’.Inview,however,oftheprofoundlyreligiouscharacterofthepyramidsthemselvesfortheAncientEgyptiansitseemsnotunreasonabletolookforsomedeepermeaningtotheshafts.Itisthepurposeofthis paper to consider briefly some of the evidence for the view that the shafts wereintended as ways whereby the soul of the deceased king might ascend to the northcircumpolarstarsandtotheconstellationnowknownasOrion.Althoughsimilarshaftsdonot appear to exist elsewhere, there is ample evidence for the presence of slots andapertures intended to allow the soul of the deceased to pass through variouswalls. SuchaperturesfirstappearintheThirdDynastytombofDjeser2andbecomearegularfeatureintheserdabsoftheFifthDynastymastabatombs.3

A notable feature of the religion of early Egypt was the ‘stellar destiny’ of the soul,whereinitwasthoughtthatthesoulofthedeadkingwouldrisetothecircumpolarstars—‘TheIndestructibleOnes’or‘TheImperishables’totheEgyptians—intheireternaljourneyaround the sky. It is believed that the stairways or ramps descending from the north inarchaicmastaba tombswere intended toaid thesoul in itsascent to thesestars.That thenorthshaftofthepyramidmighthaveservedasimilarpurposeismademoreprobablebyits inclination. The latitude ofGiza is about 30 degrees north (29 degrees 58minutes 51seconds),andwerecallthatthenorthshaftmakesanangleof31withthehorizontal.Thismeansthattheshaftpointsverynearlytowardthenorthcelestialpole,aboutwhichthe circumpolar stars seem to revolve. It is also of interest to note that, at the time thepyramid was built, the pole wasmarked by a bright star about as accurately as Polaris(alphaUrsaeMinoris)nowmarksit.Itisgenerallyknownthattheinclinationoftheearth’saxisofrotationtotheplaneofitsorbit(ecliptic)atanangleofabout23.5degreescombineswiththenonsphericalshapeof

the earth and the gravitational force of the sun, moon and planets to produce aphenomenonknownastheprecessionoftheequinoxes.Theeffectofthesunandmoonistochangethedirectiontowhichtheearth’saxisofrotationpointsrelativetothefixedstars,whilethatoftheplanets is tochangetheplaneoftheearth’sorbitrelativetothesestars.Theseeffectsareknownaslunisolarprecessionandplanetaryprecessionrespectively.Itisevidentthatbothfactorswillchangetheidentityandpositionsofstarsvisiblefromagivenpointontheearthandthatwemusttakethembothintoaccountwhendetermininghowtheskylookedtotheancients.In this scheme of moving stars, pole stars are a rather rare occurrence. In fact, afterPolarisceasestomarkthepoleinafewhundredyears,therewillnotbeanothergoodoneuntilalphaDraconis returnsaround AD23000.4 It happens, however, that the last ‘visit’ ofalphaDraconistotheneighbourhoodofthepoleoccurredfromabout3000to2500BC.5ThismeansthattheEgyptiansofthepyramidageweremoreawarethanmightotherwisehavebeenthecaseof theapparentdaily journeyof thestarsabouta fixedpoint in thesky. Itthusseemshighlyprobablethattheywouldhavechosentobuildashaftthatwouldallowthesouloftheirdeadkingtoascenddirectlytothiscentralpoint.Non-circumpolar stars were also of considerable importance to the Egyptians. Theymeasured time at night by means of decans–stars or groups of stars which rose orculminated (reached their highest elevation above the southern horizon) at one-hourintervals during the night. Many of these decans were parts of constellation pictures(though different from ours which are derived from the Babylonian ones) and wereidentifiedwith various gods.Very few of these have been identifiedwith particular starswith any degree of certainty. There are, however, four of the standard decans and fivevariantsthereofwhicharepartsoftheconstellationSah—‘Thegodwhocrossesthesky’—whose identification with Orion ‘must be taken as likely in the highest degree’.6 He isdepictedas aman standing, lookingbackoverhis shoulderandholdinga sceptre inonehandandan’nh(ankh)signintheother.Oneofthefivevariantsisprobablythe‘belt’ofSah.Threeofthedecansintendedforuseduringtheepagomenaldaysappearalsotohavebeenpartsofthisconstellation.7Wemaynoteasevidencefortheidentificationtheceilingof the tomb of Senmut, in which the column devoted to Sah includes three large starsarranged vertically and bearing a striking resemblance to the three starswe callOrion’sBelt(delta,etaandzetaOrionis)whichtheyprobablyrepresent.Thenextrelevantquestionis,ofcourse,thepositionofthesestarsrelativetothesouthernshaftatthetimethepyramidwasbuilt.Thisrequirescalculationstoallowforthetwotypesof precession previously noted. We observe first that, because the shaft is directed duesouth,itcanonlypointtoastaratculmination,andweseethatforalatitude30degreesnorth and the inclination of the shaft, 44.5 degrees, an appropriate star must have adeclination(angulardistance fromthecelestialequator)of–15.5degrees.Thequestion isthen reduced towhetherornot the starsofOrioneverhad suchadeclinationand, if so,when.It can be shown by spherical trigonometry that, for a star at declination δ and rightascension θ (angular distance from the vernal equinox measured eastward along thecelestial equator), precessionwill cause a change in position such that the declination at

anothertimeisgivenby:

sinδ′=cosδcosasinθ+sinδcosθ

wherea=α+≡,andθand≡aredeterminedbythedistancetheeclipticpolehasmovedduetoplanetaryprecessionandthedistancethenorthcelestialpolehasmovedduetoluni-solarprecessionduringthegiventime.Thevaluesoftheseanglescanbedeterminedfromthe known rates and directions of the poles’ motions. They have been tabulated forhundred-yearintervalsfrom4000BCtoAD3000(forequinox1900)byPaulNeugebauer9whohasalsoworkedout therightascensionsanddeclinations for310brightstarsathundred-year intervals from 4000BC to AD1900.10 His tables and recent calculation by the samemethodshowthatoneofthethreestarsinOrion’sBelthadadeclinationwithin30degreesof–1.5degrees(2840to2480BC).Thepositionsofthestarsduringthisperiodwere:

Thismeansthatthesethreestars,whoseimportancetotheEgyptianswehaveseen,passedonceeachday,atculminationdirectlyoverthesouthernshaftoftheGreatPyramidatthetimeitwasbuilt.11

ThusconsiderationsofEgyptianreligionandmodernastronomycombinetoindicatethatthe‘air-shafts’ofCheops’sPyramidwereactuallyintendedaswaysbywhichthesoulofthedeceasedkingmightascendtojointhecircumpolarstarsandthegodconstellationSah.It would seem likely that some other stars might pass in the same fashion over the

openingoftheshaft.Ithappens,however,thatnootherstarsofcomparablemagnitudehaddeclinationswithin1degree30minutesof–14degrees30minutesduringthatperiod.

OriginallyprintedinMitteilungendesInstitutsfürOrientforschungderDeutschenAkademie

derWissenschaftenzuBerlin,bandx,Heft2/3,1964

Appendix2

PRECESSION

R.G.Bauval

Precessioncalculationisavitaltoolforthehistoriantohelphimunderstandancientman,whose religionwasoftendirected to the ‘skygods’and thusbasedonobservationsof thesky – what today we would call naked-eye observational astronomy. It can be thusunderstood that ancient man built religious monuments, temples and, more prolifically,tombswhichmadeuse of geometrical astronomy to express astronomical alignments andother phenomena of the sky using symbolic architecture. It further follows that if anarchitectural featureof amonument is suspected tohavebeenaligned towards a specificstar,then,withtheuseofprecession,itispossibletoworkoutthedateofsuchamonumenttoafairlygoodlevelofprecision.Byalso‘re-creating’theskyforthegivenepoch,wecansee what they saw and hence understand further the religious importance of theirobservationsthroughthedesignandsymbolicexpressionofthemonument.Before electronic scientific calculators and computers became household equipment,precessional calculations had to be done long-hand. These were not only complex buttedious, especially because the formulas combined spherical geometry and trigonometrythroughseveral stepsofcomputations. Ifonlyoneor twocalculationswere required, thiswasnotsobad,butifseveralstarsanddateshadtobeverified,thecalculationsmighttakeallday.Happilyforustoday,agoodpersonalcomputerdoesthisforus:anyonewithaPCcannotonlyperformprecessionalcalculationwithafewtouchesofthekeyboardbutalsoactually seeon the screen theeffectsprecessionhasonanartificial skyglobe.1Butwhatexactlyisprecession?

24.Precession

Thesunandmoonexertagravitationalpullontheearth’sequatorialbulge,causingtheplanetto‘wobble’inaveryslowcycleknownasprecession.Thesimplestwaytothinkofprecessionistoimaginetheearthasbeingaspinningtopwhichalsohasaslow‘wobble’ofjust under 26,000 years’ cycle. The extended axis through the poles thus performs a slowalmost circularmotion against the background of the starry sky and returns to the sameplaceevery26,000years.Everyhalf-cycleofprecessioni.e.13,000years,astarfindsitselfinoppositedirectionontheprecessionalcycle,suchthatifitisobservedatthehigh-point(highest declination) on the precessional cycle then 13,000 years later (or earlier) itspositionwouldbeatitslow-point(lowestdeclination)onthecycle.The precessional effect is most noticeable at the meridian. Taking Orion’s Belt as anexample, in c. AD2550 it will be at highest declination (c. –0.8 degrees) very near thecelestial equator. Thus it was at lowest declination (c. –48 degrees declination) in c.10450BC.DuringthePyramidAge,c.2500BC,itwasatc.–15degreesdeclination.The length of the precession cycle, however, is not absolutely constant but changes

slightlyfromepochtoepoch.Itisgenerallyaccepted,however,thatitliesbetween25,800and26,000years.Wehavetakenthevalue26,000yearsthroughoutTheOrionMystery. Itmustbenotedthatthereisanothershortercomplexmotioncallednutationwhichtakes18.6years.2Thiscauseslittle‘hiccups’every18.6yearsontheotherwisesmoothcircularmotionofprecession.Nutationisgenerallyignoredinprecessionalcalculationsfordistantepochssinceitisnotpossibletodeterminewhetherahiccupwasoccurringatthedateconsidered.Bothprecessionandnutation,ofcourse,arenotpropermotionsofthestarsthemselves,

but are due to themovements of our own planet, producing the apparentmotions of thestars.Allstars,however,dohavetheirownpropermotions, i.e., theymoveinspace.Thecloserthestar,thegreatervisualeffectitspropermotionhasoveragiventime.Thefartherthe star, the smaller the visual effect. Propermotion ismeasured in angular change as acombinationof declination and right ascension, these being the given co-ordinates of thestarsonaskymap.Siriusisamongthecloseststarstoourplanet,atabout8.4light-yearsaway.Theangularchangeduetoitspropermotionisgivenas–1.21arcsecondsperyear.Overthousandsofyearsthisisquitenoticeableandthusmustbetakenintoaccountwhenprecessionalcalculationsaremade.OntheotherhandthestarsofOrion’sBeltareveryfarindeed, about 1400 light-years, and generally no proper motion is registered.3 Someresearchersprefer toallocateaverysmallpropermotion ifadistantepochisconsidered,but the resulting effect comes towell below the one-arcminute level for the epoch of thePyramid Age. This cannot be perceived with the naked eye and thus proper motion isassumedtobenegligibleinsuchacase.4

Whenconsideringprecessionforrelativelyshortperiodsoftime,sayfiftytoonehundredyears,thefirstapproachisasimpleruleofthumbwherethesunappearstomoveagainstthebackgroundofthestarsneartheecliptic(thepathofthesun)byabout50.3arcsecondsperyear.For100yearsthisisabout1degree23minutesandverynoticeableindeedtoakeenobserver.Notallstars,however,areneartheeclipticandthisruleofthumbcannotbesimply applied to them. Nor does it show the effect of precession on declination.Mathematically,thisisobtainedbyusingtheformula:

ChangeinRightAscension(RA)=3.07″+1.34″sinRAtandthen,Changeindeclination(d)=20.0″cosRA

Inthecaseofverylongperiodsoftime,however,suchasseveralmillennia,amuchmorerigorousapproachmustbetaken.InSkyCatalogue2000.0,vol.I,theRigorousFormulaforPrecessionisgiven.Threeauxiliaryconstants,A,BandC,aredeterminedbytheselectionofthedatesoftheinitialepoch(takenasAD2000)andthefinalepochconsidered.Thesearegivenas:

A=2305.647″T+0.302″T2+0.018″T3

B=A+0.791″T2

C=2003.829″T-0.426″T2-0.042″T3

Thefirstthingtodoistocorrectthepositionofthestarforpropermotion,givenas(u)RAand(u)dforRightAscensionanddeclinationrespectivelyforoneyear,wherethevaluesofuareinarcseconds.Thisisdonebymultiplying(u)RAand(u)dbythenumberofyears.ThevaluesarenegativeifbeforeAD2000andpositiveifafterAD2000.Thevalue(u)isthepropermotiontakenfromtables.Theresultisadded(forwardintime)orsubtracted(backwardintime)fromtheRightAscensionanddeclinationoftheselectedstar’scoordinatesatthestartofepochAD2000.Thenewdeclinationisgivenasd(0)andthenewRAisgivenasRA(0).This therefore accounts for proper motion. The Rigorous Formula for Precession is thenappliedasfollows:

cosd(RA-B)=cosdosin[RA(o)+A]cosdcos(RA-B)=cosCcosdocos[RA(o)+A]–sinCsind(o)sind=cosCsind(o)+sinCcosd(o)cos[RA(o)+A]

Agoodscientificpocketcalculatorwilldotheseoperationsquiteeasily.Wehaveseenthatthere are other corrections than proper motion to be considered, such as nutation, andvisualaberrationssuchasstellarparallaxandrefractionoflightthroughthelayersofgasesintheatmosphere,butthesearegenerallyignored.Allowingfortheirassumedeffectmayactuallydistortratherthanimprovetheresultbynotknowingtheexactvaluetoconsider,i.e.,wehavenowayofknowingwhatwasthedensityandclarityoftheatmosphereonagiven day in a given epoch. It is thus generally acceptable to ignore these effects, andassumethattheplusandminuseffectsofnutation,aberration,parallaxandrefractionmoreorlesscanceleachotherout.Calculationsmade forme in1987byastronomerDr JohnO’Byrneof theUniversityof

SydneyrevealedthatforthethreestarsinOrion’sBelt–Zeta(AlNitak),Epsilon(AlNilam)and Delta (Al Mintaka), no proper motion correction was considered necessary for theepoch 2500BC. Even by assuming a small value for proper motion effect, the correctionneeded would be about 65 arcseconds, which Dr O’Byrne felt would be ‘unrealisticallylarge’. Short-term effects such as nutation and aberration were ignored for the reasonsgivenabove.ForthestarSirius,aproper-motionadjustmentof–1.21arcsecondsperyearwasrequired

for declination. Going in negative time to the epoch of the Pyramid Age, thismeant anadjustmentofabout+1degree33minutesforepochsaround2500BC toprecessionhadtobemade.For the purpose of The Orion Mystery we have used the Skyglobe version 3.5. This

program has the advantage of providing very quickly a visual effect of precession andreadings on the screenwhich give the declination, right ascension, azimuth, altitude andmagnitudeofagivenstarforarangeofepochsforplusorminus13,000years.WefoundSkyglobetobeaverywell-madeprogramandquiteaccuratefortheworkcoveredinTheOrion Mystery. Its accuracy is also very acceptable for the discussions. The star’s co-ordinates, however, must be manually adjusted for proper motion. This was generally

necessaryforSirius,whosepropermotionissignificant.Wehave,however,puttheletterc.(circa)beforedatessignifying‘approximate’.Inprinciple,precessionalcalculationsdictatethatthefartherawaytheepochunderconsideration,thegreaterthemarginoferrorisforpropermotionadjustments.Nodoubtprofessionalastronomers,withmorepowerfulmeansattheirdisposal,willfindsomehairstosplitinthedataprovidedinTheOrionMystery.Anyrefinementwould,ofcourse,bewelcome.Itmustalwaysberememberedthatobservations,for Ancient Egyptians,weremadewith the unaided eye andwith the help of very basicsightinginstruments.Valuesbelowthe20arcminutelevelarenoteasilyperceivedwiththenakedeye.ItiswidelyacceptedthattheAncientEgyptiansusedasightinginstrumenttheycalledMaskhet:thiswasawoodenstaffwithaslitatoneend,thelatterusedasacollimatorto aim at stars. They also used a simple plumb-line to measure the vertical.5 With suchsightingrodsandplumb-lines,thealtitudeofastaratthemeridian,oritsazimuthatrising,canbemeasuredwith a verygooddegreeof accuracy, certainlywithin the20arcminutelevel.CouldtheAncientEgyptianshavemeasuredprecession?We have seen that precessional shift for, say, Zeta Orionis, which was then some 15degrees south of the celestial equator, varied asmuch as 28 arcminutes in one century –equal to theapparent sizeof themoon. It isgenerallyacceptedbyEgyptologists that theformative years or religious ideas predate the Pyramid Age by at least 500 years, andpossiblymuchmore. Thus over 500 years of observations, a variation of declination forZetaOrionisbetween2950BCand2450BCwouldhaveregisteredabout2degrees16minutes.This gives a rate of about 27minutes per century for the change in declination. Havingnoticedthatprecessionprovidedauniformmotion‘eastwards’ofthesunalongtheeclipticof some1degree23minutespercenturyrelative toagivenconstellationor star,6 itwasnotdifficultfortheAncientEgyptianstodeducethatafullcyclewouldtakeabout26,000yearstoreturntothesameplacerelativetotheconstellationorstar.Whethertheyworkedout thisvalue isdebatable:what ismore likely is that theyrealisedthatprecessionwasacycle(ithasastartandanend),andthenrepeatedthecycleforever.It isnotknownexactlywhentheAncientEgyptianshaddevelopedacalendar,but it isgenerally accepted that this may have occurred well before the Pyramid Age.7 In thecalendar systemusedby theEgyptians, theyearwasdivided into12monthseachhavingthreedecansof10days, thus30days in themonthand36decans inayear.Thisgivesayearof360daystowhich5extraorepagomenaldayswereadded;thesewerecalled‘the5daysupon the year’. Itwasduring the5 epagomenal days that the ‘neters’ or godswereborn,whoincludedOsirisandIsis.Wethushaveasituationwherea360-dayyearislinkedtoa365-dayyearbythegods.Thedifferencewas,tothem,causedbythebirthofthegodswho were said to be the four children of Nut (the sky goddess) Osiris, Isis, Seth andNephthyswiththefifthgodbeingHorus,sonofOsirisandIsis.8

Inreligiousterminology,itwasthusthegodswhoturnedthe360-dayyearintoa365-dayyear.Thesegods,aswehaveseen,wereofcoursethestars.Inthisrespectwemustconsiderthe question whether the Ancient Egyptians divided the apparent circular motion of thesun’seclipticpatharoundtheearthinto‘degrees’and,ifso,wasthedivision360units.Itisa fact that the Egyptians divided the year into 12 months each of 30 days, giving thenumerical total360days.Theyalsodividedtheskyinto36 ‘decans’eachof10days,alsogivingthenumericaltotal360days.Thisimpliesthattheydividedtheeclipticpathofthe

suninto360unitsor‘degrees’todefineaday.Butthecorrectnumericaldivisionshouldbe365units,whichtheyalsohadcomputedbyaddingthe5daysupontheyear.

Appendix3

THESECRETCHAMBERSOFTHESANCTUARYOFTHOTH

byAlanH.Gardiner

OnthelastdayofOctober[1925]ProfessorAdolfErman,thepioneerofmodernEgyptianphilology,attainedhis seventiethbirthday.Hispupils invarious landsarecelebrating theoccasioninaspecialnumberoftheZeitschriftfürägyptischeSprache,butasonewhosedebttotheGermanscholarisparticularlygreatIdesirealsotopayhimsometributeinmyowncountry.Now itwas the intensive study of one particular papyrus containing a series ofstoriessupposedtobetoldtoCheops,thebuilderoftheGreatPyramid,whichcontributedmorethanallelsetoconsolidatethefoundationsofourpresentknowledgeoftheEgyptianlanguage. Professor Erman tells us that his edition of theWestcar Papyrus took him fiveyears; he even devoted a special volume to its grammar. It is astonishing how well thetranslationwhichhepublishedin1890hasstoodthetestoftime;inonlyafewdetailshavehisrenderingsorreadingsbeenquestioned,althoughourprogressbothinlexicographyandin grammar has been gigantic. For this reason any advance in the interpretation of theWestcarPapyrusseemsratheranevent,seemstoregisterastepforwardmoresignificantlythanwouldthenoveltranslationofapassageinanyotherpapyrus.Ithinktohavefoundthe solution of an old crux interpretum in the Westcar Papyrus; this solution I offer forProfessorErman’sconsiderationintokenofmuchgratitude.ThestoriestoldtoCheopsbythethreefirstprinces,hissons,relatedtoearliertimes;thefourthson,Hardedef,nowpromisestobringbeforehisfatheralivingmanabletoperformthemostmiraculous feats. Thiswas a certainDjedi,who in spite of his hundred and tenyearsenjoyedanenormousappetite,wasabletoreplaceaheadthathadbeencutoff,andhad the power to compel a lion to walk tamely behind him. In addition to theseaccomplishmentsheknewthenumberoftheìpwtandofthewntofThoth,forwhichCheopshadbeenlonglooking,inordertomakethelikethereofforhisown‘horizon’,thatistosay,forhisowntomb(7,5–8).Thenatureoftheìpwtandofthewntmentionedinthispassagepresentsaproblem.The wntis,fromitsdeterminative,abuildingorstructureofsomesort,andtheresemblanceofitsnametothenameofthecitywhereThothwasparticularlyworshipped,namely WnwHermopolisMagna,themodernAshmunên,wouldseemtoindicate that it was the primeval sanctuary of Thoth, or else his tomb. Professor ErmanthoughtthattheresemblanceofwntandWnwwasfortuitous;thisisalsoapossibility,butinanycasewnt seems likely tobe some specialbuildingdedicated toThoth.ThePharaoh issaidtobeseeking( ),notthewntofThoth,buttheìpwtofthewntofThoth,whenceithasbeenconcluded,partlyonothergroundstobeexaminedlater,thattheìpwtwerenolongerintheiroriginalwnt.Thisagain isapossibleview,butnotanecessaryone;sinceCheopswas anxious tomake for his tomb something like the ìpwt of thewnt of Thoth, it is notunnaturalthatthewritershouldhavesaidthatthekingwassearchingforthese,andnotforthewnt itself.There isnodefiniteground, in thepassagebeforeus, forasserting that theìpwthadbeenremovedfromtheiroriginalwnt.Ihavenolighttothrowonthewhereabouts

of thewnt; itmaybe the nameof the sanctuary ofHermopolisMagna, or itmaybe thenameofanearlier sanctuaryofThoth in theDelta;oragain itmaybeapurelymythicalbuilding.ButthatitwasabuildingconsecratedtoThoth,andthatthe ìpwtwere itssecretchambers andhence inseparable from it, I hope to be able to prove, or at least tomakeexceedinglyprobable.In7,5.7thewordìpwtappearstobedeterminedwiththesignofthebow ,butin9,2wefindnot (7,7)nor (7,5)but ,withthedeterminativeofthecylindersealwhich serves (inter alia) to determine the word htm ‘to seal up’ or ‘close’. On thestrengthofthisdeterminativeProfessorErmanconcludedthatìptdenotedaclosedbuildingor the instrument for closing a building (den Verschluss eines Gebäudes). Now the laterpassagementioningìpwt(9.1–5)readsasfollows:‘ThensaidkingCheops(namelytoDjedi):Whatofthereport,thouknowestthenumberoftheìpwtofthewntofThoth?AndDjedisaid:Sopleasethee,Iknownotthenumberthereof,OSovereignmylord,butIknowtheplacewhere…

.AndHisMajestysaid:Whereisthat?AndDjedisaid:Thereisaboxofflintinaroomcalled ‘Revision’ in Heliopolis; (well,) in that box!’ In the following sentences Djedideclaresthatitisnothewhowillbringthebox(<fdt)tothePharaoh,buttheeldestofthechildrenwhoareinthewombofReddjedet.Thisleadsontothewell-knownepisodeofthebirthofthetripletsdestinedtobecomethefoundersoftheFifthDynasty.NowProfessorErmanrenderedthewordsomittedintheabovetranslationas ‘theplacewhere they are’, and it must be admitted that in the absence of any evidence as to thenature of the íìpwt, this seems necessarily the right translation. Hence it was naturallyconcluded that the ìpwtwere small enough tobe containedwithinabox, andno surprisewasfeltwhenMrCrumsubsequentlyproducedaCopticword incloseassociationwithotherwordsfor‘doors’,‘bolts’,‘keys’(Zeitschr.f.äg.Spr.,XXXVI,147).Sincethattimeìpwthasbeentranslated‘locks’,anditissupposedthatCheopswassearchingforthelocksofthewnt-sanctuaryofThoth,andthatDjedideclaredthesetobeinaflintboxinthetempleofHeliopolis.1

Inoppositiontothis theory itmustbenoted, firstofall, that therendering ‘locks’ restswhollyonthedeterminative which hasin9,2andnowhereelse,eitherintheWestcarPapyrus or out of it; secondly, that the determinative accords ill with the meaning‘locks’;2andthirdly,thatthedeterminative foundinthepassages7,5·7isleftwithoutexplanation. It is evident to me that the hieratic sign transcribed is really theequivalentof , though theproofof this fact is a little roundabout.Möller citesnoearlyequivalent of , though I think that the obscure sign in Sinuhe R73 and another ratherdifferentforminSinuheB205areexamplesfromTwelfthDynastyandratherlater.FromtheHyksosperiod,however,noinstancesareforthcomingunless itbethetwointheWestcarPapyrusherecited.NowwehaveproofthatinhieroglyphicoftheNewKingdom andareconstantlyconfounded(Zeitschr. f.äg.Spr.,XLV,127),andinmyNoteson theStoryofSinuhe, 152, I have quoted an autobiographical stela of about the reign of Tuthmosis IIIwhere seems a pretty obvious quotation of Sinuhe R2–3

‘Hesaid:Iwasafollowerwhofollowedhislord,aservantoftheroyalharîm.’Theconfusionof and mustobviouslybeduetothesimilarityofthesesignsinhieratic,sothatwemayregarditasanacquiredfactthatbeforethereignofTuthmosis

IIIthehieraticformsof and lookedverymuchalike.NowifthestudentwillconsulttheCarnarvonTablet,l.I,datingfromatlatestthebeginningoftheEighteenthDynasty,4hewilltherefind nst ‘throne’writtenwithasignalmost identicalwith ;nsthasasimilarshapeinSinuheB207.Inviewofthesecoincidences,itisimpossibletodoubtthat andhavetobereadinWestcar7,5.7;inWestcar9,2 ismerelyanerroneoussubstitution

for the rarer sign. Our translations of the passages in question have to be remodelledaccordingly.

ApartfromtheWestcarpassagesandthename‘SouthernOpet’ giventoLuxor,theword isalmostalwaysusedinreferencetotheroyalharîmasalocality;seeZeitschr. f.äg. Spr., XLV, 127. It seems likely that the word signified properly a secret or privychamber. Applying this rendering in 7,5–8, we find that the delight of Cheops at theprospectof seeingDjediwasdue to the fact that the latter ‘knew the number of the secretchambersofthesanctuaryofThoth’,forCheopshimself‘hadspent(much)timeinsearchingforthesecretchambersof thesanctuaryofThoth inorder tomake the like thereof forhishorizon’.And indeed, what ambition could have fired Cheops more than to possess in his ownpyramidareplicaofthemysteriouschambersinthehoarysanctuaryofthegodofWisdom?ThetempleoftheGreatPyramidisutterlydestroyed,buttheinnerchambersofthepyramiditselfremainamarveldowntothepresentday.Somuchforthefirstpassage;thesecondisalittlemoredifficulttointerpret.Wehaveseenthatthewords aremosteasilyrendered ‘(I know) the placewhere they are’, inwhich case, as the following question andanswerreveal,theìpwtofthesanctuaryofThothwouldbeinaflintboxinaroomofthetempleofHeliopolis.This viewof themeaning is, of course, incompatiblewith the sense‘secret chambers’ which we now attribute to ìpwt. Let us re-examine the passage afresh,attempting a different translation. Cheops asks whether Djedi knows the number of thesecret chambers of the sanctuary of Thoth. Djedi replies: So please thee, I know not thenumber thereof,O Sovereignmy lord, but I know the placewhere it (scil. the number or theknowledgeofthenumber)is.Hethenproceedstosaythat‘thereisaboxofflintinaroominHeliopoliscalled“(theroomof)Revision”;inthatbox(theinformationwillbefound).’Accordingto thismodeof understanding thepassage,whatwas in the flint box is not the ìpwt, thesecret chambers themselves,butapapyrus recording theirnumber.Objectors to thisviewcanmakesomecapitaloutofthefactthatthetextbwntystim,notbwntyswimwiththemasculinepronounswwhichwouldbeexpectedifthereferencewereto tnw ‘thenumber’.But possibly the vague neuter pronoun st ‘it’ may refer, not to the specific word tnw‘number’, but to the required information generally. I admit there is some difficulty intakingthisview,butanargumentcannowbeadducedwhichmakesitpracticallycertainthatthisistheviewtotake.Insufficientweighthasbeenattachedtothename“Revision”

given to the roominwhich the flintboxwas tobe found.Now sipty is the regularwordemployed for ‘takingstock’of thepropertyofa temple,asProfessorErmanhimselfhasshown.5Forthisreason,surely,theroominquestionmusthavebeenanarchive,notastorehouseofanykind. Iconclude, therefore, that theword ìpwtmeans ‘secret chambers’,and that Cheopswas seeking for details concerning the secret chambers of the primevalsanctuaryofThoth,inorderthathemightcopythesamewhenbuildinghispyramid.

Thisarticleappearedinthe

JournalofEgyptianArchaeology,11,1925

Appendix4

THESURVIVALOF

THESTARRELIGION

byRobertBauvalandAdrianGilbert

Withinthecore-thesisoftheOrionMysteryliesnotonlythecorrelationtheoryoftheDuatwith the Fourth Dynasty pyramid fields but the fact that the dominant religion of thepyramidbuilderswasastarreligion,andthatthedeadkingsweresupposedtobecomestarsouls of Orion. The question is whether the star religion of the Pyramid Age, so vividlyexpressed in the Pyramid Texts of the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties and in the archaeo-astronomicallanguageofthegreatFourthDynasty,persistedthroughthewholepharaonicera–almostthreemillennia,fromthefirstnativedynastyin3100BCtotheendofthelastinc.525BC,andindeedbeyond.AncientEgyptianchronologyissomethingofanightmare,withnotwoscholarsagreeingonprecisedates.Thisisespeciallysofortheearlierdynastieswhere,accordingtoexperts,at least150years,plusorminus,mustbeassumedas themarginof error.But there is aconsensus which we will adopt here. The Ancient Egyptians did not, of course, seethemselves as dynasties but as a continuous line of kingswhich began in the First TimewhenthegodsruledEgypt.TheysawHorus,sonofOsirisandIsis,asanhistoricalpersonwhobecamethefirstman-godtoruleEgyptaspharaoh.ThetermPharaohcomesfromPer-Aaandmeans ‘GreatHouse’, thepantheonorgreatdivinehouse fromwhich thekingsofEgypt came. All pharaohs saw themselves as the reincarnated Horus, the Living One asopposedtothedeadandRebornOneswhohaddepartedintotheastralafterworldandhadthemselvesbecomeanOsirisorstarsoul.To conform to modern Egyptological practice, we shall assume the so-called dynasticdivisions. Pharaonic Egypt, which lasted from about 3100BC to 332BC – and thus vastlylongerthantheGreekandRomanputtogether,andindeedWesterncivilisationasawhole– included thirty-one distinct dynasties with some 390 monarchs.1 Although there were‘pharaohs’ after 332BC until AD251, these were not native kings but Macedonian Greeks(Ptolemaic period 332–30BC) and later Roman emperors (Roman period 30BC to AD251).Including these, there were 439 monarchs who ruled Egypt as pharaohs.2 Egyptologistshavethoughtitbesttoseparatesuchalengthyepochintoperiods,andtheseareshownintheTable.3

Dynasty Period Years

1–2 EarlyDynastic 3100–2686BC

3–6 OldKingdom 2686–2181BC

7–10 FirstIntermediate 2181–2133BC

11–12 MiddleKingdom 2133–1786BC

13–17 SecondIntermediate 1786–1567BC

18–20 NewKingdom 1567–1080BC

21–25 LateNewKingdom 1080–664BC

26 Sait 664–525BC

27–31 Late 525–332BC

Ptolemaic 332–30BC

Roman 30BC–AD642

Arab AD642–present

FromtheevidenceinthePyramidTextsandthemonumentsthemselves,itisclearthattherebirthcultwasfocusedonthekingaloneormay,atmost,haveextendedtomembersoftheroyalfamily.Onlytheyhadarighttoanastralrebirthwhichinvolvedmummificationand thecomplex ritualsperformed,nodoubt, in thepyramidzoneofMemphisandeven,wesuspect,withinthepyramidstructures.Therecanbe littledoubt thatduring theepochof thegreatFourthDynasty thecentralpointoftherebirthriteswasGiza,andthattheGreatPyramidservicedtheapotheosisofanancient passion play involving the body of the dead king and a royal and priestlycongregation.Thesharpdeclineatthecloseofthatdynastyisevidentfromthesmallerandpoorly constructedpyramids of the FifthDynasty kings atAbusir and Saqqara. From thispoint, or at least from the end of the Old Kingdom, the royal rebirth cult becamemoredemocratised, extending to notables at the court and probably even rich merchants andmilitarymen.Astheprocessexpanded,itseemslikelythatmoreandmorecommonersweregiven the right toanastral rebirth, so thatby the timeof theNewKingdomeveryone inEgypt who could afford the expenses of mummification, the elaborate funeral andaccompanying paraphernalia, was allowed a life after death with Osiris. However,democratisationbroughtagradualcorruptionofthecultandvariationoftheritualstosuitthespecialneedsofthedeceasedandhisfavouritelocalgods.Inshort,therebirthcultlostitspurityandsimplicity.The textual route showing the survival of the stellar rebirth cult ismainly through thevariousversionsoftheBookoftheDead,ofwhichthePyramidTextsistheoldestversion.Therearealsothemanyinscriptionsfoundintombsandtemplesand,ofcourse,thelargecollectionsofpapyri inmuseumsaroundtheworld.Adetailedstudyofallthismaterial iswelloutsidethescopeofthisbook;whatwecandoistodrawonselectedtextswhichleaveno doubt that the Osirian afterlife prevailed throughout the pharaonic era and that thedestinyandfinalformofthedeadremainedastral–astarsoul intheDuatorafterworldkingdomofOsiris.The persistence of the star religion in the Old Kingdom and Pyramid Age has beenpresented in this book by investigation of the Pyramid Texts. The next set of textualmaterial toexamine–thenatural followuptothePyramidTexts– is theso-calledCoffin

TextsoftheMiddleKingdom,theepochwhichfollowedthePyramidAge.CarolAndrews,aseniorEgyptologistattheBritishMuseum,says:

TheMiddleKingdom(about2040–1786BC)wasatimewhenfunerarybeliefsandpracticesweredemocratised,whenaguaranteedafterlife,whichbeforehadbeenrestrictedtoroyaltyandgreatnoblemen,becameavailabletoallwhocouldacquire therelevantequipment.Nowto theUtterancesof thePyramidTextswereaddedmanymorespells,andthisnewrepertoirewaswrittennotinhieroglyphsbutinthecursivescriptcalledHieratic,incloselycrowdedverticalcolumnswithinwoodencoffinsofcommoners.BecauseoftheirnewlocationsthespellsarenowknownastheCoffinTexts,anditistheywhicharedirectpredecessorsoftextswritteninBookoftheDeadpapyrioftheNewKingdomandlater.4

ItisprettyclearthatthePyramidTextswerethepredecessorsofboththeCoffinTextsandtheBookoftheDead,whicheventuallytakesustothePtolemaicperiod,thefewcenturieswhichpredatetheearlyChristianandGnosticepoch.CarolAndrewsgoesontosay,‘AnewdevelopmentintheCoffinTextsisthatthesungodisnolongersupreme:Osirisisthekingunderwhomtheblesseddeadhopetospendeternity,thegodwithwhomthedeadbecameassimilated…’5

AndrewsalsosaysthatintheCoffinTextsanewconceptappears:theafterlifeisspentinthe ‘Fields of Reeds’, where agricultural activities undertaken by the dead mirror theactivities inEgypt,so that the ‘OtherWorldwasenvisagedasan identicalenvironment’.6TheFieldsofReedsis,however,notanewconceptoftheCoffinTextsbutcomesfromthePyramidTextsandhencethePyramidAge. InFaulkner’seditionof thePyramidTexts theFields of Reeds arementionedmany times in direct connectionwith the afterlife destinyand are obviously visualised as a celestial and thus astral landscapewhich resembles theNileregionofLowerEgyptandareanintegralpartoftheDuat.I.E.S.EdwardssaysoftheFields Of Reeds: ‘Even in earlier times, however, the Osirian hereafter was probablyregarded as a kind of idealised version of this world, situated below the western [sic]horizon and presided over by Osiris. This region, called by the Egyptians the Fields ofReeds,wassubsequentlyknowntotheGreeksastheElysianFields…’7

Edwards remarks emphatically that the Ancient Egyptians ‘regarded the after-life as akindofmirrorofthisworld’andthatitwasaplacewherethedead‘spiritscouldthusdwellatwillnearOsiris’.In the Coffin Texts the Nile god says ‘I am he who performs the service of gifts (the

harvest)forOsirisattheGreatInundation,IraiseupmydivinecommandattherisingoftheGreatGod(Osiris).’9

Also in the Coffin Textswe read that ‘Osiris appearswhenever there is an outflow’ ofwater,i.e.,theannualflood.10 ‘TherisingoftheGreatGod’atthestartoftheNile’sfloodoffersustheimageryoftherisingoftheastralOsiris(Orion).Thus,inthisspiritualorsoulform,saysRundleClark, ‘Osiris isespeciallyconsideredthespirit in theNile flood…Therising of Orion in the southern sky after the time of its invisibility is the sign for thebeginning of a new seasonof growth, the revival of nature.Osiris has been transformedintoa“livingsoul”…’i.e.,aBaorstarsoul, inthiscaseOrion.TheideathattheBawasindeeda star soulcanbe found throughout thepharaonicepoch, in the so-calledPapyrusCarlsberg I, for instance,which dates from the second century AD,well into the Christian

era.TheCarlsbergIpapyrus,nowintheUniversityofCopenhagen,cameoriginallyfromthe Fayum, a fertile oasis south of Cairo much frequented in the second century AD byChristianGnostics.SimilartextsareknownastheDramaticTexts,andcomefromthetomborcenotaphof

Seti I at Abydos (c. 1350BC), where they still are. Otto Neugebauer and Richard Parker,experts in Egyptian astronomy, say that ‘in chapter VI, 43, the souls are referred to as“stars”…’11TheactualpassageintheDramaticTexts,PartII,VI,43whichNeugebauerandParkerreferto,reads,‘Thesoulsgoforthandtheytravelintheskyatnight.Therisingofthestars.Theytravelatnight…’,andgoeson,‘whenit(thesoul)isseenbytheliving,itisindeed a star, thepeopledonot see it byday…One sees that is how it (the soul) livesthere.Youseeitshiningforthinthesky…’TheCarlsbergIpapyrus,whichdrawsmuchofitsmaterialfromcosmologyontheceilings

andwallsofSeti IandtheRamessidetombs(c.1300–1150BC), isadetailedtreatiseof therebirth of human beings as stars in the Duat. A few quotes from the text and alsocommentaries from Otto Neugebauer and Richard Parker, who have studied it for manyyears,summarisetheessentialpoints:

themost important information that comes from this chapter (Carlsberg, I,Ch.E) is the fact that thedecans(groupsofstars)indicatethehoursnolongerbytheirsuccessiverisingbutbytheirculmination(atthemeridian)ortransit.Thestarofthe‘first’houristhedecanwhichhascompleteditstendaysasfirsthourstarandisseenatthemeridianatthebeginningofthenight,thatis,sometimeaftersunset…12

Thewritersgoontoexplainthatafterthismeridianpassage,astarisseentotakeninetydays(threemonths) toreachthewesternhorizonat thesametimeofday(i.e.,dusk, justaftersunset).Thenit‘enters’theDuat,thatis,itbecomesinvisibleforaperiodofseventydays.Theseventydays,sayParkerandNeugebauer,ismodelledontheperiodofinvisibilityofSirius.Thenthestarisrebornintheeast;it‘comesforthfromtheDuat’andtravelstheskyfromeasttowest.Ittakeseightydaystoreachthemeridian,thistimeatdawn,beforesunrise:thetwelvehoursofthisstar.Another120days(twelvedecanhours)seesthestaratthemeridianatdusk,justaftersunset.Thisisits‘first’hour,andthecyclebeginsagain.Itappearsthatthestarworks(isanactivesoul)onlywhenitcanbeseentocross(transit)themeridian,eightydaysafteritsrebirth,itshelicalrising,whenitisatthemeridianatdawn.Asimplecalculationthusshowsthat thedecanorstarworks for120days, that is, twelvedecanhoursoftendayseach.13

Alsocontainedinthesetextsistheconceptthatrebirthofasoulstaroccursatitsheliacalrising;whenitrisesintheeastatdawnafteritsseventy-dayperiodofinvisibility.Thestaris thus imagined as emerging from the female figure of the sky goddess as she is archedacrosstheskywithherthighsintheeast.Thefollowingpassagesareinscribednexttoanimageoftheskygoddessarchedinthatposition:

Thefemalefigureofthis(figure)…thatistosayherheadisinthewestandherhindpartintheeast…Hecausesthehindparttobethebeginning,thatistosay,thePlaceofBirth…14

themarshesofheavenofthegods(stars),istheplacefromwhichthebirds(Ba-souls)come…theyarefromthe

north-west side…as faras the south-west side…of the [sky]…whichopens to theDuatwhich ison thenorthernside[ofthesky]…15

Clearlythedeadperson’ssoulyettoberebornenterstheDuatinthenorthorcircumpolarregionbutthenstarts its labour(work),presumablyofbeinggestatedinsidethewomboftheskygoddess,whenthestarisatdawnatthemeridian.Ittakes90+120+70=280daystocompleteitsastralgestationandforthesoultoberebornatitsheliacalrisingintheeastatdawn.Theaveragetimeforhumangestationis,ofcourse,280days.TheTextsgoontotellusthatthespecialstarsunderconsiderationriseinthesouth-eastpartofthehorizon,whereOrionandSiriusrose(andstilldo):

…thesearetherisingsofthegods.These…OrionandSothis(Sirius),whoarethefirstofthegods–thatistosaytheycustomarilyspendseventydaysintheDuat[andtheyrise]again…Itisinthe[south]eastthattheycelebratetheirfirstfeast…16

FinallytheTextsrevealthatthelife-death-rebirthcycleofastarisregardedasthesameforhumans:

…theirburials(thestars)takeplacelikethoseofmen…thatistosay,theyarethelikenessoftheburial-dayswhichareformentoday…seventydayswhichtheypassintheembalming-house…ItsdurationintheDuatindeedtakesplace.ItisthetakingplaceofitsdurationintheDuat…everyoneofthestars–thatistosay70days…thisiswhatisdone(meant)bydying.Thisonewhichsetsistheonewhichdoesthis…thestaramongthemwhichgoestotheDuat…17

TheNeugebauer-Parkercommentaryonthesetextsisthattheanalogyofhumanembalmingand ‘the stayof a star in theDuat for seventydays’ ismadeexplicit.Theygoon to say,surprisingly,that‘nosuggestionhasyetbeenmadewhyseventydayshasbeenchosenfortheidealperiod’;thenconclude,rightly,‘itisthebehaviourofSirius–theprototypeofthedecanalstars–whichsuggestsit.’18

Itisapparentthattheeventofahumandeathandrebirthinanafterlifeworldor‘cosmicEgypt’wasbasedontheannualcycleofthestarsand,morespecifically,onthoseofSiriusandOrion,thedivinecoupleandprotagonistsinthedramaofastralrebirth.Thisideahasits origins in Egypt’s early Pyramid Age, and was first expressed in the sacred astro-architectural language of the Fourth Dynasty, who built the Giza and Dashour giantpyramids.Thesepyramidshavesurvived,togetherwiththePyramidTextsoftheFifthandSixthDynastieswhichprovideuswiththefundamentalsofapotentstarreligionofrebirth.This religion is the purest manifestation of the human hope that religious rituals andliturgieswillassisttheinitiateorbelievertoachieverebirthasastarsoulintheafterworldofOsiris.When the texts are analysed as awhole,we conclude that a gestation cycle ofsome273to280days(aboutninemonths)tookplacewhenastarbeganitslabouratthemeridianatdawn,toreach,intheeastatdawn,theapotheosisofrebirth.The cardinal points were of the utmost importance to the rituals involved: the south(meridian)markingthestartofthecycle,thewestthestartofsymbolicdeathwhenthestarbecameinvisible,theeastdenotingrebirthwhenthestarroseheliacally.Thenorthseemstohavebeenregardedasafixedpointwheretheenergyfortheprocesscouldbegenerated,likeacosmicumbilicalcordlinkedtothewholeevent.ThemysteriousabodeofTuartwas

there – the hippopotamus goddess of fecundity and childbearing, represented by theconstellationwenowcallDraconis.Interestingly,thepoleregionoftheskyTuartinhabitedalsohada ‘mooringpost’ fromwhicha ropeor cordemerges.Thismooringpost isoftenmentioned in thePyramidTexts, in relation to theastral rituals,and isdepicted inmanyastronomicaldrawingsofalaterperiod.So,isthematerialinthePyramidTexts,anditslaterversion,theCoffinTextsandBookof theDead,expressing the same thingas theastro-architectural languageweread in theFourthDynastypyramids,andparticularly thatofCheops?Webelieve that theanswer is‘yes’.LetusgobacktothemythofOsirisandIsisandtakeacloser lookat it fromanastralviewpont.Osiriswaskilledbyhisbrother,Seth,and Isisgatheredhis scattered limbsandbroughtabouthisresurrection,butonevitalpartofhisbodywasmissing:thephallus.IsishadtouseanartificialphallustomakeherselfpregnantandbringforthHorus.IfwelookattheOrion-Hyadesstar figureshowingamalehumanshape,wecanseehowtheregionwecallOrion’sBelt fits theplaceof thephallus. Ithasoftenbeensuggested,(recentlybytheauthor), that the shafts in theCheopspyramid serveda fertilityorphallic role in thestellarrebirthrituals.19ItisthereforereasonabletoassumethatthethreestarswhichformOrion’sBeltrepresentthephallusofSahu-Orion(Osiris-Orion).ThishasitscounterpartonthegroundinthethreeGizapyramids,oneofthesouthernshaftsofCheops’spyramid(theKing’sChamber)beingdirectedtoOrion’sBelt.ThesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberwas directed to Isis-Sirius, and this is found textually in the PyramidTexts,whereOsiris-Orionisaddressed:‘YoursisterIsiscomestoyourejoicingforloveofyou.Youhaveplacedheronyourphallusandyourseedissuesinher,shebeingreadyasSothis(Sirius),andHar-Sopt(thestellarHorus)hascomeforthfromyouasHorusWhoIsInSothis…’[PT632–3].WehavereasontoconjecturethatwearebeingtoldoftheshaftsintheCheopspyramid:that the phallus of Osiris-Orion is the southern shaft of the King’s Chamber pointing toOrion’s Belt, and is connected with Isis-Sothis (Sirius) through the southern shaft of theQueen’sChamber.Thephrase‘YoursisterIsiscomestoyou’indicatesthatthereshouldbeaphysical linkbetweenthetwoshafts,andGantenbrinkmayhavefoundthis linkwhenhesent his UPUAUT robot up these shafts. At the end of the southern shaft from the Queen’sChamber (still with about nineteen metres to run before it could pierce the face of thepyramid)hefoundthelittleportcullisdoor.DirectlyabovethispointisthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamber,theOrionshaft,andherethereisamarkingorniche,indicatingthattheancientbuilderssawalinkbetweenthetwosouthernshafts.Ifthisconclusioniscorrect,thiswouldforceustodeducethatthelargeareabetweenthetwosouthernshaftsmaycontainsomethingtodowiththestellarritual fortheseedingofIsis tocreateasymbolicalnewHorus-kingtoreplace thedepartedking.Thiswouldbe inlinewiththereligiousbeliefsoftheepoch,asthePyramidTextsshow.BritishEgyptologistHenryFrankfort,ex-directorof theWarburg Institute inLondon,brought to lightwhathesawas a double event put intomotion after a king died: the firstwas the funerary ritesinvolving the elaborate preparation of the dead king as a Sahu (mummy or spiritualbody),20whichtookthecorpsetothebrinkofanastralrebirth;theotherevent,inparallelto the first, was the transfer of kingship to the new, living Horus-king.21 (In May 1993

RobertBauvalwasinvitedbyDrNicolasMann,directoroftheWarburgInstitute,togiveatalk on the recent findings in the Cheops pyramid and the new star cult studies of thePyramidTexts.Itisnowhopedthatthismulti-disciplinaryinstitutewillcontributeinsightsintothedualityofancientreligionsandastrologies.)22

Appendix5

LOGISTICSOFTHESHAFTSINCHEOPS’SPYRAMID

A Religious Function Expressed with Geometrical Astronomy and Built-inArchitecture

byRobertG.Bauval

ItisanacceptedfactthatthedesignoftheCheopsPyramid–andotherpyramidstoalesserdegree – incorporates a basic knowledgeof geometry andobservational astronomy.1 Theintenselygeometricalshapeofthestructure,theprecisionofdesignratios,anditsaccuratealignmentsalongaprecisemeridianmakethisacertainty.Manygeometricianswhohavestudiedthepyramidagreethatharmonyofanglesanddimensionratiosistobefoundinthedesign.2 Thosewho have studied its astronomical alignments generally agree that stellaralignmentstakenatthemeridianwerethemeansbywhichthebaseofthemonumentwassetout and, ashasbeen shown,3 themeansbywhich someof the internal featureswerepositioned.4

Above all else, however, the monument is intensely religious, with the main culticpurpose of assisting the dead king in his ascent to the sky.5 In brief, therefore, themonumentisasepulchrewithapotentfunctionwhich,forlackofappropriateterminology,canbesaidtobeastrological.6Thisisawidelyacceptedconsensusandisconfirmedbytheliturgy of the Pyramid Texts.7 The religion and rituals of the Pyramid Age were a skyreligion,wherebythekingbecameastarandhisstarsoulbecameestablishedortransferredtothesouthernstarsofOrionandSiriusandtothenorthernstars,whichincludedthethreecircumpolarconstellationsofUrsaMajor,UrsaMinorandDraco.8Thesupremetaskoftheancientarchitectwastoexpressthesevitalelementsoftheskyreligioninthedesignofthemonument.Whenallissaidanddone,thepyramidstructurewasprimarilyaninstrumentofrebirthforthedepartedking.To achieve this religious function, the architect based his design on simple geometricalprinciplesusingrightanglesandbisectedanglesfixedwithsimplemathematicalratiosandproportions.This is thecommonpractice inarchitecturalandbuildingengineeringdesignprinciples, in order to create the ideal functional monument within the constraints ofstructuralconsiderationsandbuildinglimitations.Elementarymathematicsareboundtobedetected by allwho study the design of theCheops pyramid.9 Yet researchers should notimagine thatelementarymathematicswasanessential aspectof thepyramidcult; itwasmerelyatool,albeitprobablyasacredtoolbywhichthepriestlyarchitectcouldperformhistrade.

TheNarrowShafts

There are four narrow shafts in the Great Pyramid, two from the King’s Chamber thatemanate northward and southward; two others emanate, also northward and southward,fromtheQueen’sChamber.Thesehavebeendiscussedinnumerousbooksandarticlessince1837.10 Though they were first thought to be for the purpose of ventilating the internalchambers of the pyramid, the accepted consensus today is that they served a religiouspurposeofpassagewaysfortheascentofthe‘soul’ofthedeadking.11Thepresentwriterisa firmsupporterof this thesis.12There is,however,onemainelementof themathematicsthatneedstobecarefullyintegratedinthisthesisifitistowithstandscientificscrutiny:thestellar theorymust account for the fact that the architect intended each pair of shafts toemergeatthesamehorizontallevelsontheoutsideofthepyramid.Itisthusimportanttofollow a strategic logic to ascertain, through a series of questions and answers,what thelikelyintentionwasofthearchitectwhenheoptedforthisfeature.

MathematicalAstronomyorAstronomicalMathematics?

Onequestionthatmustbeansweredis:Wasthearchitectbriefedtodesignamonumenttoexpress principles of sacredmathematics in the pyramid, orwashebriefed touse sacredmathematicstoprovidethepyramidwithfeaturesthatcouldservicethefunctionofthecult,i.e.,toassistthedepartedkingtoascendtothesky?Perhapsthebestwaytoanswerthisistouseamoremodernanalogy.Inmedievaltimes(and sometimes still today) cathedrals were designed in the shape of a cross generallyorientated east. Themain entrancewas on thewest side, at the foot of the cross,whichmeant thatacongregationentering thecathedralwouldmoveeastward, thussymbolisingtherisingofChrist,theeastbeingtheplacewherethecelestialorbsriseasthebirthstarofChrist,‘thestaroftheeast’.13CathedralswerereligiousmonumentsintendedtoservicetheliturgicalaspectsoftheChristianreligion,andthemainbriefinggiventothearchitectwasbased on these requirements. The architect developed his design using geometry andmathematicstoexpressinasymbolicmannertheliturgicalfunctionofthecult.Thecrosswasdesigned in geometrical proportions imbued with deep symbolic meaning: the domerepresented the sky vault, the altar was the head of the Christic cross and so on. Thearchitect also used simple observational astronomy to orientate themonument eastward:certainpanelstowardsthesunriseorsunsetsandsoon.Itstandstoreason,therefore,thatifamedievalcathedral(suchasChartresinFrance)isscientifically scrutinised, from its design and orientation will be extracted both sacredmathematicsand theelementsof simpleobservationalastronomy.But toassume that themain purpose of the architectwas to express either ismisleading. The correct conclusionwould be that the architect used symbolic mathematics and observational astronomy toexpresstheliturgicalfunctionofthemonument.ThesameappliestotheCheopspyramid.Ascientificscrutinywillextracttheprinciplesofasacredgeometryandcertainaspectsofobservationalastronomy,buttheseareonlythe

toolsofthearchitect’stradeand,devoidofreligiousinput,donotelucidatethepurposeandfunctionof themonument.Ascientificapproachisnecessaryonly inthat it informsusofthe tools and thus of the architectural language throughwhich the religious purpose andfunctioncanbeunderstood.Thecorrectapproachtoafullunderstandingofthepyramiddesignisthereforetomake

use of elementary mathematics and observational astronomy to extract the symbolicmeaning of the design and ultimately link it to the liturgy of the cult. This is also theapproachtotakeinthescrutinyoftheshaftsintheCheopspyramid.

ABriefBasedontheReligiousFunction

WeknowfromthePyramidTextsthatboththenorthernstarsandthesouthernstarswereessential aspects of the rebirth rituals and directly related to the celestial destiny of thedeparted king.14 It has also been shown by many researchers, Egyptologists andastronomersthattheconstellationsinquestionwere:a)Thenorthernmeridionalregion:thoseofUrsaMajor,UrsaMinorandDraco.Thelast,ofcourse,haditsmainstar,AlphaDraconis,asthepolestarofthePyramidAge(c.2500BC).b) The southern meridional region: essentially, these were the culmination of theconstellations of Orion and Canis Major (which contains Sirius). We must add theconstellationofTaurus,includingtheHyades,whichalsohadimportantculticsignificance.All stars,ofcourse,have tobeprecessedand ‘propermotioned’back to theepochofc.

2500BCtomeetwiththeassumeddateoftheCheopspyramid.Thereligiousritualwhichtookplaceafterthedeathofthekingwasessentiallyarebirth,

as we have said. Some have termed it the Osirian Rites, since ultimately the dead kingbecame anOsiris and departed to the celestial kingdomof this god, in the sky region ofOrion.15First,however,avarietyofceremonieshadtobeperformedbeforethedeadkingwas deemed ready to undertake his journey to Orion-Osiris. The most essential was theopening of the mouth during which Horus and his four sons, with ceremonial cuttinginstruments,openedthemouthoftheOsiris-kingtoinduceitsrebirth.Thisceremony,too,had strong astral connotations but linked to the circumpolar region of the sky. It hasgenerallybeenaccepted that the twoceremonialcutting instrumentswereshaped to lookliketheconstellationsofUrsaMajorandUrsaMinor.16AnothermajorpartoftheeventwasthesymbolicbirthofanewHorus(thenewking),whichalsohadastellarconnotationas‘HoruswhoisinSirius-Isis’.17

We can therefore safely conclude that the architect’s brief was to incorporate in thedesign of the rebirth chambers architectural elements which would service the essentialritualsoftheopeningofthemouth,thebirthof‘HoruswhoisinSirius-Isis’and,ultimately,thedepartureof the soul to thecelestialkingdomofOsiris-Orion. Inpreviousarticles18 itwasshownthatthetwosouthernshaftspointedtoOrion’sBeltandtoSirius,mythologicallyOsirisand Isis respectively.The twonorthern shaftsweredirected to thepole star,AlphaDraconis,andtotheheadofUrsaMinor,thecelestialadzeofHorus,alsocalledthe‘adzeof

Upuaut’.19 All these alignments work for the same precessed epoch of c. 2450BC plus orminustwenty-fiveyears.20

ToolsandTechniquesoftheArchitecturalDesign

In considering the techniques of design, we must define the context of the architect.Historically,weare looking at c.2500BC,when the twopyramids atDashour and that atMeidumwerecompletedbyKingSneferu,fatherofCheops.Theexperienceacquiredintruepyramid design and construction would obviously be related to those pyramids. Inaccepting that the architect of Cheops used basic geometry to define the scale andproportionsandbasicobservationastronomytoalign thebaseandother features suchasthe shafts,wemustalsoaccept thathehadawidervisionbasedon thepastgeometricalandastronomicaldesignoftheDashourpyramidsandafuturevisionoftheGizaNecropolisasawhole.21Alltheseelementshadtobelinkedinoneunifiedarchitecturalvisionwhich,ifcorrect, would be visible in the integrated design and layout of the Dashour and Gizapyramidsitesand,ultimately,inthedesignofthepyramidofCheops.22Thefinalproduct,the design of the Cheops pyramid had to be linked with the religious purpose of themonument.

25.Theastro-geometryoftheshaftsandchambersinsidetheGreatPyramid,withtheupperculminationpositionofthestarstakenC.2450BC

Allmeasurementsareinroyalcubits.1royalcubit=0.5237metres

Appendix6

THEHORIZONOFKHUFU

AstellarnameforthePyramidofCheops

byRobertG.Bauval

In Discussions in Egyptology No. 13, it was argued that the three Giza pyramids wereconstructedtoaunifiedplan,andthatthereligiousmotiveoftheplanwastorepresentthecentralregionofthesky-Duat,thestarrykingdomofOsiris-OriondefinedbythethreestarsofOrion’s Belt.1 Support for this was found in the Pyramid Texts, where the soul of thedepartedkingwas said to joinOsiris-Orion in the sky,2 and in the fact that the southernshaftoftheKing’sChamberwasdirectedtothelowerstarinOrion’sBelt,AlNitak,attheepochwhenthepyramidwasconstructed.3

LinkBetweentheSouthernandNorthernShafts

In a recent article,4 I have shown that the northern shaft of the King’s Chamber wasdirectedtothestarAlphaDraconisinc.2450BC,andthatthenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberwasdirectedtoastarinUrsaMinor(Kochab)atitsmeridianculminationwhichcorrespondedtothetipofthecelestial‘AdzeofUpuaut’,whichthePyramidTextsdescribeasbeingusedbyHorusofLetopolisduringtheceremonyoftheopeningofthemouth.5 Itwasalsomentionedthatwhenthisspecificstar inUrsaMinorstruckthemeridian,sothestar Al Nitak (believed to represent Cheops’s pyramid) would rise. In the stellar ritualsfoundinthePyramidTextswearetoldthatthisdescribestheprecisemomentofrebirthorrisingoftheOsiris-king:‘…Behold,hehascomeasOrion,beholdOsirishascomeasOrion… O king, the sky conceives you with Orion, the Duat bears you with Orion, you willregularlyascendwithOrionfromtheeasternsideofthesky…’[PT820–822].Furthermore, theactualmonument(thepyramidconstruction) is identifiedwith ‘Osiris’:‘…thispyramidofthekingisOsiris,thisconstructionofhisisOsiris…’[PTUtt.600].

TheNameofCheops’sPyramid

IthasbeenshownbyBadawythatthenamesgiventopyramidsbytheAncientEgyptiansbore strong stellar connotations; Badawy wrote, ‘the names of the pyramids of Sneferu,Khufu, Dedefret, Nebre indicate clearly a stellar connotation while those of Sahure,

NeferirkareandNeferefredescribethestellardestinyoftheba’.6Twosuchnames‘DjedefraisaSehedstar’and‘Nebkaisastar’makethiscertain.Otherpyramidshave(soul)names;thesouls,asmanywillagree,werethoughttobestars.7Thequestion,therefore,iswhetherthe name given to Cheops’s pyramid could bear a star name, and could this star beidentifiedwithAlNitak,thelowerstarinOrion’sBelt?TherearemanyvariationsofthewaythenameoftheCheops(Khufu)pyramidshouldberead. The best is given by Edwards as ‘Khufu is one belonging to the horizon’.8 Inhieroglyphics,thenameappearsas

[fromWallis-Budge,AnEgyptianHieroglyphicDictionary,vol.I,p.25a;Doveredition1978].Thismeans‘TheHorizonofKhufu’,anamewhichallowstheoriginalhieroglyphictexttospeak for itself.We have seen that this pyramid has a likely correlation toAlNitak, thelower(and larger)star inOrion’sBelt; thesouthernshaftof theKing’sChamberwasalsodirectedtothisspecificstarwhenitculminatesatthemeridian.9Italsohadanadze-shapedshaft,10thenorthernoneoftheQueen’sChamber,directedtoUrsaMinorasitculminatesatthemeridianwhenAlNitakisrisingonthehorizon.IntheWestcarPapyrus,thepyramidisactuallycalledhorizon,11andinthelightofthestellarconnotationsofsuchnames,itisa‘star in the horizon’. Themain stars of the Osirian rebirthwere those of Orion, and theevidenceiscompellingthatAlNitak,poisedonthehorizonwhenthecosmicadzestrikesthemeridianandalignsitselfwiththenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber,is‘theHorizonofKhufu’(seediagramonp.223).

Appendix7

THE‘SONSOFRA’ANDTHEOSIRIANREBIRTHOFTHEPYRAMIDKINGS

byR.G.BauvalR.Cook

1.The‘Osiris’SonsofRa

ItwasJ.H.Breastedwho, in1912, saw in thePyramidTexts (c.2300BC) a solar religionwhichhad ‘absorbed’ anolder, and thus quasi-defunct stellar religionduring thePyramidAge.1 This view, unfortunately, became Egyptological dogma andwas adopted bymanyscholars till this day.2 In 1966 R. O. Faulkner saw in the Pyramid Texts a strong stellarelementbut, likeBreastedbeforehim,he, too, regarded this as anolder and subordinateaspectofthePyramidAgecultwhichwas,asBreastedhaddeduced,dominantlysolar.3

Such a position, however, was challenged in 1964 when A. Badawy and V. Trimbleproved that the so-called air-shafts in the King’s Chamber of the Great Pyramid wereorientated to the stars of Orion’s Belt (Osiris) in the south and to the circumpolar stars(AlphaDraconis) in thenorth.4 Further evidenceof a strong stellar correlationofOrion’sBeltandtheGizapyramidscamewiththestudiesofR.Bauvalin1989–90,acontributortothisarticle.5

26.TheHeliacalRisingofOrion’sBeltandthe26.5degreealignment

Yet seeing the issue as J.H.Breasteddid, it always appeared that a ‘religious conflict’existedinthePyramidAgebetweenthestate’sreligiousfactionsofthePyramidAge,whereonefactionsupposedlyfavoursa‘solardestiny’andtheothera‘stellardestiny’forthesoulofthedepartedking.Clearlythisisnotanacceptablestancetolookatthepowerfulrebirthcult of the Pyramid Age; we do not think that such a religious conflict as imagined byBreastedeverexisted.WhatismorelikelythecaseisthatthePyramidkingssawthemselvesnotas reincarnationsofRa,but ratheras the living ‘SonsofRa’;and,as such, theywereidentifiedtothedivineprogenyofRainthepersonof‘Horus’whentheywerealive,andinthe person of ‘Osiris’ when they died. Because Osiris was an astral god identified to theconstellationofOrion,thenthekingsexpectedtoundergoanOsirianrebirthwhichensuredthem a stellar destiny with Osiris-Orion and, also, as ‘Sons of Ra’, in the sameway theoriginal‘Osiris’wasregarded.Thisview,whichiscompatiblewiththebeliefsfoundinthePyramid Texts and all other religious texts of other epochs, has the distinct quality ofremovingthesupposed‘conflict’betweenthesolarandstellarideasofthePyramidBuildersormakeusconsidera‘solartake-over’ofanancientastralreligionduringthePyramidAge.

2.TheHeliacalRisingofthe‘HorizonofKhufu’

ItcaneasilybeshownthattheheliacalrisingoftheBeltofOrion,andmorespecificallythestarZetaOrionis(AlNitak),occurredafewweeksbeforetheSummerSolsticeintheepochc.2450BC,whentheGreatPyramidwasbuilt.6ThismeantthattherisingpointofthesunonthisdaywasatAzimuth63.5degrees,thatis26.5degreesNorthofEast.

3.The‘Cook’alignmentofthesatellitePyramidsofGiza

Thecontributortothisarticle,RobinCook,anindependentresearcheronthegeometryandlayoutplanoftheGizaPyramids,haspreviouslyshownthattheangle26.5degreesNorthofEastisthekeyalignmentofthewholeGizacomplexandespeciallyrelatestothethreeso-calledsatellitepyramidsofCheops, foundon itseast side. Inshort, thisalignmentdirectsthewholeattentionofsomeoneobservingtheeasternskytoAzimuth63.5degreesandalsotheheliacalrisingofZetaOrionisat theepochtheGreatPyramidwasbuilt i.e.c.2450BC.This angle, in view of its cultic links with the ‘rebirth’ of Osiris-Orion, is unlikely to becoincidental. Furthermore, 26.5 degrees is found also within the Great Pyramid interiordesign, thisbeing the slopeof thedescendingandalso theascendingpassages leading totheChambersofthepyramid.Itiswellknownthattheangleof26.5degreesisformedbytheso-calleddiagonalofthedouble-squareandwasmuchusedbytheAncientEgyptiansinthedesignofmonuments.Cook’sworkhasshown,forthefirst time,that itwasalsousedforthegenerallayoutoftheGizaNecropolis.This,needlesstosay,isofenormousinterestasitstronglyimpliesaunifiedmasterplanforthenecropolisasawhole.

4TheCircumpolarStar-Clock

InapreviousarticlebyR.Bauval,itwasshownhowtherisingofthestarZetaOrionisintheeastcoincidedwiththemeridianpassageofthestarKochabinUrsaMinor,thetargetofthenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber.7This,itwassuggested,explainedthenameofCheops’spyramid: ‘TheHorizonOfKhufu’; furthermore it allocated thispyramida stellarname, which conforms with the general trend of names of pyramids given by thecontemporariesofCheopssuchasDjedefraandNebka.8

Itfollows,therefore,thatfortheheliacalrising,i.e.rebirth,ofZetaOrionis,theancientbuilderscouldpredictthisallimportantevent–the‘rebirth’ofthestar–byobservingboththeapproachofthesuntoAzimuth63.5degrees(26.5degreesNorthofEast)andtheupperculminationofKochab.Thiswouldstronglysuggestthattheheliacalrisingofstarswerenotmerely determined by waiting impatiently for their rising at dawn – which could befrustratedbyhazeoverthehorizon,cloudsandexcessiverefraction–butbycleverlyusingthecircumpolarstarsasmarkersonasortof ‘starclock’,withagivenmeridianupperorlower culmination of specific circumpolar star ‘marking’, as it were, the time of heliacal

risingofanother,non-circumpolarstarintheeast.

NOTESANDREFERENCES

PROLOGUE:TheLastWonderoftheAncientWorld

TheCheopspyramidalonecontainsabout6.3milliontonsofquarriedandfinelycutrock.ThepyramidsintheMemphiteNecropolis,inthewesterndesertnearCairo,containover25milliontonsofquarriedrock.StonehengeinEnglandcontainsabout10,000tonsofroughlyhewn rock, thus 2500 timesmore rockwas used to build the Egyptian pyramids and theGreatPyramidisabout600timesmoremassivethanStonehenge.

ThesteppedstructurescalledzigguratsinAncientUrandBabylonmayhavebeenbegunatthe same time (c. 2750BC) as the Third Dynasty step-pyramids of Egypt during the OldKingdom,butthetruepyramids(withsmoothfaces)areanEgyptianinventionofc.2550BC.TheMexicanpyramidsaremuchyounger,datingfromnoearlierthanthefirstmillenniumBC.The famouspyramidsof the sunand themoonatTeotihuacan inMexicodate fromc.AD600(thoughtheymayhavebeenbuiltonearliersites).ThebestandmostrecentbookonthesubjectofpyramidsaroundtheworldisJeanKerisel’sLaPyramideàtraverslesAges(ThePyramidthroughtheAges).

The Old Kingdom pyramid sites are located over a stretch of desert land some eightykilometreslongandthreekilometreswide,veryclosetomodernCairo,whichisknownastheMemphiteNecropolis.

TheArabchronicler,AlMakrizi(fifteenthcenturyAD)inhisKhitatorTopography(ofCairo)wrotethatwhenMa’mounfoundtheGreatPyramidcontainednotreasures,heorderedgoldpiecestobeputintothesarcophagusintheKing’sChambersothathisworkersmight‘findtreasure’ and not think their months of strenuous effort in vain. (See Peter Tompkins’sSecrets of the Great Pyramid. Another entertaining book on the history of pyramidexplorationisLeonardCottrell’sTheMountainsofPharaoh.)

Herodotus,TheHistories,BookII(paperback,PenguinBooks,Classicsseries).ManyofthefactsgivenbyHerodotuson thepyramidare suspect. Itwashewho,ondubioushearsay2000 years after the Great Pyramid was buiult, said that Cheops was regarded by theEgyptiansasa‘criminal’whotreatedhispeoplelikeslaves.OnlyintheeighteenthcenturydidEuropeansbeginseriousexplorationandscientificanalysisofthepyramids;theirfocuswas on the Giza pyramids and especially on Cheops’s pyramid, in the hope of findingtreasureor inanattempttouncoversomereligiousrevelationrelatedtotheBible. In thenineteenth century the Britishwere particularly keen on such theories. After thework ofColonelHoward-Vyse and Perring in 1837, it is generally conceded that Flinders Petrie’sThePyramidsandTemplesofGizeh(London1883)wasthefirstseriousarchaeologicalworkon the Egyptian pyramids. Petrie conducted the first detailed topographical survey andmuchofhisdataisstillused.Gantenbrinkhasshown,however,thatsomeofPetrie’sinside

measurements of the pyramid need fine tuning, especially for the so-called Queen’sChambershafts.The‘definitive’studyontheEgyptianpyramidsisDrI.E.S.Edwards’sThePyramidsofEgypt.

The storyof thediscoverywas seen inmanynationaland internationalnewspapersandperiodicals,includingtheDailyTelegraph(7.4.1993),theIndependent(16.4.1993)TheTimes(17.4.1993), the Los Angeles Times (17.4.1993), Chicago Sun-Times(23.4.1993), Le Monde(17.4.1993),LeFigaro(17.4.1993),France-Soir(17.4.1993),theDailyMail(17.4.1993),Today(17.4.1993),Der Spiegel (19.4.1993), Stern (8 July 1993),Bild, Blick (16.4.1993),Bild amSonntag (18.4.1993), Hannoverfsche Allgemeine (17.4.1993), Neue Presse (17.4.1993),HamburgerAbendblatt(17.4.1993),DieWelt,ElPais,LeMatin(17.4.1993)andseveralotherlocalpapers.TheBBCandChannel4announcedthenewsonthe16April1993,andotherTVandradiostationsaroundtheworldfollowed.

SeeBibliography,BauvalR.G.

Independent,London,16.4.1993;DailyMail17.4.1993.

DailyMail,London,17.4.1993;Today,London,17.4.1993.

1THEGENESISOFTHEORIONMYSTERY

RobertK.G.Temple,TheSiriusMystery.

NearWadMedani,intheAlFauregion,some350kilometresfromKhartoum.

Sirius has amagnitude of -1.5 and is 8.6 light years away. It rises about one hour afterOrion.

M.GriauleandG.Dieterlen. ‘UnSystemSoudanaisdeSirius’, inJournal de la Société desAfricanistes,XX,fasc.1,1950.

AlvinClarkfirstsawit,however,in1862,throughatelescope.

Temple,op.cit.,p.1.

ForagooddiscussionoftheAtenreligion,SeeJ.H.Breasted,DevelopmentofReligionandThoughtinAncientEgypt,pp.312–343.

Porphyry (third century AD) tells us that ‘the kings of Egypt … had made [Egypt]inaccessible to foreigners’ (Porph.DeAbstin, IV, 6,Nauckp. 237). Thiswas also said bymanyancienthistorians,suchasDiodorusofSicily(firstcenturyAD)(Diod.I69).

The Ancient Egyptians kings did not see themselves as belonging to dynasties, but as a

continuouslineofdivinekings.Thenotionofseparatinggroupsofpharaohsintodynastiesisfarmorerecent,andcomesfromtheEgyptianpriestandhistorian,Manetho,wholivedin the third century BC when Egypt was under the Ptolemies. Much modern chronologyrelatedtoAncientEgyptreststodayonManetho’sinventionofthedynasticsystem.

10.Edwards,op.cit.,p.2.

11.InveryancienttimestheMemphiteNecropoliswasthelandofSokarorthekingdomofSokar. ItscentralregionwasRostau,closelyidentifiedwiththeGizapyramidfield. InthePyramidAgeOsiriswaspersonifiedasSokar(Edwards,op.cit.,p.10).CommontitlesforOsiriswere LordofRostau andDweller inRostau.Throughout thepharaonic era,Rostauwasconsideredthemainentrancetotheafterworld.

12.ThecityofAnnuorOnismentionedinGenesis(41;45)inconnectionwithJosephandhisEgyptianwife,Asenath,daughterofapriestofOn.AnnuorOn(IwnwinAncientEgyptian)apparentlymeantpillar-city(seeS.B.Mercer,TheReligionofAncientEgypt,p.127).ItwasnamedHeliopolis,probablyinthefourthcenturyBC,bytheGreeks(Herodotus,op.cit.,pp.2–8.

13.ibid.

14.AubreyNoakes’sCleopatra’sNeedles, gives a good account of the events that led to thetransportationoftheseobelisksfromEgypttoLondonandNewYork.

15. Their true hieroglyphic names are best rendered as Khufu (Cheops), Khafra (Chephren)andMenkaura(Mycerinos).

16.ThisarearunsfromAbuRuwashinthenorthtoDashourinthesouth.ThenearestsitetocentralCairoisGiza.

17.G.Goyon,LeSecretdesBatisseursdesGrandesPyramides,pp.89–90.

18.Seenote12.

19.R.T.RundleClark,MythandSymbolinAncientEgypt,pp.37–61.

20.ibid.,pp.37–8.

21. ibid., p. 246. Also H. Frankfort, Kingship and the Gods, pp. 153, 380 and note 26. R.Bauval,inDiscussionsinEgyptology(henceforthDE),vol.14,p.7.TheideathattheBenbenStonewasprobablyplacedontheOnpillarisalsoexpressedbyMercer,op.cit.,p.127.

22.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.246.

23.J.Baines,inOrientalia,vol.39,1970,pp.389–95.SeealsoBauvalinDE,vol.14,p.7.

24.Breasted,op.cit.pp.70–2.AlsoEdwards,op.cit.,p.282.

25.Edwards,op.cit.,p.284.

26. The hieroglyphic writing was probably invented well before the Pyramid Age.Conservativedatingplacesitaround3000BC.BythetimeofCheopsitwaswelldeveloped.

27.TheGreatEnneadismentionedinthePyramidTexts(seeChapter3);thereareallusionstotheGreatEnneadinearliertombwritings,althoughOsirisisnotmentionedintheextantmaterial.

28.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.246.Clarkalsoseesa linkwiththeplanetVenus(atravellingstar to theAncients). Seep.122 for the identificationof the soulofOsiris to the starsofOrion. This gives the Benben a rather stellar character (the matter is fully discussed inChapter11).

29.SeeE.A.Wallis-Budge,OsirisandtheEgyptianResurrection,vol.1,forafulldiscussion.

30.The termmastabawas coinedbyAugusteMariette in the1860s; it remindedhimof thebed-likesittingareas,calledMastabas,seenoutsidethehomesofruralEgyptians.

31. ‘Mansions of Eternity’ are, of course, the step-pyramids and, eventually, the great truepyramids.

32.Edwards,op.cit.,p.19.

33.ibid.,p.19.

34.ibid.,pp.34–70.

35.ibid.,p.34andp.284.Edwardssays,‘Imhotep’stitle“ChiefOfTheObservers”…becametheregulartitleoftheHighPriestofOn.’

36.W.Lethaby,Architecture,MysticismandMyth,p.129.

37.ibid.

2THEMOUNTAINSOFTHESTARGODS

Edwards,op.cit.,pp.292–3.

TruepyramidscertainlydidhaveaBenbenat the top. (Edwards,p.282).There iseveryreasontobelievethatthesameappliedtotheearlierstep-pyramids.

Thereareseveralpyramidions.Thebestexample,inthemainhalloftheCairoMuseum,isthepyramidionofAmenemhetIII.

Helio-Polis,literallysuncityinGreek.

A.Moret,LeNiletlaCivilisationEgyptienne,1926,p.203;Edwards,op.cit.,p.282.

Edwards,ibid.

The thirtymillion tons estimate is basedondataprovided inAtlasofAncientEgypt by J.BainesandJ.Malek,p.140.Itdoesnotincludethetemples,causeways,rampsetc.,whichformed part of the permanent and temporary construction operations. The density oflimestonewastakenas2400kg/M3.

BainesandMalek,op.cit.,pp.135and140.SeealsoMalek,IntheShadowofthePyramids,insidecover.

Edwards,op.cit.,p.2.

10. For a detailed study on the Meidum pyramid, see K. Mendelssohn, The Riddle of thePyramids.SeealsoEdwards,op.cit.,pp.71–3.

11.Mendelssohn,op.cit.,p.40,gives850,000tonsforZoser.Edwards,op.cit.,p.92,gives9million tons for the two Dashour pyramids, but also includes the casing for theMeidumpyramid.

12.Thesouthernpyramidor ‘bent’pyramidofDashour isactuallyrhomboidal inshape, thebottomhalfofapyramidwithaslopeof54degrees,onwhichisthetophalfofapyramidwithaslopeof43.5degrees.ThenorthernpyramidatDashourhasaslopeof43.5degrees.

13.Thesouthernpyramidhasretainedmostofitscasingstones.Seenfromafar,thenorthernpyramid also looks semi-intact. In contrast, the much younger pyramid of the TwelfthDynasty,thatofAmenemhetIII,lookslikeaheapofrubble.

14.Malek,op.cit.,p.47.

15.A.Badawy,AHistoryofEgyptianArchitecture,vol.1,p.124.

16.Edwards,op.cit.,p.73.

17.ibid.,p.78.

18.ibid.

19.ibid.

20.ibid.,p.92.Sincethefirsteditionofhisbookin1947,EdwardshasrevisedhisviewsonSneferuinthelightofnewdataanddiscoveries.His1993editionallocatesthetwoDashourpyramidstoSneferu.

21.ibid.

22.ibid.

23.ibid.,p.93.

24.ibid.

25.SeeChapter3.AsfortheGreatPyramid’slackofofficialinscriptions,somegraffitiwerefound inside the ‘relief chambers’, inwhich some have read the name Khufu. This is thestrongest ‘evidence’ in the arsenal of theEgyptologists to show that it belonged toKhufu(Cheops).Foradifferentview,seeW.R.Fix,PyramidOdyssey,pp.75–89.

26.TheGreatPyramidremained theworld’s tallest structure (146metres)until1888,whentheEiffelTowerwasplanned inParis (300metres).Butsuchcomparisonsareunrealistic;the mass of the Eiffel Tower is 7175 tons compared with 6.3 million tons for the GreatPyramid. The Empire State Building is 381metres high, and is estimated to contain notmorethan300,000tonsofpermanentstructuralmaterial.

27.Edwards,op.cit.,p.152.

28.Wallis-Budge,TheMummy,p.10.

29.SeeAppendix2.

30.Edwards,op.cit.,p.289;Malek,op.cit.,p.124;J.B.Sellers,TheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt,p.338.

31.BainesandMalek,op.cit.,p.36.HerethestartofKhufu’sreignisgivenasc.2551BC,andcomesclosesttomyownestimates(seeDE,vol.26,1993).

32.LetterfromI.E.S.EdwardstoR.G.Bauvaldated27.1.1993.

33.BauvalinDE,vol.26,1993,p.5.

34.Edwards, op. cit., p.284.Edwardsalso says that thehighpriestworea coatdecoratedwithstars.

35. ibid. Contrary to the current consensus, we see ancient Heliopolis (Annu) as being a‘wisdom school’,where the focuswas on the observation and recording of themotion ofstars.

36.ItisnotimpossiblethatImhotepwasstillalivewhenZoser’spyramidwascompletedandSneferu came to power. The dramatic change in design suggests either that this was thecase,orthatImhotepwassucceededbysomeonehetrained.

37.WenowuseournewcomputeddategiveninDE,vol.26,p.5.

38. Mark Lehner, ‘The Development of the Giza Necropolis: the Khufu Project’, inMDAIK,1985, band41,Tafeln1–3.Also inNewsletters of JARCE, nos. 131, 135.Also see Lehner‘SomeobservationsontheLayoutoftheKhufuandKhafraPyramids’,inJARCEXX.

39.Lehner,MDAIK,op.cit.,pp.114–18.

40.TheDashourpyramidsarealsovisiblefromGizaonabrightdayfromthehighleveloftheGizaplateau.FromthetarmaccanalroadwhichpassesnearDashour,thepyramidsappearsuddenlywhenyouarealmostnexttothemontheeast.

41.P.D.Ouspensky,ANewModeloftheUniverse,pp.350–1.

42.Edwards,op.cit.,p.98.

43.ThisestimateiswidelyacceptedbyEgyptologists.DrJeanKerisel(seenote2inPrologue)thinksthisistoohighinviewofthemain‘voids’causedbythewidejointinginthecoreofthe monument. His estimate is closer to 4.7 million tons (Kerisel, op. cit., p. 67). Bothvaluesare,however,largelytheoreticalsincethereisnotellinghowmanyjointvoidsthereare.Theestimateof6.3milliontonsallowsforfillingjointswithdebris.

44.Ouspensky,op.cit.,p.352.

45.Edwards,op.cit.,pp.291–2.

46.ibid.,p.104.SeealsoChapter12ofthisbook.

47.WaynmanDixonwasanemployeeoftheNorthEnglandIronCompany.HewasagoodfriendofPetrie’s father,whocorrespondedwithhimandmethimin1873. In1865PiazziSmythalsometDixonandbecamegoodfriends.In1875Dixonandhisbrother,John,wererecruitedbySirErasmusWilson(founderoftheEgyptianExplorationFundin1883anditsfirstpresident)toorganisethetransportoftheobelisk,Cleopatra’sNeedle,nowinLondon.SeeEpilogue.

48.These shaftswere closeduntilWaynmanDixondiscovered them in1872.DixonandDrGrant, his colleague, lit fires at their mouths in the Queen’s Chamber to see if theypenetratedtotheoutsideofthepyramid,butnosmokewasseen.Mysteriously,thesmokein the southern shaft seemed todisappear into themonument itself (C.PiazziSmyth,TheGreatPyramid;itssecretsandmysteriesrevealed,p.428).

49.Thesouthernshaftisaboutsixty-fivemetreslong,butthereisnotellinghowmuchspaceliesbeyondit.Thenorthernone,thoughstillnotfullyexplored,isatleast24metreslong.

50.Ouspensky,op.cit.,p.354.

51.Plato’sTimaeusandCritiasisadialoguewhichdealsessentiallywiththeso-calledAtlantismyth.

52. Proctor was a well-respected astronomer. He founded the popular science magazine,Knowledge.

53. Some1500 tonsof granitewas imported fromAswan (1000kilometres to the south) toconstruct theKing’sChamberand its five relief chamberson top.Why limestonewasnotused, as happened in the Queen’s Chamber, remains a mystery. The King’s Chamber isabout forty metres up the monument, so it must have been very difficult to constructwithoutliftingdevicesandmachines.

54.This isconfirmedbyDrRichardParkinsonoftheBritishMuseum.SeealsoA.Gardiner’sarticle ‘TheSecretChambersofThoth’ inJEA,11,1925,pp.2–5.AlsoE.HornunginZAS,100,1973,p.33.

55.Tompkins,op.cit.,pp.218,284.

56.ForarecentlypublisheddiscussiononthequarriesofZawyatAlAryanandAbuRuwash,seeEdwards,op.cit.,1993edition.

57.The figure is likely tobecloser to26milliontons ifweallowfor temporaryrampsandfillingmaterial.

58.Malek,op.cit.,p.117.

59.Sahura’spyramid(FifthDynasty),althoughalsoinpitifulcondition,isprobablythebestpreserved.

60. Smallerpyramidswerebuilt untilwell intoChristian times (inMeroe in theSudan). InMemphis,constructionwentonatLisht,HawaraandDashouruntiltheThirteenthDynasty,butthesearepoorstructurescomparedwiththeFourthDynastyprototypes.

61.Badawy,op.cit.,p.143.

62.Malek,op.cit.,p.119.

63.Edwards,op.cit.,p.152.

64.J.A.Kane,TheAncientBuildingScience,introduction.

65.M.Isler,inJARCE,XXVI,1989.IslerisasolartheoristthoughEdwards,LauerandothershavelongshownthattheGreatPyramidwasalignedwithstarsightings.

66.Edwards,op.cit.,p.247.

67.ibid.,pp.248–51.

68.R.O.Faulkner,‘Thekingandthestar-religioninthePyramidTexts’,inJNES,XXV,p.153.

69.ibid.

70. In 1974 Mark Lehner gathered the so-called Edgar Cayce readings into a book, TheEgyptianHeritage.Caycewasamysticwhoadvocated inhis readings,delivered in trance,that theGreatPyramid’s constructionwas started in10450BC by survivors ofAtlantis.Onthe back cover of the book, Lehner seemed to agree with this view. Formore on EdgarCayce,seeT.Sogrue,ThereisaRiver.(AREPress,Virginia1963.)

71.M.Lehner,inMDAIK,band41,p.109.

72.R.J.Cook,inTheGizaPyramids,adesignstudy.

73.J.A.R.Legon,inReportoftheArchaeologicalSocietyofStatenIsland,vol.1,NY1979.

74.Legon,inDE,vol.10,1988,pp.33–9.

75.ibid.,p.38.

76.ibid.

77.Apparentlyhewill do so in future.He is, however, followingapurely geometrical andmathematicalcourseofreasoningtodiscusstheesotericmeaningofthelayoutplan.

78.Cook,op.cit.

79.ibid.

80. Robin Cook, who also prepared the diagrams for The Orion Mystery, believes that themotiveswere entirely religious and expressed through a combination of geometrical andastronomicaldata;weagree.Theancientdesignerswereobviously likearchitects today–trained inmany disciplines, including geometry, astronomy, religion, history, symbologyandsoon,andwhoseartwastoknowhowtoexpressthewholeinarchitecturaldesigntoprovidethemonumentwithreligiousfunctionandcountenance.

3THEDISCOVERYOFTHEPYRAMIDTEXTS

Tewfik-Pashawas anAnophile andwas apparently initiated into freemasonry, andonceservedas theGrandMasterof theEgyptianGrandNationalLodge (PaulNaudon,Histoiregénéralede laFranc-Maconnerie, (Office du Livre, 1987 ed., p. 224). In1881he asked theBritishgovernmenttocometohisaidanddeposeArabiPasha,hisministerofwar,whowasplottingacoupagainsthim.ABritishforce,ledbyWolesley,arrivedinAlexandriainJuly1882and shelled thecity.Wolesley’s forcesclosedwithArabi’sarmyatTellAlKebirandArabiwasdefeated.Technically,EgyptbecameaBritishprotectoratefromthenon.

Several incidents against Europeans were reported. In June and July 1882 Arabi’ssupporterswentonarampageinAlexandria,killingEuropeansandlootingtheirvillasandshops.Thisapparently justifiedWolesley’s shellingof thecity fromhiswarshipsanchoredofftheancientharbour.

G.Maspero,inRec.Trav.,vol.v,Fasc.I–II,p.157.

P.Montet,Isis:ouàlaRecherchedel’EgypteEnsevelie.MontetgivesanexcellentaccountofMariette’s life andwork.Mariette seemed to get himself in rather tight spotswithpublicfigures; he brawled with Verdi over Aida, and was in Empress Eugenie’s bad books forrefusing her a gift of Egyptian jewellery. He also got into many academic brawls, oneviolentbetweenhimandtheGermanEgyptologistsunderLepsius.

Montet,op.cit.,p.48.MariettereceivedafundofFF30,000toresumeworkatSaqqara.Atthetime,thiswasasmallfortune.

Seenote25,Chapter2.

Montet,op.cit.,pp.81–2.

Maspero,op.cit.,p.157.

ibid.

10.ibid.

11. ibid. Also,Montet op. cit., wrote thatMariette, with his great experience, should haveknownbetter.Wecanonlyassumethatbiasblindedhisjudgement.

12.Maspero,inBull.Eg.Serv.II,vol.6.

13.ibid.

14.Maspero,inRec.Trav.,III,p.179.

15.ibid.

16.Breasted,op.cit.,p.102.

17.W.R.DawsonandE.P.S.Uphill,WhoWasWhoInEgyptology,p.38.

18.Breasted,op.cit.,introduction,p.vii.

19.DawsonandUphill,op.cit.,p.38.

20.Breasted,op.cit.,p.93.

21.ibid.

22.Breasted,op.cit.,pp.xiv–xv.

23.ibid.,pp.312–43.

24.ibid.

25.ibid.,p.xi.

26.E.A.Wallis-Budge,TheEgyptianBookOfTheDead,p.ix.

27.ibid.,p.xii.

28.Edwards,op.cit.,p.177.

29.Thethreemajorworksmentionedare:K.Sethe,DieAltägypttischenPyramidentexte,3vols.,1908–12; S.B.Mercer,ThePyramidTexts inTranslation&Commentaries, 4 vols., 1952;A.Piankoff,ThePyramidofUnas,BollingenSeriesXL.5,1968.

30.R.O.Faulkner,TheAncientEgyptianPyramidTexts.OUPed.,1969.

31.Faulkner,op.cit.,p.v.

32.Amongthem,Frankfortin1948,andJ.B.Sellersin1992(seeSellers,op.cit.,pp.7–9).

33.LetterfromC.KellertoRobertBauvaldated8.10.1986.

34.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.13.

35.ibid.,p.12.

36.ibid.,p.13.

37.LetterfromaSwiss-GermanEgyptologisttoRobertBauvaldated9.12.1986.

38.LetterfromC.Keller,8.10.1986.

39.S.Hassan,ExcavationsAtGiza,vol.VI,parti,p.43.

40.Mercer,ThePyramidTexts.

41.Faulkner,op.cit.,p.vii.

42.Mercer,TheReligionofAncientEgypt,pp.25and112.

43.ibid.,pp.121–2.

44.Faulkner,op.cit.,p.vii.

45.‘R.O.Faulkner,Thekingandthestar-religion…’,inJNES,XXV,1966,pp.153–61.

46.LetterfromI.E.S.EdwardstoRobertBauvaldated20.7.1986.

47.Asnote42.

48.H.Frankfort,AncientEgyptianReligion,1961ed.,preface.

49.A.Piankoff,TheTombofRamessesVI,BollingenSeriesXL.1.

50.Sellers,op.cit.SellersisaUCLAgraduateandstudiedEgyptologyatTheOrientalInstituteinChicago.

51.ibid.

52.ibid.,pp.173–5.

53.Frankfort,AncientEgyptianReligion.

54.Sellers,op.cit.,p.8.

4LETTHEPYRAMIDTEXTS‘SPEAK’

Between305BCandAD642itwasoneofthegreatcentresoflearning.Amongthenumerousscholars who lived and studied in Alexandria then were the mathematicians Euclid andHeron; the astronomers Eratosthenes, Hipparchus, Timochares, Posidonius, and Ptolemy;thephilosophersTheophrastusandClementofAlexandria,andthetheologianArius.

Theword‘copt’comesfromtheGreekAigyptoswhichmeansEgypt(theGreeksgaveEgyptitsmodernname;theArabscalltheircountryMisr).CoptsorAigyptiiwerethenativeswhobecame Christians during the Graeco-Roman epoch. The Coptic church is still strong inEgyptandhasitsownpopeorpatriarch.InEgyptinMarch1993,IbrieflymettheCopticbishopofCairo,hisholinessBishopMusa(Moses).

This is part of the so-calledOsirianMysteries ofAncientEgypt.The belief in anOsirianafterlifewas first a privilege of kings; itwas gradually democratised until everyonewasentitledtoanOsirianrebirth.Theritualswerecomplexand,inthecaseofkings,mayhavetakenseveralmonthsafterthedeathofthemonarch.Themummy(amodernwordcomingfrom the Arab nounmummia whichmeans pitch or tar) was regarded as the Osirianisedversionofthedeadperson.

Mercer,TheReligionofAncientEgypt,p.25.

ibid.,p.112.

Sellers,op.cit.,p.70.

Hassan,op.cit.,pp.276–317.HassangivesafulldescriptionoftheDuat.

O.NeugebauerandR.Parker,EgyptianAstronomicalTexts,vol.1,pp.24–5.

ibid.

10.ibid.

11.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.122.

12.Mercer,TheReligionofAncientEgypt,p.270.

13.E.A.Wallis-Budge,OsirisandtheEgyptianResurrection,vol.1,p.107.

14.ObtainedbySkyglobe3.5astronomicalprogram.Thisdateisverifiedbyothers.

15.DuringtheepochoftheFourthDynasty,theheliacalrisingofSiriusoccurredsomefivetosevendaysafter thesummersolstice.At this timethesunrisesnearazimuth63.5degreesandSirius,attheepoch,rosenearazimuth116.5degrees.

16.Awell-known fact inEgyptology.The religiouscalendar thusbegan itsNewYear’sDaywhenSiriuswasrisingheliacally.Becauseof theextraquarter-daydifferencebetweenthetrueyearandthecalendricalyearof365days,thismeantthatthereligiouscalendarlostadayeveryfouryears.Boththereligiouscalendarandtheciviccalendarwouldsynchroniseagain,ofcourse,every1461years(4×365.25=1461).Thisperiodof1461isoftencalledtheSothicCycle.

17.Wallis-Budge,Osiris,vol.1,gives thevarioussources for theOsirianmyth.Plutarch’sDeIsideetOsirideisthemostdetailedfromclassicaltimes(c.AD50).

18.Maatwasrepresentedbyawingedgoddesswearingafeatheronherhead.

19.Frankfort,KingshipandtheGods,PartI.

20.Faulkner,‘Thekingandthestar-religion…’,pp.153–61.

21.BySkyglobe3.5andallowingforpropermotionindeclination–1.21arcsecondsperyear.J. Legon (see Bibliography), using his ownprecessional program, gets –21 degrees 38.38minutes.Hegets –20.85degrees for epoch2500BC; this value is alsogivenbyastronomerandnavigatorH.R.Millsinhisbook,PositionalAstronomyandAstro-navigationmadeEasy,p.232.Millsgives–20.83degreesfor2500BC,whichisthesameas–20degrees49minutes.Forepoch2450BC (thedateofKhufu’spyramid),Skyglobe3.5,with theapplicationofpropermotion to its reading, gives –20 degrees 30 minutes with an estimated value of plus orminusfiveminutesforhand-readingprecisionwiththemouseonthescreen.Verymuchthe

same result is obtained with EZ Cosmos program when adjusted for proper motion indeclination.

22.J.Greaves,Pyramidographia,1646,p.73.

23.AbbéleMercier,Descriptionde l’Egypte,composéesur lesmemoiresdeM.deMaillet,Paris1735.

24.Jomard,Descriptiondel’Egypte.EditionPanckoucke,1821–1829,tomeIX,p.491.

25.J.S.Perring,ThePyramidsofGizeh.PartI:TheGreatPyramid.

26. W. F. Flinders Petrie, The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh, (1990 ed. by Histories &MysteriesofManLtd.),p.29.

27.PiazziSmyth,TheGreatPyramid,p.428.

28.FlindersPetrie,op.cit.,p.24.

29.Archeologia, vol. 293, September 1993, p. 6. See also Stern magazine, Number 28, July1993,pp.24–5.

30.J.Capart,étudesetHistoires,I,Bruxelles1924,p.182.

31.G.Steindorff,Egypt,Baedeker1929,p.140.

32.Edwards,op.cit.,(1961ed.),p.126.

33.J.Vandier,Manueld’ArchaeologieEgyptienne,TomeII,Paris1954,p.88.

34. A. Badawy, ‘The Stellar Destiny of Pharaoh and the so-called Air-shafts in Cheops’sPyramid’,inMIOAWB,band10,1964,pp.189–206.

35.InMIOAWBband10,1964,(Trimble)pp.183–7and(Badawy)pp.189–206.

36.Badawy,op.cit.,p.190.

37.ibid.

38.ibid.

39.ibid.

40. V. Trimble, ‘Astronomical Investigation concerning the so-called Air-Shafts of Cheops’sPyramid’,MIOAWB,band10,1964,pp.183–7.

41.ibid.,p.187.

42. I. E. S. Edwards, ‘TheAir-channels of Chephren’s Pyramid’, inStudies inHonor of DowsDunham,p.55–7.

5THEGIZAPLAN

The pyramidion was found in 1902 byMaspero near the pyramid of Amenemhet III atDashour (Ann. Serv. III, 1902, p. 206). It ismade of finely polished black granite and isremarkablywellpreserved.Itweighsaboutfourtons.

Asetting-outengineerisresponsibleforfixingthegridsystemfromwhichthebuilderwilldeveloptheconstructiononthesite.Atheodolite(20-arcsecondsreading),rangingrodsandpoles,30or100metressteel tape, tiltingor ‘dumpy’ level,plumbbobs(8oz.), setofset-squares, nylon line (hank), straight edge (steel), plus a variety ofmaterials such as clawhammer, builder’s square, stakes etc., are the typical tools of the trade. Omitting thetheodolite,tiltingor‘dumpy’levelanditemsmadeofsteel,theAncientEgyptiansetting-outengineerwouldhaverequiredalltheothersfortheaccuracyheachieved.Levellingcoursewouldhavebeenachievedbysloperatiosandtemporarywaterchannels;straightlinesontheground, through stellar sighting at themeridian (Edwards, op. cit., pp. 250–1).Muchdebateamongscholarsplaguesthisissue.

Itcontainssome250,000blocks.Assuminga20blocksperday,thiswouldtake34years.Tobringitdownto10years,wehaveassumed69blocksperday,about7blocksperhour,far too high, inmy opinion, for an epochwithoutwheeled transport andwithout liftingmachines.

Preliminariesarethevariousnon-permanentworksonabuildingproject,suchasworkers’accommodation, temporary access roads, temporary stock piles, offices, drainage,workshopswatersupplyandsoforth.Onlargeengineeringprojects,especiallyinaremotearea(suchasthewesterndesertnearancientMemphis),thesecaneasilyamountto15–20percentofthefullworks.

J.P.Lauer,ObservationssurlesPyramides,p.99.

ibid.

ibid,pp.99–124.

Z.Zäba,L’OrientationAstronomique…

It iseasier,ofcourse, forasetting-outengineer to fixonegrid line insteadof three,andduringbuildingoperationseachpyramidwouldserveasasightingforthenext.

10.J.Phaure,IntroductionàlaGeographieSacréedeParis,3emeedition,Borrengo,p.29.

11.NationalGeographic,vol.180,No.2,August1991,pp.122–34.

6GIZAANDTHEBELTOFORION

J.Lacouture,Champollion:UneViedeLumières, ed.GrassetandFasquelle,LivredePoche1988,pp.428,456.ApparentlyshoutedbyChampollionon14September1822tohiselderbrother,whenherealisedthathehadworkedouthowtodeciphertheEgyptianhieroglyphs.

E.A.Wallis-Budge,HeavenandHell,prefacep.xandpp.131–5,348.SeealsoHassan,op.cit.,p.315.

Edwards,op.cit.,p.10.

Carvedontheso-calledShabakaStone,BritishMuseumitem498.

ShabakaTexts,line18c.

Hassan,op.cit.,p.302.

Sellers,op.cit.,p.164.

ibid.,p.165.

RundleClark,op.cit.,p.27.

10.Tompkins,op.cit.,pp.218,284.

11.BainesandMalek,op.cit.

12.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.97.

13.Goyon,op.cit.,p.198.

14.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.108.

15.M.Lichtheim,AncientEgyptianLiterature,vol.1,p.204.

16.R.O.Faulkner,TheBookoftheDead,(glossary)Rostau.

17.ibid.,Spell173,p.172.

18.R.O.Faulkner,TheBookoftheDead.

19.HyginusPoet.Astr.2.32;A.B.Cook,Zeusvol.2,p.481.

20.Diodorus,I,12,5.

21.Eusebius,Praep.Ev.III,3,6.

22.R.H.Allen,StarNames:TheirLoreandMeaning,p.216.

23.Wallis-Budge,TheEgyptianBookoftheDead,p.cxxiii.

24. One pyramid of the Fifth Dynasty (Unas); four pyramids of the Sixth Dynasty; and inthreesmallpyramidsofqueens.

25.Edwards,op.cit.,(1991ed.),pp.288–9.

7THESTARCORRELATIONTHEORY

DrEdwards retired in1974, thoughhe is still very active.He liveswithhiswifenot farfromOxford.

Edwards,‘TheAir-channels…’pp.55–7.

Letter dated 8.1.1985. I have sincemetDrMalek on several occasions.He is at presentdirectingthetaskofrecordingallEgyptologicalworks(archives) fortheGriffithInstitute,andagreedthatthecontentsofhislettercouldbedisclosed.

The present apparent motion of Orion’s Belt, when plotted on the declination changes,decreasesinthenegativerange(i.e.,upwardtowardsthecelestialequator).Fromc.AD2500,themotionwillbedownwards.

Thisisagoodpocketmini-computer,itcostsabout$US100.

J.A.R.Legon,‘AGroundPlanatGiza’,inDE10,1988.IunderstandthatLegonintendstoprovideareligiousinterpretationoftheplan,butnotconcernedwithOrion-Osiris.

R.G.Bauval,‘TheSeedingoftheStarGods’,inDE16,1990.

ibid.

Seenote6ofPrologue.

8THEBROTHEROFOSIRIS

R.G.Bauval,‘AMasterPlan…’inDE13,1989.

Edwards,op.cit.,(1991ed.),pp.288–9.

Oneisextremelydamagedanditappearstomostvisitors,atfirst,thatonlythreepyramidsareatAbusir.

Edwards,op.cit.,p.152.

Malek,op.cit.,insidecover.

Approximate distance. Estimate from Atlas of Ancient Egypt and Egyptian governmentsurveymap.

Havingthesitestwokilometresfromeachotheris,inengineeringlogistics,arathercuriouschoice for two monuments being built at the same time for the same king. In manytemporary works it would have meant doubling the resources, which could have beenavoided if the twopyramidswere sited, say,500metresor so fromeachother suchasatGiza.

R.G.BauvalinDE26,1993,p.5.

Edwards,op.cit.,p.93.ThisisatheoryputforthbyDrR.Stadelmann.MostEgyptologistsassumeareignbySneferuoftwenty-fouryears.

10.Sellers,op.cit.

11.ibid.,p.11.

12.ibid.,p.174.

13.ibid.

14.Catalogue2000.0wasusedforthisbook.

15.E.C.Krupp,InSearchofAncientAstronomies,pp.186–190.

16.J.Cornell,TheFirstStargazers,p.92.

17.Sellers,op.cit.,p.116.

18.Lichtheim,op.cit.,p.51.

19.A thesiswaswritten in1986andacopyprovided toDrEdwards,whodiscussed itwithme.

20.Lichtheim,op.cit.,p.51.

21.ibid.

22.Sellers,op.cit.,p.90.

23. In the Pyramid Texts Geb is often said to be the earthly father of Osiris. He is thelegitimate consort of Nut, the sky goddess and mother of Osiris. In the Pyramid Texts,however,NutseemstohavehadexplicitsexualencounterswithRa(orAtum-Ra), thesungod.

24.Lehner,TheEgyptianHeritage,pp.128–9.

25.ibid.

26.Inthenorthernhemisphere,fromtheequatortothenorthpole.Thefartherfromthepole,thehigheristhecelestialequator.

27.Sellers,op.cit.,p.116.

28.Edwards,op.cit.,p.152.

29.ibid.

30.P.B.3033intheEastBerlinMuseum.MostoftheWestcarPapyrusiskeptinvaults.IwasallowedtoseeandphotographitbyDrWilddungandhisassistant,DrMuller,inSeptember1993.

31.Edwards,op.cit.,p.153.

32.ibid.

33. Plutarch, The Life of Alexander the Great. The story is told by many chroniclers ofAlexander’s life. In one of the versions (Plutarch), it is said that the last native king ofEgypt,NectaneboII,changedintoasnake(Zeus-Ammon)andmadelovetoOlympia.Zeus-AmmonwasmuchveneratedbytheGreeksinthetimeofAlexander,andhisoracleatSiwa(westernEgypt)wassymbolicallylinkedtotheoracleofZeusatDodonabyHerodotus(TheHistories,II).

34.M.LyttletonandW.Forman,TheRomans:TheirGodsandTheirBeliefs,Orbis1984,p.29,showshowJuliusCaesarclaimedVenus(Aphrodite)as theancestressof theJulianhouse.Other legendsmake his realmother become pregnant by a snake, probably symbolising,likeAlexanderbeforehim,Zeus-Ammoninhissnakeform.

35.LouisXIIIwasbelievedimpotentbymany.

36.Thisphrasewascoinedby theHermeticPhilosopher,TomassoCampanella, in1636.HeapparentlydrewthesolarhoroscopeforthefuturesunkingofFrance,LouisXIV.

37.Edwards,op.cit.,p.152.

38.Thisisevidentfromtheso-calledCoffinTexts,theMiddleKingdom’sversionoftheolderPyramidTexts.

39.ThisideaofthefourteenpiecesofOsiris’sbodyandthepyramidsofMemphisisnotnew.Itwasmentionedonseveraloccasionsbyresearchers(seee.g.T.Holland,FreemasonryfromthePyramidsofAncientTimes,p.14,wherehestates ‘…thatOsirishavingfourteentombsforvariouspartsofhisdismemberedbody, fourteenpyramidsmusthavebeendevoted tothem’).

40.A.W.Shorter,TheEgyptianGods,p.39.AlsoWallis-Budge,TheEgyptianBookoftheDead,p.li.

41.Wallis-Budge,‘Osiris…’,vol.1,p.99.

42.Shorter,op.cit.,p.43.

43. SeeDenderah Zodiac for example. (Neugebauer and ParkerEgyptianAstronomical Texts,vol.Plates.)

44.ThisisevidentfromthepositionofOrion(Mithra).Seestatueof‘MithrakillingtheBull’intheBritishMuseum,(uppergalleries,AncientRomanSection).

45.Typically in suchdepictions,Orion theGiantorOrion theHunterholds theheadof thebullwithhislefthandandisabouttoclubitwiththemace,heldinhisrighthand.TheheadofthecelestialbullistheHyadesclusterofstars.

46.Star311wasontheleft(northofAldebaran)atrisingpointlookingeast.

47.Shorter,op.cit.,pp.41–3.

48.ibid.

49.ibid.

50.Sellers,op.cit.,p.116.

9INTERMEZZOATTHEPYRAMIDS

A.G.Gilbert(ed.),TheHermetica,SolosPress1992,foreword,pp.5–29.

A.G.Gilbert,TheCosmicWisdombeyondAstrology.

SeeChapter10.

I.E.S.Edwards,‘DothePyramidTextssuggestanexplanationfortheAbandonmentofthe

SubterraneanChamberoftheGreatPyramid?’forJ.Leclant’sFestschriftin1994.

AlsowithuswasFrauMarionKrause-Jach,apharmacistfromBerlin,averygoodfriendofminewhowasvisitingEgypt.MarionwasmosthelpfulduringconferencesgivenbyRudolfGantenbrinkinLondon(22April1993)andParis(21June1993).

SeeChapter4,note40.

DE26cameoutinMay1993.DE27isdueinlateSeptember1993.

SeeChapters11and12.

Channel4NewsatSeven,16.4.1993.

10.SeePrologue.

11.Prof.KeriselwasthefirstpersontoproposeaschemeforventilatingtheGreatPyramid(see ‘Chauffage Ventilation Conditionement’, in Revue de l’Association des IngénieursClimatique,VentilationetFroid,No.12,Decembre1990,p.54).

12.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.263.

10THEGREATSTAR-CLOCKOFTHEEPOCHS

PapyrusBritishMuseum10371/10435;translationbyR.Parkinson,VoicesofAncientEgypt,p.65.

RundleClark,op.cit.,p.263.

ibid.

SeeChapter3.

Wallis-Budge,TheEgyptianBookOfTheDead,p.xii,fn.1.

The lengthof thesouthernshaft (the ‘Gantenbrink’ shaft) in theQueen’sChambermakesthisobvious(seePrologue).

Krupp,op.cit.,p.186.Yettobefair,KruppdoestreatAncientEgyptianastronomywithrespect and felt that ‘we may yet be surprised by what we find among the tombs andtemplesoftheNile’inanastronomicalsense.Itwas,surprisingly,RichardParkerandOttoNeugebauerwho did not see any ‘scientific’ application in the astronomy of the AncientEgyptians.AstronomerJamesCornell,however, felt thatall science inancientEgyptwassubjugatedbyreligion.

S.Mayassis,MystèresetInitiationsdel’EgypteAncienne,Chap.I,pp.1–13.

Diodorus,I,69.

10.Strabo,Porphyre.

11.Herodotus,Histories,II,2–8.

12.DionChrystomenos,XI,37s.

13.SchwallerdeLubicz,SacredScience,p.11.

14. Letter fromDrG.Haeny (SwissArchaeological Institute,Cairo) toRobertBauval dated9.12.1986.

15.SchwallerdeLubicz,op.cit.,p.16.

16.Mendelssohn,op.cit.,quotedbyCornell,op.cit.,p.84.

17.A.Weigall,AHistoryofthePharaohs,vol.I,pp.1–15.

18.ibid.SeealsoR.Parkinson,VoicesofAncientEgypt,p.48.ParkinsonshowsagraffitofromWadiHammamatwhichdepictscartouchesofkingsoftheFourthDynasty,includingKhufu,Redjedef,Khafra,Hordjedef,Baufreandnamesofcertaingoldsmiths.

19.SchwallerdeLubicz,op.cit.,p.87.AlsoseeGilbert,Hermetica,p.20.

20.Diodorus,I,44.

21.SchwallerdeLubicz,op.cit.,p.87.

22. C. Cerf and Y. Navasky, The Experts Speak: the Definitive Compendium of AuthoritativeMisinformation, Pantheon Books, NY 1984, pp. 9–10. This is a must for all who faceacademicand‘expert’opposition.

23.ibid.,pp.3–4.

24.RundleClark,op.cit.,p.246.

25.Abatte-Pasha,‘LePhenixEgyptien’,inBull.Inst.Eg.,II,4,p.11.

26.RundleClark,TheLegendofthePhoenix,PartI,pp.1–17.

27.G.W.Oosterhout,‘TheHeliacalRisingofSirius’,inDE24,1992.AlsoM.F.Ingham,‘TheLengthof the SothicCycle’, in JEA, 55, pp. 36–40 for a detailed discussion on the SothicCycleandperiodofinvisibilityofSirius.

28.Sellers,op.cit.,p.204.

29.ibid.,p.193.

30.Tompkins,op.cit.,pp.174–5.

31.Sellers,op.cit.,p.174.G.Santillanahasalsostronglyarguedthecase(seenote30).

32.SchwallerdeLubicz,op.cit.,pp.175–8.

33.We are now, in 1993, at almost highest declination – a few centuries (minutes for theprecessionalclock)fromthemidnighthourofthegreatOrion-Osiriscycle.

34.Strabo,Porphyre.

35.Herodotus,Histories,II,2–8.

36.Plato,TimaeusandCritias,22–26.SeealsoeditedversionbyBettyRadice,PenguinBooks1977,appendix,pp.146–67.

37.Timaeus,41E–42D.

38.W.Scott(trans.),Hermetica,SolosPressed.,p.228.

39.WalterScottfirstadvocatedthisinhiseditionoftheHermetica(1924).WeunderstandthatrecentlyWarburgInstitutescholarswerereadapaperbyPeterKingsley,aresearchstudent,‘Hermetica:TheEgyptians’Origins&Background’(26.5.1993);Kingsley,itseems,believesthatthetruesourceoftheHermeticaisEgyptian.

40.TheywerewritinginGreekbutwereverylikelyGreek-educatedEgyptians.WalterScottbelieved that the author of Asclepius I (one of the books of the HermeticWritings) was‘probablyanEgyptianbyrace’(Hermetica,p.228).

41.FromatleastthetimeofHerodotus(fifthcenturyBC)theGreeksbelievedthatthepriestsofHeliopolishadacquiredasacredwisdomwhichwasrecordedinholybooks,bookswhichtheyascribedtothegodThoth,theinventorofhieroglyphicsacredwritingsandgeometry.Itwasthisgod,Thoth,whomtheGreekslatercalledHermesTrismegistosandattributedtheHermeticWritings tohim.Thothwasasupposedmessengeror secretaryofGod,andwasthusimbuedwithinfinitewisdom;hiswritings,therefore,wouldrevealtruegnosis(divineknowledge). InEgyptiandrawings,Thoth isahuman figurewith theheadofan ibis, thesymbolofwisdom.He isoften seenholdingawritingboardandamarker, inhis roleofdispatcherofdivinemessagesandrecorderofhumandeeds,especially thosewhichwouldbe weighed in judgement in the afterlife court of Osiris (the so-called Great Hall ofJudgement).Inthislastcapacity,ThothwouldestablishwhetherthedeceasedhadacquiredgnosisandwasentitledtoaplaceinthecosmicKingdomoftheDeadruledbyOsiris.

42.Hermetica,AsclepiusIII,SolosPressed.,p.136.

43.ibid.

44.Fix,op.cit.,p.99.SeealsoLehner,TheEgyptianHeritage,pp.131–2.

45.T.Sugrue,ThereisaRiver,AREPress,1988ed.,p.356.Caycediedon3January1945.

46. These belong, we understand, to the Association for Research and Enlightment (ARE),withheadquartersatVirginiaBeach,67thStreetandAtlanticAvenue,VA23451.Theyhavealargelibraryandoperatecentresaroundtheworld.

47.Sugrue,op.cit.,p.468.AlsoJ.E.Furst,Cayce’sStoryofJesus,BerkeleyBooks,NY1976ed.,p.101.

11THESEEDOFTHEPHOENIX

RundleClark,MythandSymbol…op.cit.p.246.

Herodotus,HistoriesII,73.

A.Lucas,AncientEgyptianMaterialsandIndustries,p.299.

Baines,inOrientalia,vol.39,1970,pp.389–95.

‘Ben’or‘bin’,literally‘son’,isstillcommonlyusedintheArabworldandinIsraeltodenote‘sonof…’

Edwards,op.cit.,p.282.

RundleClark,LegendofthePhoenix,pp.5–6.

RundleClark,MythandSymbolinAncientEgypt,p.246.

RundleClark,LegendofthePhoenix,p.17.

10.ibid.

11.ibid.,p.15;Edwards,op.cit.,p.282.

12.Edwards,op.cit.,p.282.

13.Thisisproducedbytheshockwavesintheatmosphere.

14.Forafullstudyonmeteoriticcults,seevariousarticlesbyG.A.WainwrightinJEA,vol.18,pp.3–15;vol.17,pp.185–95;vol.21,pp.152–70.SeealsoC.DarembergandE.Saglio,DictionnairedesAntiquitésGrecsetRomaines,‘Elagalabus’and‘Baetylia’;Cook,Zeus,III,partI,pp.881–903.

15. I am grateful to Vagn Buchwald, an authority on ironmeteorites at the Instituttet ForMetallaere, Lyngby, Denmark. He suppliedmewith wonderful photographs ofmeteorite‘Morito’ which he had taken. I am also indebted to Brian Mason of the SmithsonianInstitutioninWashingtonDCforpermittingareproductionofmeteorite‘Willamette’takeninthe1940s.‘Willamette’isnowattheAmericanMuseumofNaturalHistoryinNewYork.

16.Seenote14.

17.ibid.

18.ibid.

19.Pausanias,Desc.Greece,III,22,1;L.R.Farnell,TheCultsoftheGreekStates,vol.I,chapterv.

20.Pliny,Nat.Hist.,II,59.

21.P.K.Hitti,HistoryofSyria,London1951,p.312.

22.Seenote14.

23.ibid.

24. See note 14. There is also mention of a sacred meteorite in the Bible concerning thesymbolofDianaofEphesus‘whichfellfromheaven’(Acts19:35).

25.G.A.Wainwright,inAnn.Serv.,xxviii,177.

26.G.A.Wainwright,‘SomeAspectsofAmun’inJEA,p.147.

27.G.A.Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’inJEA,18,1933,pp.3–15.

28. ibid. The word bja also means meteoritic iron, since this was the only form of ironavailableinc.2400BC.

29.G.A.Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’,p.14.ThisismentionedbyPlutarch(AD50),inDeIsideetOsiride,sect.2,Teubner’sed.,Moralia,ii,p.536.

30.Sincethe1920stheideahasoccurredtomany.Wallis-Budgeseemstohavebeenthefirsttomaketheconnection(seenote31).AsfarasIcanmakeout,Iamthefirsttosuggestthatitwasan ‘oriented’ i.e.conical, ironmeteoriteofabout fifteen tons (seemyarticle inDE14,1989,pp.5–17).

31.E.A.Wallis-Budge,Cleopatra’sNeedles,London1926,Chapter1;J.LeclantandJ.P.Lauer(eds.),LeTempsdesPyramides,pp.79and336.

32.Goyon,op.cit.,p.225.HeestimatesaweightforthepyramidionofCheops’spyramidof

15.89tons.Kerisel,ontheotherhand,estimates4–6tons,butwondersifiteverexisted(LaPyramideàTraverslesAges,p.83).

33.Alargefallenmeteorite,contrarytopopularbelief,isnotburninghotwhenitstrikesthegroundbutcold.Thisisbecauseofsub-zerotemperaturesinouterspaceandonlytheouterskinisheatedbyfrictionwhenitisflyingthroughtheearth’satmosphere.Inastateofrest,theouterlayercoolsquickly.

34.Frankfort,KingshipandtheGods,pp.153,380andnote26.

35.SeeChapter4,note11.

36.Wallis-Budge,TheMummy,p.175.

37.Theseareprobablytitlesanddealwiththesamepersonatdifferentstagesofhiscareer,i.e.,Horusaschild,asheirandasking.OntheroleofHorusastherealsonofthekingseeEdwards,op.cit.,p.32.

38.ThesewerecalledHapy,Imseti,DuamutefandKebhsenuf.InthePyramidTextstheirmainfunctionwastohelpintheopeningofthemouthceremonyandliftingupthedeadkingtothesky.Thisisadepictionverysuitedinastralterms,asWainwrighthasshown,tothelowculminationof the four stars of the ‘head’ ofUrsaMinor, as they slowly ‘scoop’ over thehorizoninthenorthandthenascendtoanaltitudesomefifteendegreesoverthepoleinc.2450BC.

39.G.A.Wainwright,‘APairofConstellations’inStudiesforF.Ll.Griffith.Wallis-Budge,TheEgyptianBookoftheDead,p.cxxiv.Asgodsofthefourcardinalpointstheysymbolisedthefour pillars that hold the canopy of the sky. They also represented the four corners of achamber serving a funerary ritual (Sellers, op. cit., p. 248). In the funeral rites, the foursonsofHorusarealsosymbolisedbytheso-calledcanopicjarswhichheldthelungs(Hapy),liver(Imseti),stomach(Duamutef)andintestines(Kebhsenuf)ofthedeceasedperson.

40.PyramidTexts,lines1983–4.

41.Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’.

42.ibid.,p.11.

43.B.Scheel,EgyptianMetalworkingandTools,p.17.

44.Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’,p.11.

45. Lauer, op. cit., p. 106, fn. 1. (The Pyramid Texts in Translation and Commentaries,Commentariessection).

46.Egyptologist andastronomer fromPrague,ZbynekZäbacameupwithalmost the sameconclusion in 1953. His work, L’Orientation Astronomique dans l’Ancienne Egypte et la

Precessiondel’AxeduMonde’,hasbeenwidelyaccalimedintheEgyptologicalworld.Lauer,in his review of Zäba’s work (see note 49), stresses Zäba’s revelation that a similarinstrument to that usedby the ancient pyramidbuilders to sight the northernpolar starswasused,symbolically, for theceremonyof theopeningof themouth(seeLauer,p.108;Zäba, p. 72). Apparently the instrumentwas placed on awooden cube and, linked to aplumbline,allowedavery‘precisealignmenttothestars’.Interestingly,threeinstrumentswere found in theseshafts in1972whichsuggestedsomethingof thekind(seeEpilogue).Wainwright(‘APairofConstellations’)correctlypointedoutthattwo‘adzes’wereusedintheceremony,onebyHorusandtheotherbyhisfoursons.

47.IamindebtedtoGantenbrinkforaplanviewofthetwonorthernshaftswhichshowindetailthecircuitor‘kinks’oftheseshafts.

48.SeeChapter12.

49.Goyon,op.cit.,p.160.

50.ibid.,p.89;Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’,p.6.

51.Goyon,op.cit.,pp.88–93.

52.ibid.

53.ibid.,pp.160–2.

54.Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’,pp.6–15.

55.BainesandMalek,op.cit.

56.Sellers,op.cit.,p.164.

12THEROADSOFOSIRIS

SesostrisI(TwelfthDynasty)wasthehero-kingoftheMiddleKingdom.HewasthesonofAmenemhetI,whowasapparentlyassassinatedatcourt.AmenemhetIandSesostrisIbuilttheirpyramidsatElLisht,afewkilometressouthofDashour.

Letter from Dr G. Haeny (Swiss Archaeological Institute, Cairo) to Robert Bauval dated9.12.1986.

Breasted,op.cit.,p.71;Parkinson,op.cit.,p.41.Theword‘Benben’isalsotranslatedas‘Pyramidion’.

Breasted,p.71.

ibid.

ibid.,p.203.

LeidenMuseumPapyrusNo.344.SeealsoBreasted,op.cit.,p.204.

LeidenMuseumPapyrusNo.344(henceforwardLMP344);6–12.

LMP344;5,10.

10.Breasted,op.cit.,p.204.

11.LMP344;11,6–8.

12.Inviewoftheircommonantiquity(pre-PyramidAge)andcommonreligiousfunction,thealignmentisunlikelytobeacoincidence.

13.Sellers,op.cit.,alsogivesatranslatedquote,p.164.

14.Wainwright,‘IroninEgypt’,pp.6–11.

15.Goyon,op.cit.,pp.89–90.

16.Edwards,op.cit.,pp.250–1andLauer,op.cit.,pp.99–124,onlyconsiderthenorthstars.But setting-out engineers, as is well known, ‘toss’ or reverse their sighting instruments(theodolites)180degreestoverifythetruealignment.Thisissometimescalledabacksight,performedasacheck.Thusasimilarsightingpointtothesouthwouldsecuretheprecisionachievedbytheancientbuilders.

17.FaroukIabdicatedin1952.GoyonsettledinFranceandbecameheadofresearchoftheCentre National des Recherches Scientifiques (CNRS). He had been a student of PierreMontet,thefamousFrenchEgyptologistoftheCollegedeFrance.

18.Goyon,op.cit.,p.93.

19.Strabo,19–xvii,I,30.

20.Herodotus,Histories,II,15–17.

21.Goyon,op.cit.,p.92.

22.ibid.

23.Lichtheim,op.cit.,p.204.

24.Goyonthinkstheymighthavebeenslightlyconcavediscs.

25.Mercer,ReligionofAncientEgypt,p.121.

26.Bauval,inDE14,1989,p.7.

27.Louvre:StelaitemC30.

28.Thedjedor tatcolumn,probablykept inHeliopolis,wassacredtoOsiris. Itmighthaverepresentedhisbackbone(seeWallis-BudgeOsiris…,vol.1,pp.51–3).

29.Lichtheim,op.cit.,p.203.

30. The bestOsirianised example is, of course, the solid gold coffin of Tutankhamen in theCairoMuseum.

31.Anarticle,‘TheHorizonofKhufu’byRobertBauval,isdueforpublicationinDEin1994.

32. It seems unlikely that a monument which took several decades to build and taxed thenation to the limit, was to be used only once for a rebirth ritual. See opinion given inTompkins, op. cit., p. 236 and pp. 256–8 for other ritualistic functions associated withrebirth.

33.BauvalDE,26,1993,p.5;DE,27,1993.

34.IamindebtedtoRudolfGantenbrinkforlettingmeseethis‘niche’onthevideofilmtakenbyUPUAUT1insidethesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamber.

35.ThiswaspointedouttomebyDrHaeny(seenote2);hewasapparentlyinformedbya‘friend’.Aquickglanceatamapshowsittobequitecorrect.

36.ProbablyasearlyastheoutsetoftheFourthDynasty.Certainly,bythetimeofSesostrisIthetemplesatHeliopolishadsufferedpillageanddamage,becauseSesostrisorderedafullreconstructionprogramme.

37.Kerisel,op.cit.,p.83.HeremindsusthatDiodorus(c.firstcenturyBC)reportedthatthetopofthepyramidappearedlikea‘platform’;butDiodorus’saccountdescribesthepyramidnearly2400yearsafterCheops.

38.WestcarPapyrus,Berlin3033.

39. Lethaby, op. cit.,Architectural Press ed. 1974, pp. 38–9, ‘according toBrugsch, the suntempleatHeliopolishadasacredsealedchamberintheformofa“pyramid”,called,Ben-ben…’

40.Sugrue,op.cit.

41.ibid.,p.393

EPILOGUE

Allquotesarefromthesepersonalletters,notesanddiaries.TheoriginalsarekeptinthearchivesoftheRoyalObservatoryatEdinburghbyMrAngusMacdonald,theLibrarian.

ColonelHowardVyse.OperationCarriedOnAtThePyramidsOfGizehin1837.JamesFrazer,London1840,pp.275–277.

LucasA.AncientEgyptianMaterialsAndIndustries.Histories&MysteriesOfManLtdLondon1989,p.237.

ElSayedElGayarandM.P.Jones ‘Metallurgical InvestigationofanIronplate foundin1837intheGreatPyramidatGizeh,Egypt’inJournaloftheHistoricalMetallurgySociety,vol.23,1989,pp.75–83.

APPENDIX1

W.FlindersPetrie,ThePyramidsandTemplesofGizeh1883,p.53.

W.S.Smith,TheArtandArchitectureofAncientEgypt,PenguinBooks1958,p.30.

AlexanderBadawy,AHistoryofEgyptianArchitecture,Giza1954,p.163.

AlthoughαCepheiandαLyrae(Vega)willcometowithin4degreesofthepoleinAD7500and14000,theywillnotbenearlyasaccuratepolestarsasPolarisandαDraconis,whoseclosestapproachestothepoleareonlyabout30minutesaway.

RobertH.Baker,Astronomy,NewYork1950,p.57.

OttoNeugebauerandRichardA.Parker,EgyptianAstronomicalTexts, I.TheEarlyDecans,London1960,p.25.

ibid.,p.110.

8.S.R.K.Glanville,TheLegacyofEgypt,Oxford1942,pl.32.

PaulV.Neugebauer,TafelnzurastronomischenChronologie,I.Sterntafeln.Leipzig1912,pp.8,20.

10.ibid.pp.21–82.

11.Thisculminationwas,ofcourse,renderedinvisiblebydaylightduringabouthalftheyear.Itwouldhavebeenvisibleabout2700BCfromlateJulytoearlyJanuary.

APPENDIX2

ThesoftwarePCprogramsthatareeasytouseandquiteaccuratefordowntoepoch4000BCareSkyglobe3.5;EZCosmos;Starmap2.10HighPrecision.Thesearerelativelywellpriced.Manyothersareavailableatdifferentprices.

A.Hirshfeld andR.W. Sinnot,SkyCatalogue2000.0, vol. 1. CambridgeUniversity Press1982.Introductionp.xiv.

ibid.,pp.119,121and124.

DrJ.O’Byrne,oftheChattertonAstronomyDepartmentoftheUniversityofSydney,saysabouttheprecessionalcalculationsforEpsilonOrionis(thecentralstarofOrion’sBelt)that‘theprecessedpositionforEpsilonOrionishasbeencalculatedassumingaverysmallvalueforpropermotion inbothco-ordinates(rather thanzero) tosee theeffect.Theresult isadifference of 4 seconds of RA and 65 seconds of declination, which is probablyunrealisticallylarge.

I.E.S.Edwards,ThePyramidsofEgypt.Penguin,1993ed.,pp.247–51.

J.B.Sellers,TheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt.Penguin,1992ed.,p.194.

J.E.Manchip-White,AncientEgypt.GeorgeAllen&UnwinLtd.,1970,p.138.

O.NeugebauerandR.Parker,EgyptianAstronomicalTexts.BrownUniversity,1964,vol.1.

APPENDIX3

So,forexample,Erman,DieLiteraturderAegypter,70,72.

Thisdeterminativemayindicateahouse,aroom,oranyobject,likeabox,whichcontainsinthewaythatahousecontains.

Thephotographisindistinct;seeMöller,HieratischeLesestücke,I,6.

JEA,III,Pl.XII,between96–7.

On54ofhisCommentary.

APPENDIX4

E.A.Wallis-Budge,AnEgyptianHieroglyphicDictionary,II,p.942.

ibid.,p.946.

Edwards,op.cit.,1991ed.,p.1.

Faulkner,TheBookoftheDead,p.12.

ibid.

ibid.

Edwards,op.cit.,1991ed.,p.13.

8.ibid.,p.14.

RundleClark,MythandSymbol…,p.102.

10.CoffinTexts,ii,p.104.

11.NeugebauerandParker,op.cit.,vol.I.

12.ibid.,p.41.

13.ibid.

14.Carlsberg,I,PartI,A.I,1–6,theNutpicture.

15.ibid.,G.IV,26–9.

16.DramaticTexts,VI,pp.3–6.

17.ibid.,pp.38–43.

18.NeugebauerandParker,op.cit.,vol.I,p.73.

19.Bauval,DE,14,p.12;DE,16,pp.21–8;WernesHonig,DE,14,p.52.

20.Wallis-Budge,TheMummy,p.175.

21.Frankfort,KingshipandtheGods.

22. Santillana and vonDeschend, op. cit., for further reading on ancient sky religions andduality.

APPENDIX5

Forastronomy,seeBauvalinDE,13,14,16,26and27;geometryandmathematics,seeJ.A.R.LegoninDE,10and14.SeealsoEdwards,op.cit.,pp.245–51.

RobinCook,op.cit.,SevenIslandsed.,1992.

Edwards,op.cit.

Suchastheshafts,ibid.,p.285.

SeeBauval,DE,13and14.

Archeologia,No.283,September1993,p.6.

Bauval,inDE,13,14,16.

Bauval,inDE,26.

Legon,inDE,10and14;R.Cook,op.cit;R.Gantenbrink(unpublished).

10.Edwards,op.cit.,p.285;Bauval,inDE,13,16,26and27.

11.A.Badawy‘TheStellarDestinyofPharaoh…’inMIOAWB,Band10,1964,pp.189–206.

12.Bauval,inDE,13,16,26and27.

13.JeanPhaure,GeographieSacréedeParis,introduction;Lethaby,op.cit.

14.Faulkner,‘TheKingandtheStar-Religion…’,pp.153–61.

15.PyramidTexts,e.g.lines820,882,2180.

16.DE,28and29.

17.PyramidTexts,line632.

18.Bauval,inDE,13and16.

19.PyramidTexts,line13.

20.Bauval,inDE,26and27.

21. Legon, in DE, 10 and 14; Legon, ‘The Geometry of the Bent Pyramid’, in GöttingerMiszellen,No.116,1990,pp.65–73.

22.Legon,asnote21;seealsoR.Cook,op.cit.

APPENDIX6

DE,13,pp.7–18.

Faulkner,‘TheKingandtheStar-religion…’,inJNES,xxv,1966,pp.153–61.

DE,26,pp.5–6.

ibid.

DE,28.

Badawy,‘ThePeriodicSystem…’,inJEA,63,p.58.

Bauval,inDE,14,pp.5–16.

Edwards,op.cit.,p.295.

DE,26,pp.5–6.

10.DE,28.

11.Goyon,op.cit.,p.41.

APPENDIX7

J.H.Breasted,DevelopmentOfReligionandThoughtInAncientEgypt.Un.Penn.Press1972ed.,pp.101–2.

I.E.S.Edwards,ThePyramidsOfEgypt.Penguin1993ed.,p.282.

R. O. Faulkner, ‘The King and the Star Religion in the Pyramid Texts’, in JNES vol. 25,1966,pp.153–161.

A.Badawy,‘TheStellarDestinyofPharaohandtheso-calledAir-shaftsofCheops’Pyramid’,inMIDAWB band X, 1964, pp. 189–206. Also V. Trimble, ‘Astronomical Investigationsconcerningtheso-calledAir-shaftsofCheops’Pyramid’,inibid.,pp.183–7.

R.G.Bauval,variousarticlesinDEvols.13,14,16,26,27andthreeothersforthcominginearlyin1994.

Computer programs such as Skyglobe 3.6, Starmap or EZ Cosmos can demonstrate thisvisually.

R.G.Bauval,‘TheAdzeofUPUAUT’andalso‘TheHorizonofKhufu’inDEjournal(early1994

ref.notavailableyet).

A.Badawy.‘ThePeriodicSystemofBuildingapyramid’inJEA63,1977,p.58.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ABBREVIATIONS

Ann.Serv. AnnalesduServicedesAntiquitésdel’Egypte

Arch.Ast.JHA Archaeoastronomy,JournaloftheHistoryofArchaeology

Bull.Eg.Serv. BulletinEgyptologieService

Bull.Inst.D’Eg. Bulletindel’Institutd’Egypte

Bull.Soc.Fr.D’eg. BulletindelaSociétéFrançaised’Egyptologie

Bull.Inst.Fr. Bulletindel’InstitutFrançaisd’ArchéologieOrientale

DE DiscussionsinEgyptology

JARCE JournaloftheAmericanResearchCentreinEgypt

JEA JournalofEgyptianArchaeology

JNES JournalofNearEasternStudies

MDAIK MitteilungendesDeutschenArcheologischenInstituts,AbteilungKairo

MIOAWBMitteilungendesInstitutsfürOrientforschungAkademiederWissenschaftenzuBerlin

Rec.Trav.RecueildeTravauxRelatifsàlaPhilologieetl’ArchéologieEgyptiennesetAssyriennes

Rev.Arch. RevueArchéologie

Rev.D’Eg. Revued’Egyptologie

ZAS ZeitschriftfürAgyptischeSpracheundAltertumskunde

ABATTE-PASCHA.‘LePhenixEgyptien’,inBull.Inst.D’Eg.,II,4,pp.9–15

ABBOTT,P.Geometry.Hodder&Stoughton,London,1977ed.

ALLEN,J.P.‘ThePyramidTextsofQueensJpwtandWdbtn(j)’,inJARCE,xxiii,1986,pp.1–25

ALLEN,R.H.StarNames:TheirLoreandMeaning.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork,1963ed.

ANTONIADI,E.M.L’AstronomieEgyptiennedepuislesTempslesplusReculés.ImprimerieNational,Paris1934

BADAWY,A.‘TheStellarDestinyofPharaohandtheso-calledAir-shaftsinCheops’sPyramid’,inMIOAWB,band10,1964,pp.189–206

BADAWY,A.‘ThePeriodicSystemofBuildingaPyramid’,inJEA,63,1977,pp.52–8

BAINES,J.&MALEK,J.AtlasofAncientEgypt.Nathan,Paris,1981(Frenched.)

BAUVAL,R.G.‘AMasterPlanfortheThreePyramidsofGizabasedontheConfigurationoftheThreeStarsoftheBeltofOrion’inDE,13,1989,pp.7–18

BAUVAL,R.G.‘InvestigationsontheOriginsoftheBenbenStone:WasItanIronMeteorite?’inDE,14,1989,pp.5–17

BAUVAL,R.G.‘TheSeedingoftheStarGods:AFertilityRitualinsideCheops’sPyramid?’inDE,16,1990,pp.21–9

BAUVAL,R.G.‘Cheops’sPyramid:ANewDatingusingtheLatestAstronomicalData’,inDE,26,1993,pp.5–7

BAUVAL,R.G.‘TheUpuautProject:NewFindingsintheSouthernShaftintheQueen’sChamberofCheops’sPyramid’inDE,27,1993

BAUVAL,R.G.‘TheAdzeofUpuaut:TheOpeningoftheMouthCeremonyandtheNorthernShaftsinCheops’sPyramid’(projected1994),withA.Gilbert

BAUVAL,R.G.‘TheHorizonofKhufu:AStellarNameforCheops’sPyramid’(projected1994)

BAUVAL,R.G.‘LogisticsoftheShaftsinCheops’sPyramid:AReligiousFunctionexpressedwithGeometricalAstronomyandBuilt-inArchitecture’(projected1994)

BLACKER,C.&LOEWE,M.AncientCosmologies.GeorgeAllen&UnwinLtd.,London1975

BRANDON,S.G.F.ReligioninAncientHistory.GeorgeAllenandUnwinLtd.London1973

BREASTED,J.H.AncientRecordsofEgypt.HistoriesandMysteriesofManLtd.London,1988ed.

BREASTED,J.H.DevelopmentofReligionandThoughtinAncientEgypt.UniversityOfPennsylvaniaPress,Philadelphia,1972ed.

BRECHER,K.&FEIRTAG,M.AstronomyoftheAncients.MITPress,Mass.1979ed.

BRIGHTY,S.G.Setting-Out:AGuideforEngineers.CrosbyLockwoodStaples,London1975

BUCHWALD,V.F.HandbookonIronMeteorites.UCLAPress,Berkeley1975

BURNHAM,Jr.R.Burnham’sCelestialHandbook.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork1978

CAUVILLE,S.LaThéologied’OsirisàEdfou.InstitutFrançaisd’Ar-chéologieOrientaleduCaire,1983

CHAMDOR,A.TheBookoftheDead.GarrettPublications,1966

CHURTON,T.TheGnostics.Weidenfeld&Nicolson,1987

COOK,A.B.Zeus,vols.1,2and3.Cambridge1940

COOK,R.J.ThePyramidsofGiza.SevenIslands,Glastonbury,1992

CORNELL,J.TheFirstStargazers,AnIntroductiontotheOriginsofAstronomy.TheAthlonePress,London1981

COTTRELL,L.TheMountainsofPharaoh.RobertHaleLtd.London1956

CRICHLOW,K.OrderinSpace;aDesignSourceBook.Thames&Hudson,London1973ed.

DARESSY,M.G.‘UneAncienneListedesDécansEgyptiens’,inAnn.Serv.Tom.,i,pp.79–90

DAVID,R.MysteriesoftheMummies;thestoryoftheManchesterUniversityInvestigation.BookClubAssociates,London1978

DAVIDSON,M.TheStarsandtheMind.Watt&Co.London1947

DAVIS,V.L.‘IdentifyingAncientEgyptianConstellations’,inArch.Ast.,vol.9,JHAxvi,1985,8102

DAWSON,W.R.&UPHILL,E.P.WhoWasWhoinEgyptology.EgyptianExplorationSociety,London1972

DORMION,G.&GOIDON,J.P.Kheops:NouvelleEnquête.EditionsRecherchesurlesCivilisations,Paris1986

DUNHAM,D.‘BuildinganEgyptianPyramid’,inArchaeology,vol.9,1956

DUNHAM,D.&SIMPSON,W.K.TheMastabaofQueenMersyankhIII,G7530–7540.MuseumofFineArts,Boston1974

EDWARDS,I.E.S.ThePyramidsofEgypt.PenguinBooks,London1993

EDWARDS,I.E.S.‘TheAir-ChannelsofChephren’sPyramid’,inStudiesinHonorOfDowsDunham,Boston1981,pp.55–7

ERMAN,A.A.HandbookonEgyptianReligion.ArchibaldConstable&Co.,1907

FAULKNER,R.O.TheAncientEgyptianPyramidTexts.Aris&PhillipsLtd.,Warminster,1993ed.

FAULKNER,R.O.TheBookoftheDead.BritishMuseumPress,London1972

FAULKNER,R.O.‘TheKingandtheStar-religioninthePyramidTexts’,inJNES,vol.XXV,1966,pp.153–61

FIX,WM.R.PyramidOdyssey.MercuryMediaInc.,Virginia1978

FLINDERSPETRIE,W.M.‘TheBuildingofaPyramid’,inAncientEgypt,June1930,partii

FLINDERSPETRIE,W.M.ThePyramidsAndTemplesofGizeh.HistoriesandMysteriesofManLtd.London,1990ed.

FRANKFORT,H.KingshipandtheGods.UniversityofChicagoPress,1978

FRANKFORT,H.AncientEgyptianReligion.Harper&TorchBooks,1961ed.

GARDINER,A.H.‘TheSecretChambersoftheSanctuaryofThoth’,inJEA,11,1925,pp.2–5

GARDINER,A.EgyptianGrammar.OxfordUniversityPress,1957

GEESON,A.F.BuildingScience:Structures.TheEnglishUniversityPress,1967

GILBERT,A.G.(ed.)TheCosmicWisdomBeyondAstrology;towardsanewgnosisofthestars.SolosPress,1991

GILLINGS,R.J.MathematicsintheTimeofthePharaohs.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork1982

GOYON,G.LeSecretdesBatisseursdesGrandesPyramides:Kheops.Pygmalion,Paris,1991ed.

GREAVES,J.Pyramidographia.J.Bridley,London1646.

GRIFFITHS,J.G.TheOriginsofOsirisandhisCult.E.J.Brill,Leiden1980

GRINSELL,L.V.Barrow,PyramidsandTombs;AncientBurialCustomsinAncientEgypt,theMediterraneanandtheBritishIsles.Thames&Hudson,London1975

HASSAN,S.ExcavationsAtGiza,vol.VI,partI.GovernmentPress,Cairo1946

HENBEST,N.TheMysteriousUniverse.EburyPress,London1981

HIRSHFELD,A.SkyCatalogue2000.0,vol.1.CambridgeUniversityPress,1982

HORNUNG,E.‘DieKammerndesThot-Heiligtumes’,inZAS,band100,1973,pp.33–6

HOWARD–VYSE,R.W.OperationscarriedoninthePyramidsofGizehin1837,3vols.J.Fraser,London1840–2

INGHAM,M.F.‘TheLengthoftheSothicCycle’,inJEA,55,1969,p.36

ISLER,M.‘AnAncientMethodofFindingandExtendingDirection’,inJARCE,XXVI,1989,pp.191–206

ISLER,M.‘TheGnomoninAncientEgypt’,inJARCEXXVIII,1991,pp.155–85

JONES,M.‘TheTempleofApisinMemphis’,inJEA,76,1990,pp.141–7

KANE,J.A.TheAncientBuildingScience.EdwardsBros.Inc.,1940

KERISEL,J.LaPyramideàtraverslesAges.PressesPontsetChaussées,Paris1991

KINGSLAND,W.TheGnosisorAncientWisdomintheChristianScriptures.SolosPress,1993

KRUPP,E.C.InSearchofAncientAstronomies.Chatto&Windus,London,1981

LAUER,J.P.ObservationssurlesPyramides.Imprimeriedel’InstitutFrançaisD’ArchéologieOrientale,Cairo1960

LECLANT,J.LeTempsdesPyramides.EditionsGallimard,Paris1978

LEGON,J.A.R.‘AGroundPlanatGiza’,inDE,10,1988,pp.33–9

LEGON,J.A.R.‘TheGizaGroundPlanandSphinx’,inDE,14,1989,pp.53–61

LEHNER,M.TheEgyptianHeritage,AREPress,VirginiaBeach1974

LEGON,J.A.R.‘SomeObservationsontheLayoutoftheKhufuandKhafraPyramids’,inJARCE,XX,1983,pp.7–21

LEGON,J.A.R.‘TheDevelopmentoftheGizaNecropolis:theKhufuProject’,inMDAIK,41,1985,pp.109–43

LEGON,J.A.R.‘TheGizaMappingProject:Season1984–1985’,inJARCE,News-letter131,1985,pp.23–45

LEGON,J.A.R.‘TheGizaMappingProject:Season1986’,inJARCE,Newsletter135,1986,pp.29–48

LETHABY,W.Architecture,MysticismandMyth,(ForewordbyA.G.Gilbert).SolosPress,1993ed.

LICHTHEIM,M.AncientEgyptianLiterature,Vol.1,TheOldandMiddleKingdom’.UniversityofCaliforniaPress,LosAngeles,1975ed.

LOCKYER,J.N.TheDawnofAstronomy.Macmillan,London1894

LUCAS,A.AncientEgyptianMaterialsandIndustries.HistoriesandMysteriesofManLtd.London,1989ed.

LUCAS,A.‘Werethepyramidspainted?’inAntiquity,vol.xii,1938

MALEK,J.IntheShadowofthePyramids.Orbis,London1986

MANCHIPWHITE,J.E.AncientEgypt,itsCultureandHistory.GeorgeAllen&UnwinLtd.London,1970ed.

MASPERO,G.‘LaPyramideduRoiTeti’,inRec.Trav.,vol.v,Fasc.I–II,p.1

MASPERO,G.‘LaPyramideduRoiPepiI’,inRec.Trav.,vol.v,p.157

MASPERO,G.‘SurlePyramidionD’AmenemhaitIIIàDashour’,inAnn.Serv.Tom.,iii,pp.206–8

MAYASSIS,S.MystèresetInitiationsdel’EgypteAncienne.B.A.O.A.,Athens1956

MCNAIR,W.A.StarlandoftheSouth.Angus&Robertson,Sydney1950

MEAD,G.R.S.TheDoctrineoftheSubtleBodyintheWesternTradition(ForewordbyA.G.Gilbert).SolosPress,1993ed.

MENDELSSOHN,K.TheRiddleofthePyramids.Thames&Hudson,London1974

MERCER,S.A.B.ThePyramidTextsinTranslationandCommentaries.Vols.1,2,3and4.NewYork1952

MERCER,S.A.B.TheReligionOfAncientEgypt.London,1946

MILLS,H.R.PositionalAstronomyandAstro-NavigationmadeEasy.StanleyThornesLtd.,1978

MONTET,P.Géographiedel’EgypteAncienne.ImprimerieNationale,Paris1957

MONTET,P.Isis:ouàlaRecherchedel’EgypteEnsevelie.Hachetteedition,Paris1956

MOORE,P.GuidetotheStars.LutterworthPress,London1974

MOORE,P.TheStoryofAstronomy.MacdonaldandJane’s,London,1974ed.

NEUGEBAUER,O.AHistoryOfAncientMathematicalAstronomy.Springer-Verlag,1975

NEUGEBAUER,O.&PARKER,R.EgyptianAstronomicalTexts.Vols.1,2and3.BrownUniversityPress,LundHumphries,London1964

NOAKES,A.Cleopatra’sNeedles.H.F.&G.WetherbyLtd.,London1962

OOSTERHOUT,G.W.‘TheHeliacalRisingofSirius’,inDE,24,1992,pp.73–111

OUSPENSKY,P.D.ANewModeloftheUniverse.Routledge&KeganPaul,3rded.,London1937

PARKINSON,R.B.VoicesofAncientEgypt,anAnthologyofMiddleKingdomWritings.BritishMuseumPress,London1991

PARMAN,A.&EL-SAID,I.GeometricConceptsinIslamicArt.WorldOfIslamFestivalPublishingCo.Ltd.,1976

PIANKOFF,A.ThePyramidofUnas,textstranslatedwithcommentary.Bollingen,SeriesXL5,PrincetonUniversityPress,PrincetonNJ1968

PIAZZISMYTH,C.TheGreatPyramid:itssecretsandmysteriesrevealed.BellPublishingCo.NewYork,1990ed.

RADICE,B.(advisoryed.)Herodotus.TheHistories.PenguinBooks,London,1972ed.

RADICE,B.Plato.Timaeus&Critias.PenguinBooks,London,1977ed.

REISNER,G.A.Mycerinus,theTempleoftheThirdPyramidatGiza.HarvardUniversityPress,Mass.,1931

ROCCATI,A.LaLittératureHistoriquesousl’AncienEmpireEgyptien.LesEditionsduCerf,Paris1982

ROUSSEAU,J.‘AnalyseDimensionelledelaPyramidedeChéops’,inDE,22,1992,pp.29–52

RUKL,A.(S.Dunloped.)TheHamlynEncyclopediaofStars&Planets.HamlynPublishingGroup,London1988

RUNDLECLARK,R.T.MythandSymbolinAncientEgypt.Thames&Hudson,London,1978ed.

RUNDLECLARK,R.T.TheLegendofthePhoenix,Part1.UniversityOfBirminghamPress,1949

SAGAN,C.Cosmos.BookClubAssociates,London,1981ed.

SANFORD,J.ObservingtheConstellations.MitchellBeazleyInternationalLtd.,London1989

SANTILLANA,G.&VONDESCHEND,H.Hamlet’sMill.GambitInternational,Boston1969

SCHEEL,B.EgyptianMetalworkingandTools.ShireEgyptology,Aylesbury1989

SCHWALLERDELUBICZ,R.A.SacredScience,theKingofPharaonicTheocracy.InnerTraditionInternational,NewYork,1982ed.

SCOTT,W.Hermetica(ForewordbyA.G.Gilbert).SolosPress,1992ed.

SELLERS,J.B.TheDeathofGodsinAncientEgypt.PenguinBooks,London1992

SHORTER,A.W.TheEgyptianGods.Routledge&KeganPaul,London,1983ed.

SMART,W.M.Text-BookonSphericalAstronomy.CambridgeUniversityPress,1931

SPENCE,L.MythsandLegends,Egypt.BrackenBooks,London,1985ed.

STADELMANN,R.DieÄgyptischenPyramiden.WissenschaftlicheBuch-gesellschaft,Darmstadt1985

STEMMAN,R.MysteriesoftheUniverse.BloomsburyBooks,London1991

TEMPLE,R.K.G.TheSiriusMystery.Sidgwick&Jackson,London,1981ed.

THOMAS,E.‘Air-ChannelsintheGreatPyramid’,inJEA,39,1953,p.113

THOMPSON,S.E.‘TheOriginofthePyramidTextsfoundonMiddleKingdomSaqqaraCoffins’,inJEA,76,1990,pp.17–25

TOMPKINS,P.SecretsoftheGreatPyramid.AllenLane,London,1973ed.

TRIMBLE,V.‘AstronomicalInvestigationsconcerningtheso-calledAir-shaftsofCheops’sPyramid’,inMIOAWB,band10,1964,pp.183–7

WAINWRIGHT,G.A.‘IroninEgypt’,inJEA,18,1931,pp.3–15

TRIMBLE,V.‘OrionandtheGreatStar’inJEA,21;1936pp.45–6

TRIMBLE,V.‘SomeCelestialAssociationsofMin’,inJEA,21,1936,pp.152–71

TRIMBLE,V.‘APairofConstellations’,inStudiesforF.Ll.Griffith,1932

WALLIS-BUDGE,E.A.AnEgyptianHieroglyphicDictionary,Vols.1and2.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork,1978ed.

WALLIS-BUDGE,E.A.EgyptianLanguage.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork,1983ed.

WALLIS-BUDGE,E.A.OsirisandTheEgyptianResurrection,vol1.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork1973ed.

WALLIS-BUDGE,E.A.TheBookoftheEgyptianDead.DoverPublicationsInc.,NewYork,1967ed.

WALLIS-BUDGE,E.A.TheEgyptianHeavenandHell.MartinHopkinson&Co.,London1925

WALLIS-BUDGE,E.A.TheMummy.CollierBooks,NewYork,1972ed.

WEIGALL,A.AHistoryofthePharaohs,vol.1.ThortonButterworthLtd.,London1925

WOOD,H.TheSouthernSky.Angus&Robertson,Sydney1967

WOODJARVIS,H.PharaohtoFarouk.JohnMurray,London,1955ed.

WORTHAM,J.A.BritishEgyptology1549–1906.David&Charles,NewtonAbbot1971

ZäBA,Z.L’OrientationAstronomiquedansl’AncienneEgypteetlaPrécessiondel’AxeduMonde.Prague1953

Plates

1aTheauthorsinfrontoftheGizaPyramids

1bOverheadviewoftheGizagroup

2aTheStepPyramidofZoseratSaqqara

2bTheFifthDynastyPyramidsatAbusir

3aThe‘Bent’PyramidatDashour

3bTheRedPyramidatDashour

4aStatueofMarietteoutsideCairoMuseum

4bMasperothediscovererofthePyramidTexts

5aBurialchamberinthePyramidofUnasshowingthePyramidTexts

5bPyramidTextswithgroupofthreestarsfromUnasPyramid

5cPyramidTextsthatsayUnas—Osiris

6TheGizaoverhead

7ThestarsofOrion’sBelt

8TheconstellationofOrion

9aThenicheintheEastwalloftheQueen’schamber

9bTheemptysarcophagusintheKing’schamber

10aTheauthorsinfrontofthesouthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamberdaysbeforethediscoveryofthe‘door’byUPUAUT2

10bUPUAUT2

11aUPUAUT1goingupthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamber

11bIronplatefoundinthesouthernshaftoftheKing’sChamberin1837byR.J.Hill

12aRobertBauvalandRudolfGantenbrinkinMunich

12bDrI.E.S.EdwardsandRobertBauvalon6April1993aftertheshowingoftheUPUAUTvideo

13aTheBenbenStonefromthepyramidofAmenemhetIIIintheCairoMuseum

13bTheSahu-OrionfigureontheBenbenofAmenemhetIII

14aOrientedironmeteorite‘Willamette’intheSmithsonianInstituteNewYork

14bOrientedironmeteorite‘Morito’intheInstituteofMetallurgyDenmark

15aArtist’simpressionofthe‘adzeofUpuaut’aligningwiththenorthernshaftoftheQueen’sChamber

15bTheOpeningoftheMouthCeremonydepictedinthePayrusAniintheBritishMuseum

16Artist’simpressionofthestellarlandscape,showingOsiris(Orion)andtheshaftoftheGreatPyramidpointingtohisbelt

Acknowledgementsandthanksforpermissiontoreproducephotographsaredueasfollows:

RudolfGantenbrinkfor10b,11aand11b;DrI.E.S.Edwardsfor6;TheRoyalObservatory,Edinburghfor8;Burham’sCelestialHandbook,DoverPublishingfor7;DrVagnBuchwaldfor14b;DrBrianMasonfor14a;DeeGilbertfor1a,2a,9b,10a

Textcopyright©1994byRobertBauvalandAdrianGilbertIllustrations©1994byRobinCookandRobertBauval

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic ormechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,without permission inwritingfromthepublisher.

PublishedbyThreeRiversPress,NewYork,NewYork.MemberoftheCrownPublishingGroup.

OriginallypublishedinGreatBritainbyWilliamHeinemannLtd.andintheUnitedStatesbyCrownPublishersin1994.

RandomHouse,Inc.NewYork,Toronto,London,Sydney,Aucklandwww.randomhouse.com

THREERIVERSPRESSisaregisteredtrademarkandtheThreeRiversPresscolophonisatrademarkofRandomHouse,Inc.

LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationDataBauval,Robert.Theorionmystery:unlockingthesecretsofthePyramids/byRobertBauvalandAdrianGilbert.—1stAmericaned.I.Pyramids—Egypt—Miscellanea.I.Gilbert,Adrian(AdrianGeoffrey).II.Title

DT63.5.B341994932—dc2094-19574

eISBN:978-0-307-55886-2

v3.0