jjares reviewed The Pyramids and the Great Sphinx of Giza: The History and Mysteries Behind Ancient Egypt's Famous Monuments on + 3270 more book reviews
The Egyptians were obsessed with the afterlife and their place in it. This book explains how the Egyptians experimented with different designs in creating pyramids for their exalted leaders. Over the generations, they changed their funerary rites of passage.
It was fascinating to learn that the Pharoah kept his farmers busy in the off-seasons by hiring them to construct his final resting place. This helped with keeping citizens employed and provided monuments and statuary for future generations to admire.
It is shocking to see how much damage was done to the pyramids by later Pharaohs and builders. Limestone exteriors were stolen wholesale to build the next generation of burial sites, without respect to the majesty of the previous Pharaohs.
The Sphinx has the body of the lion and the head of a human. Mostly, it comes from Greek mythology. The Sphinx (a she-creature) stood outside Thebes and asked riddles. If the traveler answered correctly, entry to the city was allowed.
Questions about the time of the Sphinx's building are vague, but many believe that Pharaoh Khafre built it around 2500 BCE. It is thought to show his face (not a female's face). Besides the missing nose, it is thought that at one time, there was a beard on the lion's face.
A fascinating tidbit is that the Romans even spent time and money, trying to shore up the Sphinx. In 1798 CE, Napoleon's army also had 167 artists and scientists, who worked to preserve the ancient sites in Egypt.
Then, the text goes into some bizarre directions. They evaluate the variety of archaeology disciplines and their differing goals and ambitions. Then, pop culture and Hollywood's actions regarding the Pyramids and Sphinx are analyzed. Finally, tourism, from ancient times to current habits is explored. There is a trade-off between increased tourism and degradation of the historic sites.
By 2008, it was noticed that there were problems with the water table around the Sphinx and water pump machines were installed to protect the Sphinx. The array of photos and drawings added so much to the text in this book.
It was fascinating to learn that the Pharoah kept his farmers busy in the off-seasons by hiring them to construct his final resting place. This helped with keeping citizens employed and provided monuments and statuary for future generations to admire.
It is shocking to see how much damage was done to the pyramids by later Pharaohs and builders. Limestone exteriors were stolen wholesale to build the next generation of burial sites, without respect to the majesty of the previous Pharaohs.
The Sphinx has the body of the lion and the head of a human. Mostly, it comes from Greek mythology. The Sphinx (a she-creature) stood outside Thebes and asked riddles. If the traveler answered correctly, entry to the city was allowed.
Questions about the time of the Sphinx's building are vague, but many believe that Pharaoh Khafre built it around 2500 BCE. It is thought to show his face (not a female's face). Besides the missing nose, it is thought that at one time, there was a beard on the lion's face.
A fascinating tidbit is that the Romans even spent time and money, trying to shore up the Sphinx. In 1798 CE, Napoleon's army also had 167 artists and scientists, who worked to preserve the ancient sites in Egypt.
Then, the text goes into some bizarre directions. They evaluate the variety of archaeology disciplines and their differing goals and ambitions. Then, pop culture and Hollywood's actions regarding the Pyramids and Sphinx are analyzed. Finally, tourism, from ancient times to current habits is explored. There is a trade-off between increased tourism and degradation of the historic sites.
By 2008, it was noticed that there were problems with the water table around the Sphinx and water pump machines were installed to protect the Sphinx. The array of photos and drawings added so much to the text in this book.
