Introduction
Tutankhamen's Tomb
The Pyramids of Giza
The Shinx
Abu Simbel
The Rosetta Stone
Introduction
Prior to my recent backpacking trip round Egypt I was looking for information sources for some of the larger historical sites of points of interest. As with the majority of travellers I wanted to have a basic knowledge of Ancient Egyptian History and facts of Egypt prior to my arrival at the destination in order that I at least had a vague understanding of the places I was to visit. Having looked through a number of Egypt sources I couldn't find a book or website that had concise information covering all the Egyptian places of interest I was looking to visit. This page is designed to provide easy to understand facts surrounding major points of history of ancient Egypt and of the larger historical sites without getting enveloped in finer lengthy details. I have started off with a few of the larger historical sites and will add to them in due course. I hope you find this of interest.
Tutankhamen’s Tomb
Tutankhamen’s (also known as King Tut) life spanned from 1341 BC until 1323 BC and he reigned for the last 11 years of his life.
Tutankhamen is synonymous with ancient egyptian history and his fame far outstrips that of any other Egyptian Pharaoh. On inspection of his tomb within the Valley of the Kings one would wonder why his name is so well known above other Pharoahs, in fact why he left his mark on Egyptian history at all. His tomb is not large, nor is it well painted or decorated and appears as though little care was taken in its hasty completion.
It is in fact the timing of the discovery of the tomb that makes it so significant. The tomb was the latest of all the Pharaohs tombs to be discovered and was done so on November 4th 1922 by Howard Carter (in his sixth season of the search). Howard Carter later died of malaria which he contracted during the excavation, certain believed it was a curse that struck him for revealing the tomb.
Upon opening the tomb of King Tut furniture, weapons, statues and chariots were all found within. Tutankhamen was merely a boy when he died at the age of 18. Whilst he was still buried as a Pharaoh his death is shrouded in suspicion and it is believed he was murdered. Whilst there are a number of theories surrounding his death, without proof they all remain open for speculation. Contents of the tomb can still be seen in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
The Pyramids of Giza
Whilst there are a number of sites within Egypt being home to pyramids
the most famous are those of Giza (which are the only remaining
“Wonder” of the Greek-listed Seven Wonders of the
World) and it is these Pyramids at Giza which are globally renound and
epitomise Ancient Egyptian History. There have been numerous weird and
wonderful theories for the building of the pyramids over the years,
however they were built as tombs to house the mummies of deceased
Pharaohs. The three pyramids on the Giza Plateau are the tombs of
Cheops, Chefren and Mycerinus who were father, son and grandson.
It
is believed that
with the army of masons, mathematicians, surveyors, stonecutters and
some 100,000 slaves involved it took around 20 years to erect
the Pyramid of Cheops alone (the largest of the three). Upon viewing
the Pyramids of Giza Napoleon calculated that the 2 ½
million blocks (denerally weighing between 2 - 30 tonnes each, some as
much as 70 tonnes) that were used in the construction of this pyramid
alone would be enough to build a 3 metre high wall around the coast and
borders of France.
Upon construction and up until the 5th century the Pyramids of Giza would have gleamed in the sunlight as they were coated in polished limestone. Sadly up until the 19th century the limestone was recovered by builders in order to build mosques and palaces. This has unfortunately exposed the softer stone to the elements which has caused unfortunate deterioration. An example of the limestone covering can still be seen at the very top of the Pyramid of Chefren.
Upon completion in 2600 BC the Great Pyramid of Cheops stood at around 146.5 metres and was the tallest man made structure not only in Egypt but in the world. It held this claim until the 19th century when it was beaten by the Gothenburg Cathedral, this was only done by adding a spa to the spire. It is feats of engineering like this that has given Ancient Egypt the name it has today.
In years gone by a popular pastime would beto climb to the summit of the Pyramids of Giza, this is now forbidden, not due to the erosion it caused but due to the deaths that ensued with the tourists falling from such a great height.
Tutankhamen's Tomb
The Pyramids of Giza
The Shinx
Abu Simbel
The Rosetta Stone
Introduction
Prior to my recent backpacking trip round Egypt I was looking for information sources for some of the larger historical sites of points of interest. As with the majority of travellers I wanted to have a basic knowledge of Ancient Egyptian History and facts of Egypt prior to my arrival at the destination in order that I at least had a vague understanding of the places I was to visit. Having looked through a number of Egypt sources I couldn't find a book or website that had concise information covering all the Egyptian places of interest I was looking to visit. This page is designed to provide easy to understand facts surrounding major points of history of ancient Egypt and of the larger historical sites without getting enveloped in finer lengthy details. I have started off with a few of the larger historical sites and will add to them in due course. I hope you find this of interest.
Tutankhamen’s Tomb
Tutankhamen’s (also known as King Tut) life spanned from 1341 BC until 1323 BC and he reigned for the last 11 years of his life.
Tutankhamen is synonymous with ancient egyptian history and his fame far outstrips that of any other Egyptian Pharaoh. On inspection of his tomb within the Valley of the Kings one would wonder why his name is so well known above other Pharoahs, in fact why he left his mark on Egyptian history at all. His tomb is not large, nor is it well painted or decorated and appears as though little care was taken in its hasty completion.
It is in fact the timing of the discovery of the tomb that makes it so significant. The tomb was the latest of all the Pharaohs tombs to be discovered and was done so on November 4th 1922 by Howard Carter (in his sixth season of the search). Howard Carter later died of malaria which he contracted during the excavation, certain believed it was a curse that struck him for revealing the tomb.
Upon opening the tomb of King Tut furniture, weapons, statues and chariots were all found within. Tutankhamen was merely a boy when he died at the age of 18. Whilst he was still buried as a Pharaoh his death is shrouded in suspicion and it is believed he was murdered. Whilst there are a number of theories surrounding his death, without proof they all remain open for speculation. Contents of the tomb can still be seen in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
The Pyramids of Giza
It
is believed that
with the army of masons, mathematicians, surveyors, stonecutters and
some 100,000 slaves involved it took around 20 years to erect
the Pyramid of Cheops alone (the largest of the three). Upon viewing
the Pyramids of Giza Napoleon calculated that the 2 ½
million blocks (denerally weighing between 2 - 30 tonnes each, some as
much as 70 tonnes) that were used in the construction of this pyramid
alone would be enough to build a 3 metre high wall around the coast and
borders of France.Upon construction and up until the 5th century the Pyramids of Giza would have gleamed in the sunlight as they were coated in polished limestone. Sadly up until the 19th century the limestone was recovered by builders in order to build mosques and palaces. This has unfortunately exposed the softer stone to the elements which has caused unfortunate deterioration. An example of the limestone covering can still be seen at the very top of the Pyramid of Chefren.
Upon completion in 2600 BC the Great Pyramid of Cheops stood at around 146.5 metres and was the tallest man made structure not only in Egypt but in the world. It held this claim until the 19th century when it was beaten by the Gothenburg Cathedral, this was only done by adding a spa to the spire. It is feats of engineering like this that has given Ancient Egypt the name it has today.
In years gone by a popular pastime would beto climb to the summit of the Pyramids of Giza, this is now forbidden, not due to the erosion it caused but due to the deaths that ensued with the tourists falling from such a great height.
The
Sphinx
As with many of the great
Ancient Egyptian landmarks and historic
sights, the Sphinx is surrounded in myth
and
legend. Its
purpose has never really been established although various ideas exist. One being that Chefren had it carved in order
to guard his tomb (being his Pyramid) from intruders coming in boats up
the Nile.
Carved out of one piece of stone the Sphinx is 50 metres long and 22 metres high it is considerably smaller than one is lead to believe from pictures and footage that is seen. With the passing of time the Sphinx has begun to rot from the inside whilst a number of efforts have been made to halt the deterioration they have not been successful.
The nose and parts of the face have been blown off the Sphinx, this is thought to be the work of certain Turkish troops using it for firing practice with cannons although another school of thought has suggested that it could have been the troops of Napoleon during his time in Egypt.
Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel is a Temple which was located on the banks of the Nile in the far South Egypt close to the border with Sudan. It was carved out of the side of the mountain and consists of 4 colossal statues of Ramses II (which are identical and stand at a height of 20m). It was designed in such a way so that the statues of the Pharaoh could keep an eye out for anyone sailing up the Nile into his land. Each of the Ramses is sat upon a chair surrounded by much smaller statues of his wife, certain of his children (as he is thought to have a great many) and his mother).
Carved within the
mountain are vast rooms encompassing statues of certain gods and
Pharaohs including Osiris and Ramses II himself.
Deeper inside the temple is the Sacred Chamber where the Four Gods sit.
In 1960 with the construction of the Aswan Dam, Abu Simbel was to be lost underwater. UNESCO quickly moved into action across Southern Egypt and started to dismantle a number of temples in partucular Abu Simbel to move it to an adjacent site 65 metres higher than the original and over 200m away. The Temple was cut up into around 2000 pieces generally of between 10 and 40 tonnes in weight. The orientation was kept the same in order that the sun shone through the entrance to the temple and lit up the back wall on the 22nd October and 22nd February of each year (which symbolises the cycle of the coronation and birth of Ramses II) as it did previously.
The Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone has a great significance in Ancient Egyptian History. Without it we would still be unable to decipher the hieroglyphics of the ancient Egyptians. The tablet is a document that was carved in 196 B.C. and honours the Pharoah of Egypt praising him for the good things he had done for the priests and people of Egypt. The document is in three languages - Greek, Hieroglyphic and Demotic. Hieroglyphic was the language used for important religious documents (the reason for it being carved on temples and so forth) whilst Demotic was the common language used in Ancient Egyptian times. It was made possible to understand the two languages by having the Greek translation along side them upon the stone.
Whilst it was carved in 196 B.C., the stone lay undiscovered until 1799. It was not not until 1822 however that Jean-Francois Champillion, after many years studying Hieroglyphics as well as the Rosetta Stone, finally cracked the secret of Hieroglyphics. He managed to do this with his exceptional understanding of Coptic and Greek language.
The name for the stone derived from the location in which it was found which is of course Rosetta, a small village in the north of Egypt, 65 km to the east of Alexandria.
As with many of the great
Ancient Egyptian landmarks and historic
sights, the Sphinx is surrounded in myth
and
legend. Its
purpose has never really been established although various ideas exist. One being that Chefren had it carved in order
to guard his tomb (being his Pyramid) from intruders coming in boats up
the Nile.Carved out of one piece of stone the Sphinx is 50 metres long and 22 metres high it is considerably smaller than one is lead to believe from pictures and footage that is seen. With the passing of time the Sphinx has begun to rot from the inside whilst a number of efforts have been made to halt the deterioration they have not been successful.
The nose and parts of the face have been blown off the Sphinx, this is thought to be the work of certain Turkish troops using it for firing practice with cannons although another school of thought has suggested that it could have been the troops of Napoleon during his time in Egypt.
Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel is a Temple which was located on the banks of the Nile in the far South Egypt close to the border with Sudan. It was carved out of the side of the mountain and consists of 4 colossal statues of Ramses II (which are identical and stand at a height of 20m). It was designed in such a way so that the statues of the Pharaoh could keep an eye out for anyone sailing up the Nile into his land. Each of the Ramses is sat upon a chair surrounded by much smaller statues of his wife, certain of his children (as he is thought to have a great many) and his mother).
Carved within the
mountain are vast rooms encompassing statues of certain gods and
Pharaohs including Osiris and Ramses II himself.
Deeper inside the temple is the Sacred Chamber where the Four Gods sit.In 1960 with the construction of the Aswan Dam, Abu Simbel was to be lost underwater. UNESCO quickly moved into action across Southern Egypt and started to dismantle a number of temples in partucular Abu Simbel to move it to an adjacent site 65 metres higher than the original and over 200m away. The Temple was cut up into around 2000 pieces generally of between 10 and 40 tonnes in weight. The orientation was kept the same in order that the sun shone through the entrance to the temple and lit up the back wall on the 22nd October and 22nd February of each year (which symbolises the cycle of the coronation and birth of Ramses II) as it did previously.
The Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone has a great significance in Ancient Egyptian History. Without it we would still be unable to decipher the hieroglyphics of the ancient Egyptians. The tablet is a document that was carved in 196 B.C. and honours the Pharoah of Egypt praising him for the good things he had done for the priests and people of Egypt. The document is in three languages - Greek, Hieroglyphic and Demotic. Hieroglyphic was the language used for important religious documents (the reason for it being carved on temples and so forth) whilst Demotic was the common language used in Ancient Egyptian times. It was made possible to understand the two languages by having the Greek translation along side them upon the stone.
Whilst it was carved in 196 B.C., the stone lay undiscovered until 1799. It was not not until 1822 however that Jean-Francois Champillion, after many years studying Hieroglyphics as well as the Rosetta Stone, finally cracked the secret of Hieroglyphics. He managed to do this with his exceptional understanding of Coptic and Greek language.
The name for the stone derived from the location in which it was found which is of course Rosetta, a small village in the north of Egypt, 65 km to the east of Alexandria.