Talking Pyramids » abu roash

Virtual Tours of the Pyramid Fields

Vincent — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 04:32:24 +0000

The Boat Pit on the east side of Djedefre's pyramid

When I started this blog at the beginning of the year I did so with the aim of creating a useful resource to provide information about the pyramids. I began by creating the Pyramid Fields pages and offering practical information on each pyramid such as the dimensions, date of construction, as well as an up to date status on if & when it is open to the public and how much it costs to enter. A photograph or diagram of each pyramid was also included along with it’s title in hieroglyphs (if known).

Categories and Tags
As mentioned in a previous post, one of the powerful features of a blog platform is the ‘modular’ way in which information is stored with the use of Categories and Tags. The Pyramid Fields pages also utilise this feature to allow easy access to all relevant information. As an example, all information posted to the blog on the topic of Pyramid of Unas is tagged with “unas“. And because the Pyramid of Unas section of the Saqqara Pyramid Field page has a link to the tag “unas“, then all information that has accumulated on this blog on that subject will be easily accessible via that linked tag.

Satellite Image Maps
The Google Satellite maps that are embedded at the top of each of the Pyramid Fields pages are interactive and provide a present day look at the sites. There are pyramid links along the bottom of the satellite map that refocus the image to show a particular pyramid. At some stage I’ll be upgrading these interactive maps to include photographs as I have done with the Pyramid Texts Online Photos page. These photos from observers on the ground, when positioned appropriately, provide an additional perspective of the area.

Virtual Flybys
Once again I have turned my attention to updating the Pyramid Fields section of this blog. The latest plan is to include a virtual tour of each of the Pyramid Fields to provide a more three dimensional view of the sites. The Google Earth files used in the videos can be downloaded and run on your own computer if you have Google Earth installed. Each file is very small at only a few kb each. Once the file is downloaded simply run the tour (press the F10 key on Windows). If you don’t already have Google Earth, then you can download it for free from Google. The videos can be viewed independently of Google Earth and have some additional multimedia. Incidentally, the first video features me singing.

I’ll be rolling these out progressively starting with the northern most Pyramid Field, Abu Roash and slowly moving south along the Nile until we reach Faiyum.

Visit the Abu Roash page to download the Google Earth file.

All Pyramids Open to Public By Next Year!

Vincent — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 07:55:56 +0000

Tonight at 7pm the History Channel is re-airing the ‘Lost Pyramid’. The Newsweek website has an interactive feature that gives an overview of the program.

The so-called 'Lost Pyramid' of Djedefre

The Star Online today has an article promoting the airing of ‘The Lost Pyramid’. In it Dr Zahi Hawass is quoted as declaring that next year he wants all pyramids to be opened to the public!

Recently, media members who congregated in Giza, in the south-west of the capital Cairo in northern Egypt, found themselves coming face to face with an Egyptian man on a mission. Dr Zahi Hawass, the secretary-general of Egyp’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, declared that by next year, he wants all the pyramids to be opened to the public.

Surely he doesn’t really mean ALL of them. In a previous interview with Andrew Bayuk from Guardians, when asked about the pyramid of Unas being reopened to the public he said:

A pyramid like this, why do you open it to the public? Why do you ruin it? We’ll keep it for the future. Because this pyramid is unique. If you need to see a pyramid text, go to the Teti pyramid, but the Unas pyramid is a masterpiece, and therefore we are restoring it to close it.

Those of you who’ve been following this blog and using the Pyramid Fields pages located at the top right of the page will know that I have been trying to keep the pages relevant and up-to-date in regards to which pyramids are open and their entry prices. As soon as any more information surfaces on this matter you can be sure that it will be posted here.

The ‘Lost Fourth Pyramid of Giza’

Vincent — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:27:41 +0000

Next Monday the History Channel will air a documentary called “The Lost Pyramid”.

The documentary sensationally refers to the pyramid of Djedefre as “The Lost Fourth Pyramid of Giza”, even though Egyptologists have been well aware of this pyramid for over a hundred years, it first being investigated by John Perring and later by Flinders Petrie who’s meticulous efforts gave us the detailed measurements of Khufu’s pyramid. Nor is the pyramid located at Giza, instead it can be found 8 kilometers north at Abu Roash.

Even Zahi Hawass, who as we know is a bit of a show man, is hyping up the claim stating:

“I’m a pyramid man, and what I’ve seen now has made me change many things…Every history book in every language is going to be rewritten.”

'The Lost Fourth Pyramid' on the History Channel

Like the video I posted in a previous article, the documentary uses computer-generated reconstructions to demonstrate how Djedefre’s pyramid was connected to the three pyramids at Giza.

See the History Channel website for more information on “The Lost Pyramid”.

Pyramid of Djedefre Video

Vincent — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 23:18:06 +0000

Here is a video on the pyramid of Djedefre at Abu Roash that uses computer generated imagery to show what the pyramid might have once looked like.

The accompanying story is in Italian: Il mistero della quarta piramide “La piÃ¹ bella, alta e preziosa” and Archaeologist, Andie, who runs the best Egyptology blog on the planet for the latest news in Egyptology, has provided an English translation:

“In summary (not word for word translation) it says that although the Giza pyramids are the best known, the pyramid of Djedefre was far more impressive in terms of its majesty, beauty, wealth and dimensions even though it was located away from Giza. It is now located in a military zone to which there is severely restricted access. it is in very ruinous condition today, and there is very little to see. Some archaeologists, and in particular Zahi Hawass of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, suggest that the pyramid had been completed, that it was actually the tallest of all of the pyramids and made out of more valuable materials, but that during the Roman period the pyramid was dismantled for building material. The excavations have been taking place for twelve years and have given rise to new interpretations of the mysteries concering Djedefra and why he chose to build his pyramid at Abu Roach rather than on the Giza plateau with its predecessor, but was instead in a more secluded and elevated place. One view which was held for many years was that the Pharaoh had suffered some misfortune or disagreement with his family, but today Hawass thinks that his choice of location was designed to emphasize his independence and that the higher location was chosen in order to be closer to the sun itself, which the Pharaohs worshipped.”

Thanks Andie.