Giza

LAYMAN AND THE QUEEN OF SABA COMPANIONS OF THE CAVE CONCLUSION

Egypt is known for its fascinating history. Everyone is probably familiar with the great pyramids. After all, they are the only "Wonder of the World" that is reasonably intact today. These monumental pyramids exist in a place known as Giza. Giza is located in Lower Egypt (which is actually northern Egypt) near the Nile River. It is next to the present-day capital city of Cairo.

The history of Giza goes back to over 5,000 years ago. During the time in which the pharaohs lived, they built a fascinating funerary="0" included various temples and the three great pyramids. For many centuries, it was not known that the pyramids were the tombs of early Egyptian pharaohs. An example of one of the many theories were that the pyramids were storage places for grain during droughts and famine! Little did they know that these great pyramids were tombs built for three rulers: Menkaure, Khafre, and Khufu. These three rulers were of the 4th dynasty, (approximately 2601-2515 BCE.)

The Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and largest pyramid at the site. This pyramid was probably built by the cousin of Khufu, named Hemiunu. The Great Pyramid of Khufu covers 13 acres at its base and is approximately 137 meters (450 feet) in height. It was originally cased with polished limestone, creating a smooth exterior. Over the years, the smooth limestone was looted and used in other parts of the world. The pyramid of Khafre is slightly smaller than Khufu. Some of the original limestone casing is still visible at the top of this pyramid. Menkaure�s pyramid is smaller than the other two. The pyramids were built with huge red granite blocks that weighed about 2 � tons. The workers probably transported these blocks with small logs as rollers or by pouring water on the sand to create a slippery surface over which they could drag the blocks on sled-like structures. How they were raised is still a mystery. It involved mathematical calculations that we still cannot figure out! The entire funerary complex also has symbolic astronomical calculations in how the pyramids are oriented. This reflects the importance for the Ancient Egyptians to keep these three kings "immortal." (Click here for Kufu's funerary boat).

The designers of the pyramids tried to make sure that the king and the tomb "home" were never disturbed. During this time, it was believed the soul of the deceased always lingered. For example, offerings of food and beverage by family members were brought to the deceased. In the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the builders (who were slaves) placed his tomb chamber in the heart of the pyramid. A long, narrow, steeply rising passageway led to this tomb chamber. There were three false passageways, which were probably meant to fool looters or any unwelcome visitors. Unfortunately, despite the builders� precautions, looters had managed to break in to the tomb chamber. In it were extravagant funeral treasures, including works in gold, gems, and stone.

The Giza plateau also includes the Great Sphinx. To the Ancient Egyptians, the sphinx was a lion, which was a guardian to the sacred monuments. The lion had the head of a pharaoh who wore the royal headdress. Today his nose is missing.

All the pyramids can be seen from thirty miles from Giza itself. The site is truly spectacular. The walls are covered in fabulously incised hieroglyphics. From the outside, if you are standing right next to the pyramid, you will not be able to see the top. It is a pity to see that the Great Pyramids are in danger because of its neighbor, the ever-growing metropolitan city of Cairo. The pollution is causing the pyramids and the Great Sphinx to slowly deteriorate.

Today, if you visit Giza, you will find tons of other tourists in the area. You can even take a ride on a horse or camel around the Giza desert. The site of Sakkara is right next to Giza. Sometimes the tour guide will show you both sites. Giza today is known for its infamous "Sound and Light Show", which uses narration, and different colored lights similar to a play. The show depicts the history of the characters.

El-Omari

El-Omari was located in Lower Egypt, and is now currently located in the southern suburbs of Cairo (1). Through the search for the three villages of El-Omari many great outcomes were expected. Unfortunately, El-Omari has not been extensively excavated and only limited site reports have appeared (2). Two Frenchmen by the name of Bovier-Lapierre and Fernand Debano uncovered the evidence of the three villages of El-Omari in the 1920's and 40's. The recent Carbon 14 dating has established that the sites were occupied from 4000 BC and continued to be inhabited until the Archaic Period, Omari C being the later of the three (1). All of these sites where nearby and also in the mouth of the Wadi Hof. Their way of living was quite similar to that of the Merimde. Such as, Omari A covered a large area and yielded remains of over 100 circular and oval huts with sunken floors (1). Again like Merimde, Omari's houses were all well preserved with reed fences. This type of housing reflected the Omari living in smaller nuclear family units, which may have been self-contained.

The Omari had a way of farming similar to that of the Old Kingdom as well. The crops were harvested by threshing and the pure crop was later stored in muddy bins until consumption. The El-Omari also had a mortuary culture that was also similar to that of the Merimde in that the residents buried the dead within the village (1). This was done by placing the dead in round pits, before then they were placed in mats, animal skins, and different kinds of fabric. The way that the El-Omari lay their dead was very diverse from everyone else. The dead were laid out in a contracted position on their left sides with the head to the south and facing west, which was of course toward the traditional Dynastic "Realm of the Dead." (1) Many of the dead were buried with a very simple ornament. This was done to show some sort of authority; for example, one was buried with a clay box and another with a staff in his hand. More research and excavating needs to be done on the villages of El-Omari, so we can get a better understanding of the Old Kingdom in Lower Egypt.

El-Omari

El-Omari was located in Lower Egypt, and is now currently located in the southern suburbs of Cairo (1). Through the search for the three villages of El-Omari many great outcomes were expected. Unfortunately, El-Omari has not been extensively excavated and only limited site reports have appeared (2). Two Frenchmen by the name of Bovier-Lapierre and Fernand Debano uncovered the evidence of the three villages of El-Omari in the 1920's and 40's. The recent Carbon 14 dating has established that the sites were occupied from 4000 BC and continued to be inhabited until the Archaic Period, Omari C being the later of the three (1). All of these sites where nearby and also in the mouth of the Wadi Hof. Their way of living was quite similar to that of the Merimde. Such as, Omari A covered a large area and yielded remains of over 100 circular and oval huts with sunken floors (1). Again like Merimde, Omari's houses were all well preserved with reed fences. This type of housing reflected the Omari living in smaller nuclear family units, which may have been self-contained.

The Omari had a way of farming similar to that of the Old Kingdom as well. The crops were harvested by threshing and the pure crop was later stored in muddy bins until consumption. The El-Omari also had a mortuary culture that was also similar to that of the Merimde in that the residents buried the dead within the village (1). This was done by placing the dead in round pits, before then they were placed in mats, animal skins, and different kinds of fabric. The way that the El-Omari lay their dead was very diverse from everyone else. The dead were laid out in a contracted position on their left sides with the head to the south and facing west, which was of course toward the traditional Dynastic "Realm of the Dead." (1) Many of the dead were buried with a very simple ornament. This was done to show some sort of authority; for example, one was buried with a clay box and another with a staff in his hand. More research and excavating needs to be done on the villages of El-Omari, so we can get a better understanding of the Old Kingdom in Lower Egypt.

El-Amarna Site

El-Amarna formerly known as Akhetaten, is a flat piece of land located beside the Nile River Valley. The area is a plain field separated from the Nile Valley by a strip of palm trees, it stretches 12 kilometers from the north to south. The area on which it stretches is mostly outlined with ruins of temples, palaces and houses that stretch the entire distance.

There are more than twenty-five tombs facing the base of the cliff front that is located there. Six tombs are located at the north side near Darb El-Malik, while nineteen of them are located at the south side. These tombs are built highly complicated to ensure that they are protected from thieves. Most of them start with open court that leads to three chambers, within these chambers there are papyrus columns that meet in the rear end which have a statue of the dead looking toward the entrance.

Among these tombs there are various famous tombs that have been discovered, the first is Ay's tomb, which is considered to be the finest of the tombs there. This tomb was found by Giovanni Battista Belzoni, while walking through the Nile Valley here he found some rocks that were out of place so he poked through them with a stick and found a hole that was deep, he and associates removed the rocks and found a tomb that the Arabs dubbed the tomb of the monkey, because of the rows of paintings of apes that were present. King Ay reigned for only four years between 1339 and 1335 BC and his tomb was only half completed. There are some descriptive scenes of the streets of ancient Akhenaten, a few moments in the palace of Ay are depicted; a woman of the harem having her hair done. In the temple the most complete version of the Hymn to the Sun is decorating the right hand side of the doorway.

There are other tombs here also a couple of the more notable one are Huya, who was the steward of Queen Tiyi, the queenmother and wife of Amenhotep III. Meri-re II who was the superintendant of the palace of Queen Nefertiti. Meri-re I a high rank priest of Aton, and Panhesy the chief servitor of the Aton in Akenhaten. Aton was the god that Akhenaten worshipped and some of these people had shrines to them.

Buhen

Buhen is a fortress that was built in Egypt during the 12^th dynasty rule of Sesostris III, around the year 1860 BCE. The fort is located near the head of the Nile River, and lies near the ancient Nubian border. The fort was a part of a chain of forts that lined the Nile. The other forts along the banks were Mirgissa, Shalfak, Uronarti, Askut, Dabenarti, Semna, and Kumma. All the forts had visual contact with one another to warn of would-be attackers.

The fortress itself covered over 150m of the West bank of the Nile. It spanned across 1.3 hectares, and had within its wall a small town laid out in a grid system. At its peak it had a population of around 3500 people. The fortress also included the administration for the whole fortified region of the Second Cataract. Its fortifications included a 3m deep moat, drawbridges, bastions, buttresses, ramparts, battlements, loopholes, and a catapult. The walls of the fort were about 5m thick and stood 10m high. In front of the main walls there was a secondary wall that had the moat in front of it. This meant that attackers would have to cross the moat under archer fire, and then climb both of the walls that surrounded the city.

It is unsure if the fort actually ever saw any battles, but there are burn marks on the front walls. It is not known if these marks are from a battle or an accidental fire in the past. The fort was occupied not just by the Egyptians, but also the Kushites, and the Meroitic peoples without need for major reconstruction. The complex probably served as a customs and naval depot for the Egyptians. It would have been a checkpoint for goods entering from Nubia and southern Africa, and to restrict river traffic from the south. The fortress at Buhen today has been covered by Lake Nasser, which was the result of the building of the Aswan High Dam in 1964. Before the site was covered with water, a team led by Walter B. Emery excavated and published their findings to ensure a record of the site.