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On the Orientation of Ancient Egyptian Temples: (1) Upper Egypt and Lower Nubia
... The Effect of Directing Architectural Spaces towards Astronomy on Living Organisms: An Experimental Study on Chlorella Vulgaris Algae theories of the way to direct the Egyptian pyramids using the stars [10]. Most of the ancient Egyptian temples are linked to the daily and annual movement of the sun and the stars., for example, the sun's rays enter the sanctum in the Great Temple of Abu Simbel for the first time on the birthday of King Ramses II (February 21) and the second time on his sitting day on the throne (October 21) every year [11], while the sun rays penetration of the main axis of the great temple of Amun at Karnak in Luxor at sunrise in the middle of winter, then penetrating it again from the west at sunset in the middle of summer, then finally the sunrise on the face of The Sphinx on the spring and autumnal equinoxes in Giza [12]. ...
It has been noted that ancient civilizations, like the Ancient Greeks, Babylonians, and the Ancient Egyptians, were interested in directing buildings towards astronomy. This directive represents a mystery that the modern architect could not understand, which rompted the research to deal with this problem experimentally to prove whether or not there was an effect of architectural spaces oriented towards astronomy on living organisms. Accordingly, this experiment was implemented on microorganisms such as algae of the type (Chlorella Vulgaris) by designing spaces and then directing them towards astronomy at times with unique characteristics being chosen and directed to it, and placing algae in them to study the changes that occurred in them as a result of placing them in those spaces. The experiment concluded that there was a clear relevance between directed spaces according to astronomical parameters and the well-being of living organisms. The search objective was to reach an answer to the research question, is there any importance to the effect of directing architectural spaces toward astronomy or not on living organisms? And why? The research results showed the importance of orientation towards astronomy, as it was in all previous civilizations, and the absence of this importance at present. The choice of building construction time and the guidance of the astronomer enhance the required purpose of the building and increase its efficiency and the efficiency of its users. The Scientific addition to research showed that the main value of the research is proving the effect of directing architectural spaces towards astronomy on living organism using an experimental study on microorganisms, it was found that there is an important effect of space that is oriented to astronomy on living organisms to raise its efficiency and the efficiency of its users.
... All cases show similar orientations with azimuths from 115 degrees (QH33) to 123º (QH32). The first orientation is related to the sunrise of the winter solstice at this latitude (Shaltout & Belmonte, 2005). In contrast to these data, the funerary spaces show more variability of orientations. ...
Highlights:
• A new methodology is presented to develop geometrical analysis of burial structures based on 3D models.
• The methodology has been applied to three contiguous burial structures (hypogea), allowing the researchers to analyse some constructive aspects such as dimensions, proportions, orientations, flatness and inclinations.
• Results have demonstrated the advanced skills achieved by ancient Egyptians in construction techniques.
Abstract:
This study describes the methodology developed and the main results obtained when analysing the geometrical behavior of three adjacent burial structures located in southern Egypt. The rock-cut tombs are composed of complex geometries such as halls, corridors, chambers and vertical shafts. Among other determining aspects, this complexity greatly conditioned the data acquisition and processing work. In this context, the main objective of this study was to develop a new methodology for obtaining geomatic products that support a complete geometrical analysis of the tombs. The researchers have used photogrammetric and laser scanning surveys to obtain accurate 3D models on a common reference system. The procedure used included obtaining several secondary products, such as several geometries (planes and cylinders) fitted from point clouds or plans and sections obtained from the 3D models. The geometric analysis has included several aspects: dimensions, proportions, orientations, wall flatness, inclinations, etc., and it is based on these products. The results obtained suggest and confirm several hypotheses about the constructive aspects of these hypogea based on a large amount of data, including the determination of a proportional canon used by the ancient Egyptians to plan and perform the excavation works of each funerary structure. The application of this methodology has demonstrated that this type of analysis is viable to unveil some important aspects of these structures and the constructive procedures carried out almost four millennia ago.
Astronomy has a key role in understanding ancient Egyptian religion and architecture. Indeed a fundamental duty that the Pharaohs assigned to themselves was of keepers of the cosmic order, called Maat by the Egyptians. The ideology associated with kingship thus designated the king as intermediary between gods and humanity, and—as a consequence—the doctrine of power in Egypt was deeply connected with the celestial cycles. In the Old Kingdom, this is reflected in the Pyramids of Giza, as well as in the pyramids and sun temples of the 5th dynasty at Abusir. Both these pyramid fields are thus described in full details. In the New Kingdom, the main role of architectural witness of power is taken by the great temples, such as Karnak and Abu Simbel. The archaeoastronomy of the capital of the “heretic” pharaoh Akhenaten is also discussed.
During the Pyramid Age, the ancient Egyptians erected some of the most iconic monuments in the world, but their method of alignment and the exact dates of construction remain in dispute. This paper presents new archaeoas-tronomical evidence that both explains the ostensibly erratic orientation of the Old Kingdom pyramids and offers a novel solution to the dating problem. An analysis of the alignment of pyramids built during the 3 rd to 6 th Dynasties reveals that they were not oriented to true north, as expected by one of the prevailing current models, but to prominent stars in the northern circumpolar region. A distinct pattern emerges when the time-dependent position of these stars is compared with the orientation of a series of pyramids whose alignments are known. The pattern explains all the available azimuth data of the pyramids from Djoser to Unas and predicts older dates of construction for these structures with an accuracy of no more than five years, up or down. In conclusion, the age of the Old Kingdom is approximately two centuries older than conventionally estimated, according to traditional textual reconstructions of Egyptian chronology. These results are consistent with previous ra-diocarbon data obtained from samples collected at known Old Kingdom sites A. Puchkov 4 Сходознавство, 2023, № 91 thereby aligning archaeological physical with archaeoastronomical evidence. The Egyptian chronology serves as a standard reference to establish chronologies in the entire ancient Near East of the 3 rd millennium BCE. Therefore, the revised chronology based on the findings presented here warrants a fresh look at the historical timelines of other ancient civilizations contemporary with Ancient Egypt.
В епоху пірамід єгиптяни спорудили деякі з найбільш знакових пам’ятників у світі, але їх метод вирівнювання та точні дати будівництва залишаються предметом суперечок. Ця стаття представляє нові археоастрономічні докази, які пояснюють як нібито нерегулярну орієнтацію пірамід Давнього царства, так і пропонують нове вирішення проблеми датування. Аналіз вирівнювання пірамід, побудованих під час 3–6 династій, показує, що вони були орієнтовані не на північ, як передбачається однією з панівних сучасних моделей, а на видатні зірки в північному циркумполярному регіоні. Чітка закономірність виявляється, коли залежне від часу положення цих зірок порівнюється з орієнтацією ряду пірамід, вирівнювання яких відомо. Шаблон пояснює всі наявні азимутальні дані пірамід від Джосера до Унаса та передбачає більш давні дати будівництва цих споруд із похибкою, що не перевищує п’ять років. Підсумовуючи, вік Давнього царства приблизно на два століття старший, ніж традиційно вважається згідно з наявними текстовими реконструкціями єгипетської хронології. Ці результати є сумісними з радіовуглецевими даними, отриманими зі зразків, зібраних у відомих спорудах Давнього царства, таким чином узгоджуючи археологічні дані з археоастрономічними доказами. Єгипетська хронологія служить стандартом для встановлення регіональних хронологій на всьому стародавньому Близькому Сході III тис. до н. е., отже, переглянута хронологія, заснована на представлених тут висновках, вимагає нового погляду на історичні шкали інших цивілізацій, сучасних Стародавньому Єгипту.
‘Skyscapes’ will focus on expounding the best and most spectacular results obtained by the Egyptian-Spanish Mission on ‘Archaeoastronomy of Ancient Egypt’ in the 2000s, upgraded and updated by the authors’ own research in the field over the last decade. A series of case studies on the most important pyramid complexes and great temples of Egypt will be examined. An excursus to ancient Kush will also be discussed. The interaction between Egyptian sacred landscapes, using the Nile as a paradigm, and solar, lunar and stellar skyscapes will be emphasized.
‘Chronology’ discusses the different chronological approaches that have traditionally been proposed for the history of ancient Egypt. These are contrasted with the most recent and contradictory analyses on the topic. The peculiarities of each of these proposals, along with their advantages and disadvantages will be debated. Astronomical dating is confronted with its nemesis, C14 dating. This is a fascinating but convoluted topic that certain will awake the most challenging debates.
Although the Nile played an important economic and ritual role for the Kushite pharaohs of the 25th dynasty in Egypt, this applies much less to the area south of the 1st cataract. The Nile with its cataracts and particular the north-south course between Abu Hamed and ed Debba is in Kush less an axis of communication but rather a border that is difficult to cross. This situation was one of the factors that promoted the ruling system as a “segmentary state”. But the ritual character was also much weaker in Kush: The Meroitic temples are mostly oriented away from the Nile towards the southeast, which suggests that the connection to the Nile was not important for the cult practice.
The ancient Egyptian pyramids at Giza have never been accurately dated, although we know that they were built approximately around the middle of the third millennium BC. The chronologies of this period have been reconstructed from surviving lists of kings and the lengths of their reigns, but the lists are rare, seldom complete and contain known inconsistencies and errors. As a result, the existing chronologies for that period (the Old Kingdom) can be considered accurate only to about +/-100 years, a figure that radiocarbon dating cannot at present improve. Here I use trends in the orientation of Old Kingdom pyramids to demonstrate that the Egyptians aligned them to north by using the simultaneous transit of two circumpolar stars. Modelling the precession of these stars yields a date for the start of construction of the Great Pyramid that is accurate to +/-5 yr, thereby providing an anchor for the Old Kingdom chronologies.
Cairo, 1943), 15. The paragraph is mentioned by
- See Varille
Curiously, unlike the other examples, this very recent result has already been widely admitted by Egyptologists
- Vörös