Tea at Trianon: The Great Pyramid's Pyramidion

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Sunday, May 24, 2020

The Great Pyramid's Pyramidion

From Curiosmos:

According to the history of ancient Egypt, the largest, most impressive pyramid in the history of Egypt was erected by Fourth Dynasty King Khufu, around 4,500 years ago. It is believed that the Fourth Dynasty ruler commissioned the Great Pyramid as his eternal resting place. The suggestion that Khufu is the one who built the pyramid comes mostly from “gang marks” deep within the pyramid’s chambers and openings, which make reference to Khufu. Other than that, there aren’t any historical records dating back to around 4,500 years ago, which mention how, why, and when the pyramid was built. In fact, the only completely preserved portrait of Pharaoh Khufu is a three-inch high ivory figurine that was discovered during archeological excavations in a temple ruin of a later period at Abydos in 1903. Most of what we do know about the Great Pyramid of Giza is archaeological guesswork.

Of course, archaeological survey of the pyramid in the 19th century revealed a plethora of information we previously had no idea of. The first precision measures of the pyramid were made by Sir Flinders Petrie between 1880 and 1882, and published in his book “The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh.” This fieldwork revealed a great deal of information about the pyramid and its mind-boggling precision. It was found that any of the casing stones and inner chamber blocks of the Great Pyramid fit together with remarkably high precision.

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When the pyramid was completed, around 4,500 years ago, it was cased by highly polished white Tura limestone, which made the pyramid shine as bright as a star when the suns’ rays impacted the pyramid. But what was located on its very summit? Did the Great Pyramid of Giza have a golden capstone located on its top as we have been led to believe through many history books and illustrations of the pyramid? Was the pyramid even pointy towards its top? (Read more.)