This is Egypt in North Africa and one of the most famous natural landmarks is the River
Nile, shown in Blue to the south of the country.
However, dotting the length of the river, as you can see in brown, are some of the most
iconic relics of ancient people; pyramids!
In fact, due to these remains of eras past, you can call Egypt the land of the pyramids!
However, pyramids are not the only ancient things to be found in Egypt, as scientists
have kept on unearthing new discoveries, some scary!
In this video, we bring you terrifying new discoveries made by scientists
in Egypt that change everything!
Egypt, the Gift of Nile, one of the oldest civilizations in human history!
It left behind numerous monuments, documents, and works of
art that continue to be pored over by scholars today!
And while the civilization's rulers, language, writing, climate, religion,
and borders have changed many times over the millennia, Egypt still exists as a
fascinating modern-day country!
Ancient Egypt had a close connection with other parts of the world, as the people
imported and exported goods, religions, food, and ideas.
At times ancient Egypt ruled territory outside the modern-day country's
border, controlling territory in what is now Sudan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, and
Palestine!
But despite being a world power at a point, the country was also occupied
by other powers in ancient times, including the
Persians, Nubians, Greeks, and Romans all conquered Egypt at different points!
Also, Egypt has been known by multiple names!
One of the most popular is Kemet, an ancient name that means the "black land."
Scholars generally believe that this name derived from the fertile soil that was leftover
when the Nile flood receded in August, rather than the skin color of the occupants!
The country's ancient rulers are referred to today as "pharaohs," a name adopted by
the national soccer team of the country.
The word pharaoh originates from the Egyptian term "per-aa," which means "the Great House.”
The term was first incorporated into a royal title during the rule of Thutmose III
who reigned circa. 1479 to 1425 B.C!
Scientists do not know precisely when early hominids first arrived in Egypt.
But the earliest migration of hominids out of Africa
occurred almost 2 million years ago, with modern humans dispersing out of Africa only
about 100,000 years ago.
Egypt may have been used to reach Asia in some of these migrations!
Also up for debate is how and when ancient Egypt was united into one kingdom
but one possibility is that a number of smaller states coalesced into two kingdoms,
Upper and Lower Egypt, and then these two kingdoms united.
The theory is supported by artwork showing pharaohs wearing
two crowns; one for Lower Egypt and another for Upper Egypt!
The ages of the pharaohs have long gone in Egypt but these
monarchs have been divided into 30 or 31 dynasties which are grouped into several periods.
The earliest Egyptian inscriptions date back about 5,200 years and were written in a
hieroglyphic script.
It was a living oral language, and most hieroglyphs represent the
sounds of consonants and certain emphatically expressed vowels.
Thanks to the deciphering of these hieroglyphs, we have
been able to understand some discoveries made from this North African country!
That, however, does not mean scientists have been able to understand or explain
everything they have discovered.
Some findings remain not only unexplainable but
scary, as you will soon see in this video!
One of the findings that keep baffling archaeologists is the hidden chamber in the
pyramid of Giza.
Imagine renting an apartment and finding a room inside one of the
rooms.
You would be curious about the purpose, won’t you?
Egyptian pyramids are some of the most magnificent man-made structures in history.
Their massive sizes reflect the importance of the pharaohs in ancient Egyptian society.
They were placed somewhere in between human and divine and were believed to have
been chosen by the gods themselves to serve as their mediators on earth.
In fact, the pyramids were so tied to the kings that the
pyramid's smooth, angled sides symbolized the rays of the sun and were designed to help
the king's soul ascend to heaven and join the gods, especially the sun god Ra!
What was the purpose of the pyramids?
Ancient Egyptians believed that when the king died, part of his spirit, known as “ka”,
remained with his body.
The people wanted to properly care for the king’s spirit, so
his corpse was mummified, and everything he would need in the afterlife was buried with
him, including all the trappings of royalty like
gold vessels, food, furniture, and other offerings.
Though pyramids were built from the beginning of the Old Kingdom to the close of the
Ptolemaic period in the fourth century A.D., the pyramid construction reached its peak
in the late third dynasty and continued until
about the sixth, circa 2325 B.C.
One of the most popular pyramids is the Giza pyramid.
It is believed to be the tomb of one of the earliest pharaohs of Egypt, King
Khufu, and stands 140 meters high and 230 meters long.
The Giza pyramid contains three main chambers that we know about: the
King's Chamber, the Queen's Chamber, and an underground chamber that appears
unfinished.
There's also a 47-meter long corridor leading to the King's Chamber called
the Grand Gallery.
Scientists set out to check the internal structure of a pyramid to see if there are any
previously unknown rooms, cavities, holes, corridors, or whatever that have not been
discovered.
They used a method known as cosmic muography and what they found
raised more questions than answers, including some areas conspicuously empty in
what should have been solid rocks!
They discovered a Big Void, estimated to be between 30 and 40 meters in length.
What puzzled the scientists was the purpose of
this secret chamber that is located in an obviously special plane!
Suggestions include it contains another tomb or even gold!
One reason the scientists were fascinated was
that the Giza pyramid is basically devoid of
things that people were often buried with, although that might have been due to the
actions of graver robbers.
But apparently, they couldn’t touch the Big Void, so whatever
it originally contained must be intact!
That’s not all the mysteries scientists have found in ancient Egypt and the next one
is not stuff for the faint of heart!
How about some macabre mummy juice?
It all started when workmen found a black granite tomb 16
feet underground during the construction of an apartment building in the historic Mediterranean
port city.
The burial chamber was over 2,000 years old and quickly became an
internet sensation!
Horrifying images of a trio of skeletons floating in the murky soup
led to rumors that the mummy juice contained medicinal or supernatural properties,
with locals anxious to make a quick buck bottling and selling the stuff!
Others feared its odd coloring signified the presence
of a metal such as mercury!
The large, black granite sarcophagus was unearthed cracked open despite fears that
doing so would unleash an ancient curse!
Also, many people speculated it could have contained the remains of Alexander the Great
who founded the city but the general secretary of the Supreme Council of Antiquities,
Dr. Moustafa Waziri, quickly killed the idea, saying instead it may have belonged
to a priest!
But then, the discovery of possible arrow damage to one of the skulls
means the bones probably belonged to military officials, according to a statement
released by Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities.
So what was this mummy juice?
Did it really have supernatural connotations?
Disappointingly, no!
Authorities revealed the liquid was neither juice for mummies that
contains an elixir of life nor red mercury but something far more pedestrian and less
appealing; sewage water!
Waziri said the skeletons had partially disintegrated because
sewage water from a nearby building had leaked into the sarcophagus through a small
crack in one side!
What about the curses that come with opening ancient coffins?
Either they were just rumors or this particular coffin had no curses
to offer because Waziri said he was the first to put his head inside the sarcophagus
and apparently nothing had happened to him!
Now, you would think light bulbs were modern inventions, right?
However, some findings in Egypt suggest our some of our
ancestors had such light-producing devices!
Let’s hop over to the ancient city of Dendera.
You see, ancient Egyptians liked to decorate their walls and they often used reliefs
showing inscriptions.
It is one of such that has given us ideas that ancient Egyptians
knew about light bulbs!
Beneath the Temple of Hathor at Dendera are inscriptions depicting a bulb-like object
which some have suggested is reminiscent of a “Crookes tube,” an early light bulb!
Inside the bulbs is a wavy line from what resembles a lotus flower that could have been
the socket of the bulb.
Completing the image is what looks like a wire leading to a small
box on which the air god is kneeling.
Other details include a two-armed djed pillar, which is connected to the wavy line, and a
baboon bearing two knives!
In “The Eyes of the Sphinx”, Erich Von Daniken suggested that the snake represented
the filament, the djed pillar was an insulator, and the tube was in fact an ancient electric
light bulb!
The baboon was apparently a warning that the device could be dangerous if
not used correctly!
It is easy to see the comparisons between this object depicted in Dendera and a light
bulb but was it really a light-producing device?
While there have been many theories and controversies, here is what Sylvie Caulville,
who worked extensively on the inscriptions in this temple suggested;
The carvings depict Hor-sema-tawy as a serpent, a falcon, and as a child.
According to one myth, Ihy sprung into existence out of
a lotus flower that blossomed in the watery abyss of Nun at dawn at the beginning of every
year.
It is therefore suggested by some that the light bulb is in fact a lotus flower
bulb, mythologically giving birth to the god.
Another panel shows the bulb opening into a lotus blossom and the snake, the wavy
line, standing erect in the center as a representation of the god Ihy.
On the southern wall of the last room, a falcon, preceded
by a snake emerges from a lotus blossom within a boat!
While the exact meaning of the Dendera light has not been established, it is worth
noting that archaeologists have not found any unambiguous electrical artifacts, much
fewer light bulbs, in the thousands of ancient sites throughout Egypt!
Let’s hear what mystery of ancient Egypt you like most in the comment section!