Ancient Skies - Vol 21 No 2 - 1994

Magazine Overview

Title: ANCIENT SKIES
Issue: Volume 21, Number 2
Date: May-June, 1994
Publisher: Ancient Astronaut Society
Country: USA
Theme: Exploration of ancient mysteries through the lens of ancient astronaut theories.

The Great Pyramid Reveals Its Age

This article by Alan F. Alford explores the controversial "Orion Correlation Theory" proposed by Robert Bauval and Adrian Gilbert. Since April 1993, when Rudolf Gantenbrink explored the southern shaft of the Queen's Chamber, new attention has been paid to the precise measurements of the pyramid's shafts. Bauval's research indicates that the shafts align with stars: the southern shaft of the Queen's Chamber with Sirius, and the northern shaft of the King's Chamber with Alpha Draconis and the lowest star in Orion's Belt. This led to the theory that the three pyramids at Giza are a replica of Orion's Belt, mirroring the heavens, with the Nile resembling the Milky Way.

Bauval and Gilbert suggest two key dates: 2,450 BC for the construction of the Great Pyramid, aligning with the star shafts, and 10,450 BC for the layout of the three pyramids, commemorating an event. They link this latter date to Plato's Atlantis stories, dated to 10,400 BC. The authors acknowledge this conflicts with Egyptologists' dating but speculate a connection to a golden age ruled by gods, as mentioned in Egyptian lore.

Alford raises questions about the assumption that the Great Pyramid was built by Khufu, noting that the "graffiti" evidence is considered a forgery. He points out that the Great Pyramid is unique in having a perfect angle of 52 degrees, a fact not mentioned by Bauval and Gilbert. Alford suggests that the astronomical alignments could indicate other dates besides 2,450 BC, such as 28,370 BC, 54,290 BC, or even 36,370 BC and 62,290 BC for the pyramid layout. He hypothesizes that Bauval and Gilbert may have reversed the dates, with the layout commemorating a past event and the construction date being older.

Alford references Zecharia Sitchin's theories, which place the building of the Giza Pyramids by gods immediately after the Deluge, around 11,000 BC, as part of a new landing grid. Sitchin's dating of the Deluge is based on the end of the last ice age around 12,000 to 13,000 years ago. The article also notes that psychics Ruth Montgomery and Edgar Cayce independently suggested the Great Pyramid was built around 10,000 BC.

Testing his hypothesis, Alford found that working backward from 2,450 BC, 17 precessional cycles of 25,920 years lead to the date 443,090 BC. This, he argues, provides corroboration for Sitchin's timetable of events related to the gods' arrival 445,000 years ago. The pyramid layout also supports the dating of the Deluge and the pyramids to approximately 10,450 BC.

The article also invokes evidence for the Sphinx being older than its accepted date, citing geological observations of erosion patterns inconsistent with Egypt's dry climate since 2,450 BC, suggesting an age of 9,000 to 12,000 years. Zahi Hawass, curator of the Sphinx and Pyramids, dismisses this due to a lack of architectural or textual evidence, but the article counters by asking how much evidence is needed to prove the ancient Egyptian claim of rule by gods.

Rudolf Gantenbrink is expected to return to the Great Pyramid to explore the north shaft of the Queen's Chamber and assist in opening a secret chamber, potentially revealing the "Books of Thoth." The article concludes by drawing a parallel with the delayed translation of the Dead Sea Scrolls, suggesting a similar long wait for public access to any discoveries.

Comments on the Great Pyramid by Ted Powell

Ted Powell responds to Erich von Daniken's article, asserting that the Great Pyramid was not commissioned by Cheops but appropriated by him. Powell dates its construction to 10,495 to 10,595 BC, stating its concept was beyond Egyptian capability. He claims Egyptologists are wrong and that water-sealed crypts within the pyramid contain records of Mu and Atlantis, along with artifacts and design data from its architect (Thoth) and initiator (Ra-Ta). Powell suggests "Hermes" was an alien from a distant star system.

He argues that the King's and Queen's Chambers were named centuries after construction. Powell also claims that hidden crypts can be detected by sonar and seismographic equipment, and that some Egyptologists may have ulterior motives. He refutes the statement that no structural metal was found, citing the discovery of a malleable iron bracket support and copper tools hardened with arsenic or antimony in the 1870s-1880s.

Powell posits the existence of crypts 246 feet below the pyramid's base containing Atlantean measuring instruments, power tools, machinery, lasers, and a firestone power plant. He describes the pyramid's design as alien and states that 100,000 Egyptians, guided by Atlantean engineers, erected the Great Causeway in 20 years. He believes the Arabs dismantled the causeway and casing stones for building materials after an earthquake in Cairo in the 1300s AD.

Powell estimates that 360,000 Egyptians, with Atlantean guidance, took 100 years to construct the Great Pyramid, held together by forces beyond current understanding, possibly E.S. crystal energy. He questions how a technically primitive nation with a small population could achieve this.

Powell asserts that the Sphinx predates the Great Pyramid and is not an image of Cheops, but a "monument to humanity" and the "god within," an Atlantean religious symbol. He suggests the pyramid's construction date can be precisely determined using astronomical alignments, specifically pointing to the central Pleiades Cluster Star and the Pole Star (Alpha Draconis) via its vertical apex axis and north-slanted tunnel axis.

The Pyramid Inch by Maurice Chatelain

Maurice Chatelain discusses the concept of a "Pyramid Inch," which British Egyptologists claimed was slightly longer than the British Inch. He initially doubted its existence but found evidence supporting it. Chatelain notes that recent earthquakes (Thera volcano in 1626 BC and one in 1992) and the removal of casing stones have altered the pyramid's dimensions. He provides current base lengths measured by André Pochan and others.

Chatelain uses the ratio of 14/11 and the PI factor of 22/7 to calculate the pyramid's height. He references ancient writers who stated the platform's perimeter was 1/43200 of the Earth's polar circumference, or 925.925 m. He also mentions a geographic nautical mile and a base length of 231.48125 m. The platform's thickness is estimated at a royal cubit of 525 mm.

The perimeter of the pyramid above its platform is derived from a geographic length of 110,880 m, representing a longitude degree at a latitude of five degrees or a latitude degree at 32 degrees, suggesting the pyramid's original location before a polar shift over 12,000 years ago. Traces of the Great Flood were visible on its faces 1,000 years ago.

Chatelain connects the length of 110,880 m to 60 land miles of 1848 m, each representing 6000 feet of 308 mm, a unit also used by the Greeks. He notes that this land mile was used for prehistoric designs like the Maltese Cross and a map of the Earth showing an ice-free Antarctic.

He presents three possibilities for the Pyramid Inch: 25.0000 mm (too short), 25.4645 mm (not an exact fraction of known dimensions), and 25.6666 mm. The latter, though seemingly too long, fits into the polar circumference and other dimensions, including astronomical numbers of days (347, 354, 364, 360, 370, 378). He lists eleven other dimensions in inches that sum to 12,000 inches, or 1000 feet, or 308 meters, or 1/6 of a land mile.

Chatelain calculates the dihedral angle of the pyramid's edges, finding it to be 112.4392396 degrees. He provides a table (Figure 1) showing various dimensions and angles of the Great Pyramid in meters, inches, feet, and degrees.

Comments on the Tunguska Explosion Revisited

Chris Lock comments on a previous article about the Tunguska explosion, accepting the possibility of a nuclear-powered spacecraft exploding. However, he suggests alternative conclusions: the spacecraft might not have been nuclear-powered but used matter-antimatter systems that malfunctioned, causing an atomic or nuclear explosion. Lock questions the necessity of nuclear power for space travel and notes that released documents about crash-landed spacecraft do not report nuclear explosions. He also finds it difficult to imagine an advanced civilization using such an ecological power system and proposes that the explosion could have been caused by a nuclear missile rather than a spacecraft.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue revolve around challenging conventional Egyptology and archaeology with ancient astronaut theories. The articles emphasize the possibility of advanced ancient civilizations, extraterrestrial influence, and hidden knowledge within ancient structures like the Great Pyramid and the Sphinx. The editorial stance appears to favor speculative interpretations that align with ancient astronaut hypotheses, often citing authors like Zecharia Sitchin and Erich von Daniken, and questioning established scientific and historical timelines. There is a strong undercurrent of belief in a lost history involving gods, aliens, and advanced technology predating known human civilization.