Sunday, February 26, 2006

Ramses II Statues Found in Egypt.

Statues, perhaps of Egyptian Pharoah Ramses II, have been uncovered at a site close to Cairo according to an announcement made today. Yahoo News Rueters excerpt:

CAIRO (Reuters) - Statues weighing up to five tonnes and thought to be of one of ancient Egypt's greatest pharaohs, Ramses II, have been found northeast of Cairo, Egypt's Supreme Antiquities Council said in a statement on Sunday.

Ramses II ruled Egypt from 1304 to 1237 BC, and presided over an era of great military expansion, erecting statues and temples to himself all over Egypt. He is traditionally believed to be the pharaoh mentioned in the biblical story of Moses.

"Many parts of red granite statues were found, the most important of which had features close to Ramses II ... The statue needs some restoration and weighs between four and five tonnes," the statement quoted the Council's Zahi Hawass as saying. A royal head weighing two to three tonnes and a seated 5.1 meter (16.7 foot) statue were also found, with cartouches, or royal name signs, of Ramses II on the side of the seated statue.

The discoveries were made at a sun temple northeast of Cairo in ancient Heliopolis, a region known in ancient times for sun worship and where the Council says a calendar based on the solar year was invented.

There seems to be no end to the wonders of that magnificent civilization to be found in the desert sands. How many more fantastic items wait to be unearthed in this region of the world? There are many theories about the various artifacts that have been found, some of which point to an even older and more advanced civilization than previously thought. I don't have the time or space to address all of these in this post, but will attempt to do so in upcoming posts.

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