Bridging the Great Divide

Could bridging the divide between mainstream Egyptology and the 'Pseuds' open a new window on our understanding of ancient Egypt?

The study of ancient Egypt has long been divided between mainstream Egyptology and alternative narratives. Mainstream Egyptology relies on rigorous academic research. It examines the archaeological or material evidence left behind by people in the past and uses established historical methodologies to interpret Egypt's history. For example, archaeologists use stratigraphic excavation or digging in layers (strata) to interrogate the data or archaeological sites. Then, they document the chronological sequence of layers, structures and artefacts. Using the retrieved data, they built up a time-related sequence of events that helps explain the site's history and the people who lived there. For example, excavations at Amarna City show that there was no settlement on the site before the reign of the heretic king Akhenaten and no settlement after the end of his reign.

From this, we can say for sure that Amarna City was Akhenaten's new capital and was abandoned when his reign ended in c.1336 BC. We can also deduce that his new religion was unpopular because his successors did not maintain the site. There is significant evidence that many of the buildings were deliberately demolished soon after Akhenaten's death.

Picture Credit: Wikipedia. Relief depicting Akhenaton and Nefertiti with three of their daughters under the rays of Aten.

Egyptologists also use epigraphic analysis, studying inscriptions on monuments such as temple inscriptions, like those at Karnak and Edfu. Inscriptions like these reveal detailed records of pharaohs' conquests, religious rituals, and political alliances. They offer insights into ancient Egyptians' chronology, governance, and daily lives.

In contrast, Alternative narratives often explore themes that fall outside the purview of conventional scholarship. These include theories about advanced ancient technologies, such as the notion that the Great Pyramid of Giza was once a power plant generating electricity to power giant light bulbs; theories about extraterrestrial beings that somehow imparted their knowledge and skills to the primitive people of the Nile Valley so they could build pyramid-shaped power plants (presumably) and mystical interpretations of ancient Egyptian symbols and architecture to prove that people who lived in mud huts understood ‘advanced mathematics’ ‘before their time’ (whatever that means).

Picture Credit: Met Museum New York. At Rifa in middle Egypt, the British excavator William Flinders Petrie found clay models of houses such as this placed near burials in such a way that he concluded they had been placed above the burials. He called them "soul houses."

The problem for the mainstream is that the 'alternatives' tap into their readers' desire for mystery and wonder, and their interest in ancient mystical religions and Egyptologists is really bad or even antagonistic toward anything related to mystery, wonder, and the metaphysical. Since the early 1970s, alternative and pseudo-archaeological theories have dominated popular Egyptology, and this enrages many in the profession who believe they have all the answers. Erich von Däniken's Chariots of the Gods? (1968) kicked the latest bout of wonder lust. It proposed that extraterrestrial visitors influenced ancient civilisations, was an international bestseller and has captivated the public imagination for over 50 years.

The proliferation of pseudo-archaeological claims like von Daniken's compelled many Egyptologists to debunk them with science. The trouble was that, at the same time, they reinforced their logical positivist mindset and further alienated their potential readership.

In another example, alternative Egyptologist John Anthony West and geologist Robert Schoch suggested that the Great Sphinx of Giza showed signs of water erosion, indicating a much earlier construction date than traditionally accepted by the mainstream. This hypothesis was met with scepticism from mainstream scholars, who argued that the evidence did not support such conclusions. Engaging with these claims led to more detailed studies by prominent American archaeologist Mark Lehner. His Ph.D. dissertation, "Archaeology of an Image: The Great Sphinx of Giza," completed at Yale University in 1991, discusses various aspects of the Sphinx's history and significance but never really pins down why the ancient Egyptians built such a vast monument or what it was for. (The Great Sphinx is 240 feet (73 meters) long and 66 feet (20 meters) high and displays the face of Khafre, the son of Khufu, builder of the Great Pyramid).

According to the mainstream, the Sphinx's human head may represent Pharaoh Khafre and its lion body symbolises royalty and strength. Or it might represent Khafre as the god Horus, the falcon god, presenting offerings to his father, the sun god Ra, represented by Khufu. In Egyptian mythology, the sphinx is assumed to be a guardian figure that watches over temples and tombs. So the Great Sphinx is described as a symbol of the sun god and embodies the god Harmakhet, who links the sun god Ra with the horizon and symbolises wisdom and protection.

That’s clear then - so let’s assume the ancient Egyptians spent however many years of sweat and human toil building a vast monument to confusion and think the public will go with it.

A more positive example of ‘Bridging the Divide’ comes from the trail of events begun by ‘alternative’ Egyptologists Adrian Gilbert and Robert Bauval.

British astronomer Kate Spence and Italian Archeo-Astronomer Juan Antonio Belmonte, a researcher at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, have followed 'alternative' authors Adrian Gilbert and Robert Bauval's lead in 'The Orion Mystery (1993)' The Egypt Code (2006)' and worked on the alignment of the Giza pyramids using constellations. Responding to Spence's 2001 article in the journal Nature claiming Egypt's pyramid builders found true north using a plumb line: when the stars Kochab and Mizar were seen on the same vertical, one was facing north. Belmonte suggests that the Great Pyramid's precise orientation could have been achieved through meridian transit observations of the stars Phecda and Megrez, belonging to the Leg of the Bull, one of the most important Egyptian constellations (equivalent to our Plough in the constellation Ursa Major). Extending the line joining these two stars leads us to Thuban (the "pole star" at that time) in the same way that the two stars Merak and Dubhe today act as pointers to the present Pole Star, Polaris.

Picture Credit: Wikipedia. Correlation between the Great Pyramids of Giza and Orion's Belt, shortly before sunrise on the spring equinox in 10,500 BC, as Robert Bauval and Graham Hancock proposed. (After Horizon - Atlantis Reborn Again - BBC).

Giulio Magli, Faculty Member at the Architettura Civile, Politecnico di Milano, goes further still in Akhet Khufu: archaeo-astronomical hints at a typical project of the two main pyramids of Giza, Egypt (2007) writing the pathways of symbolic thought and the perception of sacred space often follow similar patterns across cultures, even those separated by time and geography. Mircea Eliade's work (e.g., Eliade 1971) highlights this universality. An intriguing comparison can be drawn between the Pyramid of Khufu at Giza, constructed over 4,500 years ago, and the Temple of Inscriptions in Palenque, built 3,300 years later by the Maya civilisation in present-day Mexico. Despite their cultural and chronological separation, these monuments exhibit strikingly similar symbolic mechanisms that can deepen our understanding of ancient architectural and spiritual motivations.

The Temple of Inscriptions, the tomb of the great Maya ruler Pacal, embodies the Maya worldview. Built as a nine-step pyramid, it symbolises the nine levels of Xibalba, the Maya underworld. A staircase connects the upper temple to Pacal's tomb, sealed after his burial. Alongside this staircase is a small conduit, a "psycoduct," designed to allow Pacal's soul to communicate with the living, especially his son and successor, Chan Balam. Inscriptions within the temple depict Pacal as the Maize God, descending into the underworld at death but destined to be reborn, mirroring the sun's renewal at the winter solstice—a critical event for agricultural societies.

The temple's design reinforces this symbolism: at sunset on the winter solstice, the sun appears to "plunge" into the structure, aligning with the tomb's descending staircase. This celestial connection underscores Pacal's role in ensuring cosmic order and renewal, reflecting a deliberate integration of architecture, astronomy, and sacred kingship.

This approach resonates with the symbolic complexity of Khufu's Pyramid at Giza, also known as Akhet Khufu, or "Horizon of Khufu." Inscriptions dating 200 years after its construction confirm this name, linking the pyramid with the horizon and the solar cycle. The Giza complex embodies a similar interplay of architectural design, celestial alignments, and symbolic meaning. The positioning of the pyramids appears to create a hierophany—a sacred manifestation—where the king's soul unites with the sun, a belief reflected in the later Pyramid Texts (e.g., Faulkner 1998).

Both monuments were consciously designed to embody the ruler's rebirth and the perpetuation of cosmic harmony. Just as Pacal's temple explicitly aligns with the winter solstice, Khufu's pyramid may be tied to the summer solstice, which coincides with the annual flooding of the Nile—essential for Egypt's agricultural renewal. The Giza complex, visible for miles, served as a constant reminder that Khufu's soul was eternal and joined with the sun, a message encoded in the monumental architecture.

While absolute proof of these interpretations remains elusive, these comparisons reveal a shared human tendency to intertwine celestial cycles, architecture, and the divine in expressions of power and eternity. Whether through deliberate planning by Khufu or a continuation of earlier traditions by Khafra, the Giza pyramids embody the sacred horizon, much as the Temple of Inscriptions manifests the sacred mountain of Pacal.

However, looking to the Mayans for answers to questions about ancient Egypt is unnecessary. One has to look at the thousands of presently inexplicable numbers that appear in Egyptian mythology, in the measurements of their buildings (using the units they used, not modern scientific units) and the numbers that occur in their papyri for answers. Sacred or cosmological numbers are an underused resource in Egyptology. All the great religions of the world have cosmological aspects to them. In some cases, these cosmologies developed into formal metaphysical systems such as Platonism, Neo-platonism, Gnosticism, Daoism, and Kabbalah or the great chain of being. Our research points to Egypt being no different, and indeed, using numbers to describe the cosmos and metaphysical phenomena may be what the Hebrews and the Greeks learned in Egypt, making Egypt the foundation for the development of two of the world's great religions - Judaism and Christianity.

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