M.J. Rose

The Emerald Tablet. Have you heard of it? This enigmatic object has many presumed sources – one of which is the the city of Atlantis itself. Other possible associations include the Ark of the Covenant, the tomb of Hermes, and the Medieval and Renaissance era alchemical texts…

The Legendary Emerald Tablet

(Ancient Origins)

“The origins of Western alchemy can be traced back to Hellenistic Egypt, in particular to the city of Alexandria. One of the most important characters in the mythology of alchemy is Hermes Trismegistus (Hermes the Thrice-Great). The name of this figure is derived from the Egyptian god of wisdom, Thoth and his Greek counterpart, Hermes. The Hermetica, which is said to be written by Hermes Trismegistus, is generally regarded as the basis of Western alchemical philosophy and practice. In addition, Hermes Trismegistus is also believed to be the author of the Emerald Tablet.

The Emerald Tablet is said to be a tablet of emerald or green stone inscribed with the secrets of the universe. The source of the original Emerald Tablet is unclear, hence it is surrounded by legends. The most common legend claims that the tablet was found in a caved tomb under the statue of Hermes in Tyana, clutched in the hands of the corpse of Hermes Trismegistus himself. Another legend suggests that it was the third son of Adam and Eve, Seth, who originally wrote it. Others believed that the tablet was once held within the Ark of the Covenant”…

See the rest here.

The tomb art tells all — Why hadn’t we thought before to just look at the art…

Scientists Have an Answer to how the Egyptian Pyramids Were Built

By James MacDonald

“Using sand, water, and a scale model of an ancient Egyptian transport sled, a team of Dutch engineers have answered an enduring question: “How on Earth were the pyramids of Egypt built?” The ancient Egyptians had neither wheels nor work animals, so the giant blocks, each weighing at least 2.5 tons, had to be moved through human muscle power alone. But until recently, nobody really knew how. The answer, it turns out, is simply water. Evidence suggests that the blocks were first levered onto wooden sleds and then hauled up ramps made of sand. However, dry sand piles up in front of a moving sled, increasing friction until the sled is nearly impossible to pull. Wet sand reduces friction dramatically beneath the sled runners, eliminating the sand piles and making it possible for a team of people to move massive objects.

The key, as the Dutch team proved, is getting the water-to-sand ratio just right; too much water and the sled bogs down. Despite the seemingly obvious answer—tomb art discovered in the 19th century depicts laborers pouring water in front of a block-hauling team—debate over how the pyramids were built is almost as ancient as the pyramids themselves. A 1956 article in the journal Archaeology describes how speculation about construction methods dates back to ancient Greece and continues unabated. A quick search of the JSTOR archives reveals thousands of articles on the topic, with many focused on the use of rollers or even cranes to haul the blocks. A 2003 article in the journal Technology and Culture does pursue the water-as-lubricant hypothesis, providing some theoretical physical calculations but without providing much supporting evidence beyond the tomb art…”

For the complete article click here.

An archaeological mystery may be solved at last…

“Unless an ancient legend is true, that Ptolemy swapped a dummy Alexander for the real one, the greatest corpse in the ancient world is already accounted for (at least until its unexplained disappearance many centuries later).”

Is This Alexander the Great’s Tomb?

(The Daily Beast)

“One of biggest mysteries of modern archaeology might be solved in the coming days—and all eyes are on a huge circular structure that lies beneath an ancient Greek mound.

Its entrances are guarded first by a pair of sphinxes, then by columns in the form of women—each stretching out an arm to ward off intruders. Beyond them lies one of the greatest mysteries of modern archaeology, one that might be solved in the next few days—or might trouble the sleep of scholars for decades, as the last great find in the territory of the ancient Macedonians, the nation once ruled by Alexander the Great, has done.

The structure that now holds much of Greece and Hellenists around the world in suspense stands at the site of ancient Amphipolis, about a hundred miles east of Thessalonica, on territory conquered by Alexander’s father Philip in the 4th century B.C. Amphipolis was a major Greek city and a stronghold of the vast Macedonian empire, but today the site is all but deserted. On grasslands where goatherds graze their flocks, under a hill called Kasta—now protected by a military cordon from throngs of onlookers—lies one of the most puzzling finds ever unearthed in the Aegean region…”

For the complete piece, click here.