home Schengen Who built the Egyptian pyramids. Egyptian pyramids - who really built them? Alien civilization Who built the pyramids for the Egyptians

Who built the Egyptian pyramids. Egyptian pyramids - who really built them? Alien civilization Who built the pyramids for the Egyptians

Time is afraid of pyramids. They never shared their secrets. The scale of this construction is amazing. According to supporters of the Laboratory alternative history, the Egyptians could not build. In their opinion, the pyramids could have been built by anyone: Atlanteans, representatives of extraterrestrial civilizations, representatives of other peoples, but not the Egyptians themselves. This very strange thesis is largely based on the fact that the Egyptians did not have advanced technologies that would have allowed them to begin processing highly hard stones, lifting heavy weights, and the like.

Many of early pyramids were built quite crudely. They are made of small stone blocks and are imperfect in terms of installation. These pyramids are incomparable in their beauty to those that stand, say, in the Giza Necropolis. And here many supporters of the Alternative History Laboratory resort to deception: they convince us that the more advanced pyramids are the very first ones. And less perfect ones were built by the Egyptians. That is, it turns out to be a fitting of facts.

Today it is very difficult for us to imagine an era that is several thousand years ago. And therefore, many people who grew up in the age of modern technology cannot imagine life without iron, without machines, cannot understand how people who did not have all this could build such impressive structures.

What is the main argument that the Egyptians built their pyramids? The fact is that they did not come to this right away. First there was the thousand-year era of the Stone Age, during which the Egyptians learned to simply process stone. But as for the methods of delivering stone to the construction site, another question arises.

You need to understand that the largest pyramids are built surprisingly harmoniously and correctly. The largest blocks were laid at the base, meaning they did not need to be raised to a significant height. And closer to the top there are smaller blocks. Thus, builders saved their time and resources. They understood perfectly well that large blocks cannot be lifted to great heights; this requires very significant efforts of many thousands of people. According to the drawings found in the tombs, large weights were usually dragged by people or bulls; the Egyptians had no other force. Therefore, we can conclude: it was very important for the Egyptians that the spirit of the nation was embodied in these pyramids, so that they could thus declare themselves in history, that in this grandiose construction they could accumulate all their knowledge.

The Pyramid of Khafre (more precisely, Khafre) is the second largest ancient Egyptian pyramid

The Egyptians did not immediately come to the idea of creating rooms inside the pyramid itself. Initially, all the rooms were underground, that is, under the base line, and the pyramid itself was empty. And only as construction principles improved, when the so-called idea of a stepped vault arose, did they begin to design rooms inside the pyramid itself. What was the impetus for this revolution in architecture, we do not know. There is a hypothesis according to which the underground premises were flooded with groundwater, so new solutions had to be found. To protect the sarcophagus with the mummy, they tried to raise it as high as possible. And for this, they first came up with the idea of a stepped vault - what we see in the pyramids of Sneferu, and subsequently in the pyramid of Khafra, where unloading chambers were used. Thus, with each new pyramid, the sarcophagus with the king’s mummy rises higher and higher. Subsequently, all the pyramids were built with a burial chamber at the base line, which shortened and made the construction process cheaper and became more economically feasible. And gradually the Egyptians completely abandoned the construction of pyramids.

When talking about pyramids in general, they use a term such as “polygonal masonry.” True, it is typical for Latin America, in particular, the Inca culture. But nevertheless, there are several examples of polygonal masonry, which was used in the construction of granite blocks in the valley temple of King Khafre. The fact is that polygonal masonry is not the art of stone processing, but the use of natural stones and a specific situation. That is, the Egyptians did not adjust the stones; instead, they used their natural irregularities to create a surface.

There is a very common thesis among conspiracy theorists that the limestone stones are chosen perfectly, that it is impossible to insert a knife blade, a sheet of paper, etc. between them. However, it is necessary to mention one of the most important properties of limestone - its plasticity. This stone begins to compress under great pressure. And if favorable air humidity is maintained, then the process of diffusion - interpenetration - occurs. Over the millennia, as the blocks lay on top of each other, they partially fused together. And today it seems to us that this is just a perfect seam. Although initially the seams could not be flawlessly perfect.

In addition, the limestone from which the buildings are built Egyptian pyramids, is very easy not only to process, but also to environmental influences. That's why modern pyramids for the most part they do not have cladding - the limestone has weathered over many centuries. And even if we just press hard on it with our hand, it begins to crumble under our fingers. And although they say that time is afraid of the pyramids, in reality this is not so. The pyramids are destroyed, and the older they are, the more fragile the limestone from which they are made becomes. Gradually, the stones crumble, and many even fall out of their places.

Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu) - the largest of the Egyptian pyramids

Any pyramid today requires conservation measures, and therefore many of the stones in Khufu's pyramid are coated with a special polymer-containing composition to prevent air and water erosion. The pyramid is a remarkable structure, but it is also a monument to the great genius of the Egyptian people. It was the Egyptians who first learned to process limestone. The Egyptian civilization is a civilization of limestone, which is what most Egyptian temples are made of.

To build the pyramid, significant knowledge of mathematics was required. And today scientists are convinced that the Egyptians performed mathematical calculations before starting construction. But there is no evidence of their mathematical thinking. We do not know how they planned, conceived and tried to calculate the strength of this or that pyramid. But we know for sure that the model was originally built. It could be wooden or stone. But on this model all possible solutions were calculated. If during construction it turned out that the calculation was not correct, the Egyptians made adjustments. Famous pyramid Sneferu, broken pyramid in Dahshur, was originally conceived with perfectly regular edges. But gradually the mass of the pyramid levels being built began to put pressure on the interior. As a result, the builders realized that if they continued construction at the same pace and with the same dimensions, the interior would collapse. As a result, they had to reduce the height of the pyramid as quickly as possible. That's why it turned out broken.

Pyramid at Medum

The pyramid at Medum was also designed to be correct. But in its design the so-called false vault masonry was used for the first time. The builders incorrectly calculated the height of the walls of the internal burial chamber, and the pyramid simply crumbled. Its upper part still lies in ruins, although on the outside it has retained some of its original shape.

It is important to understand that the Egyptians built their pyramids by trial and error. Naturally, they did not have a modern, developed mathematical apparatus, but they possessed secrets that allowed them to build majestic structures. They never shared these secrets or wrote textbooks. They passed on their skills from father to son, and therefore we cannot fully understand them. For example, they erected embankments, thanks to which stone blocks were moved to considerable heights. How were these embankments then eliminated? But at least we know that these mounds existed; their remains have been preserved. But most importantly, the Egyptians also used the energy of water, the energy of the Nile. So the ancient Egyptian civilization is the Nile River civilization. They not only floated the great river, but also used it to move large masses of stone directly to the base of the pyramids. The Egyptians created an amazing civilization that was able to harness the Nile. They not only built the famous dams, but also built cities on the dams, and also rationalized labor in the construction of the pyramids.

From a historical perspective, the Romans even surpassed the Egyptians in some ways. For example, when they built their famous aqueducts to deliver large volumes of water to places where water was scarce. Although the idea of aqueducts itself belongs, most likely, to the same Egyptians. Yes, they would envy the scale of construction of the Romans, but each civilization made its own contribution to the treasury of historical architectural thought. If the Romans became famous for building aqueducts, then the Egyptians became famous for building pyramids. And no one else tried to repeat their experience.

It was the Egyptian pyramids that gained world fame in their time. At first glance, all this excitement around the pyramids seems strange. In appearance, these are ordinary triangular-shaped buildings. It won’t be difficult to build something similar in Russia or any other country. First, you will need to create 3D models of future pyramids using a computer program, purchase the necessary building materials and adjust modern construction equipment.

This is all normal construction work. Only the ancient Egyptians most likely did not even think about the appearance of computers in the distant future. They obtained building materials themselves, rather than buying them in specialized stores. Instead of construction equipment, they used their own backs, arms and legs. With such a modest construction arsenal, they managed to erect gigantic structures of precise shape from heavy stones with small rooms and passages inside. But there is another popular version among the people. Perhaps the Egyptian pyramids were built by a more advanced civilization.

What are the Egyptian pyramids

Egyptian pyramids are ancient structures made of stones in the shape of a pyramid, which are located in Egypt. Behind last years We managed to find approximately 138 Egyptian pyramids. The main part of these buildings are tombs for the pharaohs. The most ancient Egyptian pyramids are located in the city of Saqqara.

The most famous Egyptian pyramids are located in Giza. Three of them were considered the most large objects in the world. They are also called the Great Pyramids. These are the tombs of the pharaohs Menkaure, Khafre and Cheops. The Cheops pyramid is the largest in size. The great Egyptian buildings have the most even shape possible, in contrast to the first step pyramids. It’s amazing that each of their faces looks exactly towards the sun.

The most famous

Pyramid of Mikerin

This pyramid is the lowest of the Great Pyramids of Giza. The length of the base is 108.4 m and the height is 66 m. There is an assumption that it did not have a unified construction plan. At first they planned to leave it to the heir to the throne, but then the size was increased.

Pyramid of Khafre

The second largest Egyptian pyramid of the Great Pyramids. Located next to the Great Sphinx. It has a height of 143.5 m and a base length of 215.3 m. There are two tombs in the pyramid itself. One of them was turned into a treasure room. Near the pyramid there is another pyramid, where the wife of the pharaoh rests. There is also a port and a temple nearby.

The Pyramid of Cheops

The famous pyramid of Cheops is the largest of all existing in Egypt. Base length – 230 m, initial height – 146.6 m. this moment the cladding of the pyramid collapses. Therefore, today its height is 138.8 m.

More than 2.3 million stones were used to build the Cheops pyramid. One such medium-sized pebble weighs 2.5 tons. A large analogue will hold all 15 tons. The structure includes: granite blocks, limestone, basalt. The main entrance to the pyramid is located at an altitude of 15.63 m. Tourists are led through a hole in the pyramid, which was made in 820. Inside there are three tombs located one on top of the other. They didn’t have time to finish the lowest one. The middle tomb is the “Queen’s Chamber”, the top one is the “King’s Chamber”.

Aliens and Egyptian pyramids

There are many versions of the appearance of triangular-shaped buildings in Egypt. Herodotus began to describe the first assumptions in his book. He was sure that the body of Pharaoh Cheops rested on the island in the hidden tomb of the pyramid. Engineers Howard Wise and John Perring undertook to check this version in the 19th century. To do this, they dug a well 11.6 meters deep and began to look out for Cheops. But all efforts were in vain. Later studies showed that one chamber was not completed, and the tombs were located in the very center of the pyramid.

It has already been scientifically proven that the Egyptian pyramids were built by the Egyptians. But the fans are itching for everything. They are trying in every possible way to attribute authorship to aliens. Allegedly, people could not lift such weights without special equipment, but the Egyptians not only lifted, but also created the correct shapes of pyramids from these stones. At that time, only aliens with advanced technology could have such capabilities.

But recent research has proven the absurdity of the alien version. Obvious irregularities were discovered at the base of the Cheops pyramid. This once again proves the participation of ordinary ancient Egyptians in the construction of the pyramids and no one else. Poor people under the yoke of the pharaohs hauled heavy stones for pennies and crumbs of bread. The limitlessness of human capabilities is simply amazing. Today is a completely different time. A person is only required to believe in himself and the success of his personal Egyptian pyramids.

Time is afraid of pyramids. They never shared their secrets. The scale of this construction is amazing. According to supporters of the Alternative History Laboratory, the Egyptians could not have built it. In their opinion, the pyramids could have been built by anyone: Atlanteans, representatives of extraterrestrial civilizations, representatives of other peoples, but not the Egyptians themselves. This very strange thesis is largely based on the fact that the Egyptians did not have advanced technologies that would have allowed them to begin processing highly hard stones, lifting heavy weights, and the like.

Many of the early pyramids were quite crudely built. They are made of small stone blocks and are imperfect in terms of installation. These pyramids are incomparable in their beauty to those that stand, say, in the Giza Necropolis. And here many supporters of the Alternative History Laboratory resort to deception: they convince us that the more advanced pyramids are the very first ones. And less perfect ones were built by the Egyptians. That is, it turns out to be a fitting of facts.

The Pyramid of Khafre (more precisely, Khafre) is the second largest ancient Egyptian pyramid

In addition, the limestone from which the Egyptian pyramids are built is very easy not only to process, but also to environmental influences. Therefore, modern pyramids for the most part do not have cladding - over many centuries the limestone has weathered. And even if we just press hard on it with our hand, it begins to crumble under our fingers. And although they say that time is afraid of the pyramids, in reality this is not so. The pyramids are destroyed, and the older they are, the more fragile the limestone from which they are made becomes. Gradually, the stones crumble, and many even fall out of their places.

Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu) - the largest of the Egyptian pyramids

To build the pyramid, significant knowledge of mathematics was required. And today scientists are convinced that the Egyptians performed mathematical calculations before starting construction. But there is no evidence of their mathematical thinking. We do not know how they planned, conceived and tried to calculate the strength of this or that pyramid. But we know for sure that the model was originally built. It could be wooden or stone. But on this model all possible solutions were calculated. If during construction it turned out that the calculation was not correct, the Egyptians made adjustments. The famous Pyramid of Sneferu, the broken pyramid at Dahshur, was originally designed with perfectly regular edges. But gradually the mass of the pyramid levels being built began to put pressure on the interior. As a result, the builders realized that if they continued construction at the same pace and with the same dimensions, the interior would collapse. As a result, they had to reduce the height of the pyramid as quickly as possible. That's why it turned out broken.

Pyramid at Medum

Experts suspect that these are traces of the activities of an ancient forgotten civilization

Could the ancient Egyptians have built their giant pyramids and palaces on their own? People who have only read about these structures in history books believe: yes. But many of those who have been to this country and wandered, for example, through the Giza Valley, doubt it. These structures are too impressive, even if tens of thousands of slaves are supposed to have worked on their construction.

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV The exact age of this stone sculpture is unknown to anyone

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV The famous “Inventory Stele” with the inscription about the “restoration” of the Sphinx.

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV Plates of black basalt located along the perimeter of the temple

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV Fragment of the obelisk in Karnak

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV This is an obelisk lying near the famous scarab beetle on the shore of the sacred lake in Karnak.

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV Artifact from southern Saqqara, where tourists are not allowed

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV Gate in the still closed part of the Karnak Temple

Photo by Andrey SKLYAROV Aswan quarries. Holes going several meters deep

Conan Doyle version

The theory that the pyramids are material traces of some more ancient technologically advanced civilization has not been put forward today. For example, in 1929, the “father of Sherlock Holmes” Arthur Conan Doyle published the fantasy novel “Marakot’s Abyss”, the heroes of which end up in a certain city - an island that sank to the bottom thousands of years ago Atlantic Ocean. When one of them examines the underwater structures, he notices that: “The columns, platforms and stairs of this building surpassed anything I had ever seen on earth. Most of all, the building resembled the remains of the temple of Karnak in Luxor, in Egypt, and, amazingly, the work, decorations and half-erased inscriptions in small details were reminiscent of the same decorations and inscriptions of the great ruins near the Nile.”

According to Conan Doyle, who, by the way, visited Egypt before writing this novel, all local ancient structures were built by Atlanteans. And Doyle, according to his contemporaries, like his famous detective hero, had brilliant analytical skills.

The Sphinx is 5000 years older?

It is not clear on what Conan Doyle based his conclusions. But he now has many followers. For example, the head of the Laboratory of Alternative History, Andrei SKLYAROV, who has visited Egypt several times, argues that most local historical monuments were actually created by representatives of an ancient civilization:

You can call them Atlanteans, you can call them aliens, you can call them something else, but there are an incredible number of their traces in Egypt. It’s even strange that Egyptologists did not pay attention to this before. Although now I have the impression that the Egyptians themselves are guessing about something, but are carefully hiding the secret.

If possible, specific examples...

Please let's start with the Great Sphinx. Classical Egyptology claims that it was built during the time of Pharaoh Cheops or his son - approximately 2.5 thousand years BC - based only on the fact that, according to its “artistic features,” it can be attributed to that era. But a century and a half ago, the so-called “Inventory Stele” was found in Giza, which indicated that Cheops only ordered the damaged statue to be repaired. Repair, not build!

And in the early 90s, American geologist Robert Schoch proved that the grooves on the body of the Sphinx and on the wall of the trench around it are traces of erosion not by wind, but by rain: vertical stripes instead of horizontal ones. But there has been no serious rain in Egypt for at least 8 thousand years.

Immediately after Schoch’s publication, the Egyptian authorities began an urgent restoration of the Sphinx. Now the lower two-thirds of the monument are covered with new masonry, and the top of the sculpture has been cleaned - almost no traces of erosion remain. By the way, around the same time, the “Inventory Stele” was also hidden in the storerooms of the Cairo Museum - before that it was put on public display, but now another one was put in its place. In response to questions about this stele, the museum's caretakers only shrug their shoulders in bewilderment. But it has been repeatedly described in scientific and so-called alternative literature.

When the gods ruled...

According to Andrei Sklyarov, the ancient Egyptians themselves built something. But they built their buildings on the basis of ancient structures.

This is clearly visible on the pyramids - which are made by hand, and which with the help of high-precision tools, says Andrey. - Moreover, many ancient buildings resemble bunkers - semi-underground structures over which the pharaohs built their pyramids, trying to copy the ancients. And there were only 6 - 7 original pyramids built by pre-civilization: three in Giza, two in Dashshur and one in Medun. Perhaps there was another one in Abu Roash, but it is not clear whether it was a pyramid or a bunker. And other pyramids are ancient structures completed by the pharaohs, which were originally typical bunkers. Moreover, with such powerful ceilings that it is nothing other than a refuge in case nuclear war you can’t even name them. True, it is not clear why and who could threaten them. But the war explains the disappearance of pre-civilization.

Why, besides the buildings, were there no other material traces left?

Why isn't there any left? For example, in the Giza Desert we came across something that resembled iron dust. They took samples and brought them to Moscow. It turned out that it was iron oxide with a high content of manganese. The percentage corresponds to high-alloy manganese steels, which are now used in tank tracks and as a material for stone crushing machines. In how many years could this extremely strong steel turn into dust in a desert where there had been no decent rain for 8 thousand years?

But what kind of mysterious civilization left us these artifacts?

There are different versions. Some people adhere to the theory that they were Atlanteans, others talk about colonists from other worlds. It is difficult to say when they came to Earth, but the period of the heyday of their power can be determined. At the beginning of the 3rd century BC. e. Egyptian historian Manetho published his History of Egypt. It has not been completely preserved to this day, but fragments are mentioned in the works of other historians of the first millennium AD. Manetho compiled a chronological list of the rulers of the country. Classical Egyptology recognizes only the "dynastic part", which deals with famous human pharaohs. But Manetho also talks about the first kingdom, when Egypt was supposedly ruled by gods. It existed approximately 10 - 12 thousand years ago, long before the first known pharaohs.

They worked with granite like styrofoam

Now Egyptologists spend time arguing about how the workers moved these multi-ton stone blocks from which they built pyramids and temples, they are building versions, conducting experiments, says Andrei Sklyarov. - We took a different path: if there are millions of tons of stones, then we need to understand how they were processed. We analyzed many parameters. For example, if they were sawed out, then we look at the width and depth of the cut, and the thickness of the cutting edge. Sometimes the results are surprising.

Slabs of black basalt located around the perimeter of the temple, standing near the Great Pyramid (they used to be the floor of an ancient Egyptian temple). The trace of a circular saw is visible, which is known to operate on a hydraulic, pneumatic or electric drive, but the Egyptians had neither the first, nor the second, nor the third.

It is also noticeable that during sawing there is grinding. If, as they believe, the builders worked with hand-held copper saws, then there would be scratches, but similar grinding is left by modern diamond-coated saws, and they must move very quickly.

Fragment of the obelisk at Karnak. Lies 10 meters from hiking trail. There are strange holes on it with a diameter of 1 cm and a depth of about 10 cm. They were obviously made to attach some kind of decorative plates: gold or copper. But some of them go deep into the granite not perpendicularly, but at an angle of 10 - 20 degrees: this is impossible to do manually. It turns out that they were drilled into granite, just as we turn holes with a drill in soft wood. What kind of drill did the ancient Egyptians have that could go into granite like it would into butter?

This is an obelisk lying near the famous scarab beetle on the shore of the sacred lake at Karnak. A decorative strip 3 mm wide and 1 cm deep is visible. It is believed that this was scratched with a nail. Jewelers, perhaps, could repeat, carefully cutting, with modern tools.

An artifact from southern Saqqara, where tourists are not allowed. A very revealing block of black basalt. The far part of it has been sawed off: the mark of a circular saw is visible. And they tried to process the other part manually. The difference is immediately visible.

A gate in the still closed part of the Karnak Temple. At the very top, a hole was made in the granite, believed to be about the size of a good barrel for a gate post. In our world, machines capable of cutting such holes appeared only 10 - 15 years ago.

Aswan quarries. Pits going several meters deep. The diameter is slightly larger than the width of the human body. How to dig holes like this? Unless you stand with your head down. There are many such pits. According to Egyptologists, they are designed to watch how cracks appear in the main massif. And this is a completely pointless exercise, because the direction of the cracks can be determined from the surface. And why was it necessary to align the walls so carefully? It looks like they were working here with a milling cutter. There is a hypothesis that the builders simply took granite samples. But with such a tool that made it possible not to spend a lot of time on these tests. This proto-civilization demonstrates to us that it worked with granite as with foam plastic.

Andrey MOISEENKO
TVNZ

Probably the cult of ancestors is in the blood modern man. Our childhood is filled with stories about fabulous times, always beginning with the words: “Once upon a time...” Antiquity makes us tremble. The ancestors were wiser, they lived correctly, they probably possessed “secret knowledge” that their frivolous heirs lost. We sigh respectfully when we touch a piece of the past - be it a piece of stone, a fragment of a pot, or a copper coin. Gray-haired antiquity excites the imagination - it is full of secrets. Well, curiosity is good... Add a little more critical thinking and a little more knowledge. But the last point is really bad. What does a modern Russian remember from history? A mixture of skipped school lessons, adventure films and stories from tourist guides. Stories ancient world I was especially unlucky: at school they take it the earliest, in the 5th grade. By the time an 11-year-old becomes an adult, even this meager store of knowledge will dry up. Meanwhile, the Internet and television tirelessly regal the gullible viewer with sensations “hidden official science" Thus, scientific knowledge is finally supplanted by myths and misconceptions.

Although I do not have strict statistics, analysis of letters, online comments, questions from listeners, as well as expert advice allowed me to compile the top five “most-most” common misconceptions in Russia about ancient history. So…

1. The pyramids were built by someone unknown using mysterious technologies

So, the leaders of our hit parade are the Egyptian pyramids. Why, you ask? What is the success of the popular brand “pyramids - mysterious structures of ancient civilizations”?

Firstly, the pyramids are truly amazing in their size. The height of the Cheops pyramid is 140 m, until the Middle Ages it was the highest architectural structure planets. Being nearby, a person feels his insignificance, our mind gives in to the stone hulk.

And they are also very ancient. The Pyramid of Cheops is 4500 years old! At that time, it seems, mammoths still roamed the earth?

When the first wave of admiration has subsided, a logical question arises: why is all this? We are told that this is just the tomb of the pharaoh. But, gentlemen, you claim that thousands of people spent 20 years building it. Did they have nothing else to do? And were there so many people in that era? For a modern city dweller who changes jobs every six months and cannot cope with two migrant workers in the country, it seems absurd that somewhere and sometime - and especially in ancient times - it could have been different.

Egypt - in the recent past, extremely popular resort. Millions Russian citizens swam in the Red Sea, took a ride to Cairo, took pictures with the Sphinx in the background (you need to place your palm as if you were touching its beautiful stone face). And local energetic guides tried to entertain tourists - to the best of their imagination and poor knowledge of the history of their native country. With the light hand of enterprising tourists with video cameras, their pleasure trips turned into “research expeditions to unsolved mysteries Ancient Egypt".

Why are we told that the Egyptians we know about from textbooks “couldn’t”? Well, firstly, the Egyptians did not have iron, and it was impossible to work with hard rocks with copper tools - how were granite blocks for the pyramids mined? How were multi-ton stones transported over long distances? Manually, on yourself? Okay, you can cut, drag, and fit several blocks to each other, but there are more than two million of them in the Great Pyramid! It is impossible to imagine such colossal work!

This is only a small part of the arguments adopted by the “pyramidiots” (the term was proposed by Egyptologist Barbara Mertz), but these points are enough to defeat an unprepared opponent.

However, Egyptologists, hearing such questions, are in no hurry to faint. The pyramids were not built from granite. Main material Great Pyramid For example, limestone is a fairly soft stone. The quarries where the bulk of the limestone for the pyramid was mined are located 200 meters from it - they even have the markings preserved. The probable technology for extracting limestone is described by Clark and Engelbach in the book “Construction and Architecture in Ancient Egypt" Using copper or stone tools, vertical grooves were knocked out along the contour of the block, and wedges were driven from below, through which the block was separated from the rock. In a number of ancient quarries, in the lower part of the unfinished blocks there were recesses into which wedges were inserted.

Experiments show that moving a block weighing 2.5 tons (which is the average weight of a block from the Great Pyramid) is quite possible for a group of people using wooden rollers or sleds. On an ancient Egyptian fresco you can see people dragging a 60-ton statue of Pharaoh Djehutihotep on a sled along special beds. On another fresco we see a stone block with a sled pulled by oxen.

Of course, the topic of building pyramids does not end there. It would be worth talking about the technology of granite mining, and how materials for construction were transported along the Nile on ships, and how the Egyptians could drill and saw stone with copper tools with abrasive - such experiments were successfully carried out by experimental archaeologist Denis Stokes, and also Russian enthusiast Nikolai Vasyutin. Of course, many questions remain open. How exactly were the stone blocks raised to the required height when building the pyramids? How did the Egyptians fit the pyramid blocks to each other? Records and images of these processes have not survived. However, Egyptologists are looking for and finding answers to these questions - while remaining within the framework of science, without involving aliens from Alpha Centauri. There is special literature on this topic - alas, the pyramidiots for the most part are not aware of its existence.

What to add? The pyramids are the greatest monument to human labor. 20 years of joint efforts by thousands of Egyptians is truly difficult to imagine. Can you imagine the construction of the Great Wall of China - its length is more than 10 thousand kilometers? Imagine the work of nameless stonemasons who, over the course of 90 years, carved a 70-meter statue of Buddha into the rock in Leshan (China, 8th century AD).

Maybe we just don’t know what an organized team of people is capable of with good positive (and negative) motivation?

2. Man is a product of genetic engineering of aliens

I have traveled a lot around the country and I can responsibly say: every taxi driver at the airport knows that humans were brought to our Earth by aliens. The “alien” hypothesis is so popular that it invariably appears in various Internet surveys on the topic “How man arose” along with the “evolutionary” and “religious” versions, and even found its way into some textbooks. Well, let's say thank you to the TV!

In 2016, the sequel to the famous “X-Files” was released, so we can expect another surge of interest in the topic.

So, we are convinced that man did not arise in the process of natural evolution, but is the result of experiments on a certain “blank” - a monkey or Pithecanthropus, into whose DNA alien genes were planted. The famous hunter for “ancient astronauts” Erich von Däniken directly states that the “autograph” of aliens is hidden in our genome.

Däniken argues that creatures that combined parts of different animals - sphinxes, people with animal heads and other ancient Egyptian mythical characters - are actually mutants, victims of genetic experiments.

But the idea of “man is a GMO” is most fully substantiated by another adherent of paleocontact, who gave us stories about the Anunnaki from the planet Nibiru, Zecharia Sitchin. This author uses arguments typically used by “classical” creationists. Look how different humans are from apes, says Sitchin. If normal evolution took place, then where is the transitional link? Why did man arise so quickly, so unexpectedly? We are the only species on the planet that has intelligence. Who gave us such a gift? According to Sitchin and his followers, the answer is contained in ancient texts - you just need to be able to read them!

In Sumerian mythology, the gods create man from a mixture of clay and the blood of one of the gods. Sitchin is a master of interpretation. He boldly states that the word "clay" in the ancient text can be read as "egg." What is an egg? Well, of course, a female egg! Here is a description of a genetic experiment: the “blood” (sperm) of a deity fertilized the egg of an ape.

But reading between the lines is not enough for Sitchin: he spotted genes of extraterrestrial origin among the results of the first sequencing of the human genome, published in Science and Nature in 2001. And to this day, on various “ufological” sites you can find the statement that geneticists have found in human DNA “223 genes that are not found in anyone else on this planet,” and, therefore, we got them from aliens...

Alas, Sitchin either did not understand the results of the geneticists, or he cheated (most likely, both). Geneticists have reported genes specific to vertebrates, not just humans. Since a significant portion of these genes are widely present in bacteria but absent in invertebrates, scientists hypothesized that the genes came to vertebrates as a result of horizontal transfer from bacteria. But the alien version is much more beautiful!

True, then we would have to talk about the extraterrestrial origin of all fish, amphibians and reptiles.

So, what is the soul behind the supporters of “alien GMOs”? Poor knowledge of anthropology, misunderstood genetic data and questionable interpretations of ancient texts. With this approach, you can see references to aliens - spherical xenomorphs - in the fairy tale about the bun...

3. Very ancient giants found

The power of media is amazing! Questions about “ancient giants” are regularly asked by educated people, including even a biologist (although this only happened once). Giants, cyclops, people of enormous stature are the heroes of numerous epics and legends. These creatures also found a place in the “mythology” of the 21st century. And these are not only articles on the Internet with colorful pictures. “Popular science” programs about ancient giants were shown on quite respectable television channels. And in 2014, news spread across yellow news feeds: allegedly, according to a ruling of the US Supreme Court, the Smithsonian Institution must release classified documents about thousands of giant skeletons, destroyed by “official scientists”. “Competent sources” reported: publication is scheduled for 2015. 2015 has passed, and we still haven’t seen the announcement...

But do supporters of the “ancient giants” really have real evidence? There are, and some more!

Firstly, spectacular photographs of skeletons of enormous size and perfect preservation. Ant men are swarming nearby, so the scale of the find immediately becomes obvious.

Secondly, eyewitness accounts - for example, peasants who once found huge bones right in their garden. True, then these bones usually disappeared somewhere, but “I remember as now, the skull was so-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o.” The reason for the disappearance is often stated. giant bones— the machinations of “official scientists” who took away priceless finds and disappeared in an unknown direction.

Thirdly, quotes from chronicles and diaries of medieval travelers who described encounters with giants on exotic island, in Patagonia, in the snowy Himalayas or somewhere else at the end of the world...

Beautiful? Very. However:

— It’s easy to see that the photographs of “huge skeletons” (usually the same, from article to article, from film to film) are a banal photomontage.

“In some cases, even the author of such pseudo-documents is known. Thus, the popular photo of the “excavation of a huge skeleton” received a prize in the 2002 photo collage competition “Archaeological Anomalies - 2”. Then the illustration ended up in the yellow newspapers, which accompanied the photo with a story about “sensational finds in India.” As a result, the author of the collage, a Canadian artist with the nickname IronKite, was forced to tell National Geographic magazine in detail about how he prepared this hoax.

- The tales of a peasant, even a colorful old man with a mustache, as well as the memories of sailors 500 years ago - alas, are not evidence. Otherwise we will have to believe in the existence of a “gate to hell” in Pacific Ocean, whales masquerading as islands to which ships moor, and other fables that are replete with the “true” stories of medieval travelers. The honest eyes of an eyewitness cannot replace the main thing - the finds themselves - giant human bones or teeth. Words are words, but show us at least something tangible and, most importantly, properly documented! Alas, at this point the adherents of “alternative science” for some reason become very shy: there are finds, but they cannot be presented.

Is a giant even possible from a scientific point of view? It follows from the laws of physics that a person who grew to several meters would not be able to move normally. His legs would break, crushed by the weight of his own body. Take a look at real giant animals - elephants or at least gorillas, at the shape of their bodies, at the thickness of their limbs. A primate that grew to the size of an elephant, and even walked upright, would have completely inhuman proportions.

So let the giants remain where they belong - in fairy tales and science fiction films.

4. Russia is the cradle of humanity. All descended from Russians

In moments of crisis, when there are no special reasons for pride around us, we can only look for something to be “proud of” in the past. Patriotic citizens raise the flag to the merits of their great-grandfathers and the exploits of past centuries. Historical myths are used. The subject of special pride is the “national ancestral home”. It is THIS country that should be the place where the state, writing, mathematics, medicine, language first arose - and where man was born in general. Probably, claims to “primogeniture” have been made at least once by representatives of any state that has the slightest national ambitions. Be it the UK, Korea, China, Georgia, Armenia, Israel... and, of course, Russia. Patriotism in itself is not bad.

But when history is seasoned with patriotism, historical science for some reason tends to end.

Isn’t it nice to know that the people to which you belong are the oldest on the planet, and the human race arose not just anywhere, but within the Moscow Ring Road or, at least, on the territory of the Russian Federation? With a strong desire, this can always be proven - if you use a certain approach to evidence. It is enough that at least some kind of archeology exists on the territory of the country - preferably, of course, more ancient. Now we need to proclaim this monument as the oldest in the world, and its creators as the direct ancestors of the current population. For Russia, the approach works great. We have enough antiquities. It is enough to mention such Stone Age sites as Kostenki ( Voronezh region, more than 40 thousand years) and Sungir ( Vladimir region, 30 thousand years).

On the Internet it is easy to find a classic reconstruction of a Sungir man, accompanied by a pretentious signature like: “Slav, 30 thousand years ago.” Kostenki is famously called an “ancient Russian settlement” in publications on nationalist websites. It comes to funny things. The pseudoscientist Andrei Tyunyaev took from an archaeological article an excavation plan on the territory of a sugar factory sump (the village of Byki, Kursk region). On this plan, the boundaries of the settling basin were outlined with a contour, and the Stone Age sites were marked with dots. Without blinking an eye, Tyunyaev passed off the septic tank diagram as a plan for an ancient Russian settlement of the Paleolithic era...

But jokes aside! Of course, our country has something to be proud of. However, accept this: ancient people the modern type - whatever one may say - were found in Africa. These are, for example, the famous finds in the Omo (195 thousand years) and Kherto (160 thousand years) locations. And the status of the most ancient sapiens of Eurasia was “stole” from us by the Israeli Manot (more than 52 thousand years old. Oh, these Israelis).

But this is not even about that. Let's cool down the patriotic fervor a little more - we are looking for scientific truth, and not stroking our pride, right?

Let's imagine that somewhere in a vacant lot a Stone Age site is found. Does this mean that the teenager living in a high-rise building a few kilometers from the parking lot is a direct descendant of the Cro-Magnons who hunted here in time immemorial? A teenager, of course, would like to think so... But his parents remember how just 20 years ago they flew here one and a half thousand kilometers to earn money. In ancient times there were no airplanes, but since the Paleolithic the population in this area most likely changed many times. Back in the 19th century, archaeologists understood: migrations and wars sooner or later affect almost any inhabited part of the land, and genes are mixed in any way. In recent decades, this idea has been repeatedly confirmed by paleogenetic data.

Strictly speaking, we cannot even determine the racial identity of the people of the Upper Paleolithic - what can we say about their “nationality”? Any anthropologist will tell you that this concept is generally inapplicable to such a distant era.

So, looking for one particular ancestor of Russians in ancient times is a lost cause. Each nation has many ancestors, and if one of them is found, it will most likely be the ancestor of many more nations.

5. Our Earth is 6 thousand years old

The word “Young Earthers” sounds proudly - similar to the heroes of the “Young Guards”. However, if there is anything heroic about “young earth creationism,” it is its heroic ignorance of the facts.

Proponents of the “young Earth” insist on a literal interpretation of the process of creation as described in the Bible. At the same time, they importantly call their ideology “scientific creationism.” In fact, the “young earthers” have a set of scientific proof that they are right. However, the core of this set has not changed for 100 years, and the starting point is not scientific data, but unquestionable religious dogmas.

Therefore, although the “young earthers” love to talk about science, “scientific” here can only be used in quotation marks.

Many interesting things follow from the statements about the “young Universe”. There was no evolution. Transitional forms are fakes. Humans lived at the same time as dinosaurs, trilobites, beast-toothed reptiles and other fossil creatures. All dating methods that point to an ancient age of the Earth and the Universe give erroneous results. The existing geological column, the distribution of fossils in geological layers is explained by the result of the Flood - a global catastrophe that completely transformed the appearance of our planet.

It would seem that in the 21st century one can only sympathize with these poor people. However, the “young earthers” are not going to give up. They have their own conferences, institutes, museums, and in Russia they even published the creationist “Orthodox textbook of biology”, although it did not receive the stamp of the ministry.

The approach of the “young earthers” is typical of “oppositional science”: these figures look for blind spots, problem areas in paleontology, geology, astronomy, and physics, which they interpret in their favor.

However, if we accept for a moment that the world was created, according to Scripture, in six days 6 thousand years ago, we are faced with a much larger pile of insoluble scientific problems.

- How can we see the light of distant galaxies that are millions or billions of light years away from us? After all, it turns out that when this light was emitted, the Universe should not have existed yet?

— One or another dating method may produce an error. But how can we explain that the agreed ancient age of the same object is given by two different methods at once? Are both results incorrect? This can be compared to the probability that two clocks chosen at random are both on the same wrong time.

For example, samples from the volcanic ash layer below which the famous Australopithecus Lucy skeleton was found were sent to two experts. The first determined the age by the potassium-argon method, the second by the fission track method.

Dating using both methods gave approximately 2.6 million years. Coincidence?

— Why do the remains of extinct animals occur in geological layers not haphazardly, but in a certain sequence? Creationists have a ready answer: they say, this is a consequence of the antediluvian “zoning”: large reptiles—dinosaurs—lived in the lowlands, and mammals lived in the highlands; and so they sank, each at his own height. However, such a trick does not explain why marine animals are distributed in a similar way - plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs lie in layers with other Mesozoic dinosaurs, and whales are higher, along with Cenozoic mammals. The successive replacement of some organisms by others in sediments is also preserved within individual groups of animals - be it birds or flying lizards, amphibians, sea urchins. This is true for plant spores and pollen as well. By the way, since spores and pollen are found in abundance in sedimentary rocks, they are often used to date geological rocks. Pollen penetrates everywhere, can be carried by the wind over vast distances, and hardly “escaped the flood at different speeds.” Why are there spores and pollen in geological layers? different eras naturally replace each other?

However, any argument is easily broken down with the help of two short phrases: “It was the will of the Creator” and “Conspiracy of scientists.” The idea of a world created by a prankster Creator along with dinosaur bones lying in the ground and light flying from distant galaxies is witty in its own way. And the evil Darwinists who glue “transitional forms” from the bones of people and monkeys in the basement are good for scaring children.

However, both the first and second statements cannot be refuted, and therefore this is definitely not science.

…………………………………………

Does the list of popular misconceptions seem funny to you? Well, how can you believe in this nonsense! Friends, this is what I thought just a few years ago. But I had to face reality. Travel outside your metropolis. Go among the people. Turn on the TV. Pseudohistorical mythology is closer than you think. She's waiting for you on your Facebook feed. On the evening TV show. In a book with a bright cover. In the tales of tourist guides. In a conversation overheard in the locker room of a fitness club.

In the comments to the articles of the science department of Gazeta.Ru...

Pyramidiots, where are you? Aw! Your exit!