“As the main deity of the funerary cult, Osiris is shown as a mummy wearing the crown and holding the crook and flail as his royal insignia. But why is the god portrayed as a human being?

As is well known, anthropomorphy is a trait shared with all prominent members of the ancient Egyptian pantheon, often in combination with animal features. Likewise, ancient civilisations such as the Babylonians, the Hittites, the Greeks, the Persians, the Indians, the Chinese and the Aztec all widely painted, sculpted and described gods and goddesses in terms of human beings. This raises the question to what extent members of these cultures actually envisioned their gods as humans?

Euhemerus of Messene (4th century BCE) was a Greek mythographer credited with the view that the supernatural tales and characters featured in mythology were really exaggerations of mundane historical events. While his work has not withstood the ravages of time, various classical writers of the Imperial period reflected the opinion that the gods were really just extraordinary human beings.”

(via Thunderbolts. H/T: The Anomalist)

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“This is an educational web site that aims to provide the viewer with the elements of archaeological work, including the progress of excavation. The daily results are crucial to an understanding of how field investigation takes place, since decisions must be made on the basis of ongoing work. The people involved in the work are also an essential feature and contribute profoundly to the final outcomes. The focus of our diary is thus often on the people and their activities.

In January 2008, Dr. Betsy Bryan once more traveled to Egypt with students. Work at the temple of Mut began later than usual, however, as Dr. Bryan first led fifteen undergraduate and three graduate students on a study tour of Egypt. This intensive intersession course included sites rarely visited in recent years due to result of convoy traffic that moves non-Egyptians at certain times of the day, and only allows stops at a few and unvarying archaeological sites.”

(Hopkins in Egypt Today via Alternative Approaches)

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According to the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog, actor Wesley Snipes was “found not guilty of federal tax-fraud and conspiracy charges Friday, but was convicted on three misdemeanor counts of failing to file a tax return”. Looking into this a bit further, I found an article which states that he “appears to have associated himself with not one but two radical extremist groups, each with a long history of criminal activity. In addition to being advised by Eddie Ray Kahn (pronounced “Kane”), an IRS antagonist since 2000, Snipes appears to own a fraudulent trust of the sort that recently earned anti-tax activist Arthur Farnsworth a conviction for tax evasion (he is scheduled to be sentenced in Pennsylvania later this month). It’s not the best company to be keeping if one seeks to maintain good standing with the U.S. government. But what makes the case truly bizarre is the anti-tax movement’s deep association with anti-Semites and white supremacists.”

It is also rumored that he has ties to a “bizarre Georgia-based black nationalist cult, the United Nuwaubian Nation of Moors—an apocalyptic organization that preaches a ripped-from-the-X Files mélange of UFO lore, Egyptian mythology, Afrocentrism, and conspiracy theory. The group is led by self-styled prophet Dwight “Malachi” York, who in 2004 was sentenced to 135 years in prison for a litany of convictions including tax evasion and the sexual abuse of more than a dozen children of his disciples.”

How did he become associated with two different groups with radically different views? They found something in common. The anti-tax movement.

(via Radar)

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“Ancient Kemetic (Egyptian) medicine was incredibly advanced. The Ancient Kemetic People were probably the first people in the world to have based their knowledge off of careful and astute observations, as well as trial and error. By careful observation, early doctors or physician priests of ancient Kemet began healing practices that were world renowned. Theirs was a medical system that was developed over three thousand years and gave much toward the advancement of medical science worldwide, and any monarch or noble to have an Egyptian physician in their employ was a mark of high status. There was not the exact separation of Physician, Priest and Magician in Ancient Kemet that we think of today. Many times there was crossover from one “specialty” into that of another. An example of this would be that i would not be considerd at all unusual in antiquity for a patient to receive treatment for a dog bite, for example, whereby this would be bandaged up with a paste of berries and honey and an incantation would be given to the patient to be said over the wound. He or she might recieve it written on a piece of papyrus as well and choose to wear it as a type of magical amulet. Magic however was not always a part of the healing arts. Many scholars think that the Ancient Kemetic People were overly superstitious and thought that all injury and illness was caused by “demons” or curses. This definitely was not the case.”

(Ancient Egyptian Medicine via The Ancient Egyptian Virtual Temple)

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“In a potential blow to themed resorts from Vegas to Tokyo, Egypt is to pass a law requiring payment of royalties whenever its ancient monuments, from the pyramids to the sphinx, are reproduced. Zahi Hawass, the charismatic and controversial head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, told AFP on Tuesday that the move was necessary to pay for the upkeep of the country’s thousands of pharaonic sites.

“The new law will completely prohibit the duplication of historic Egyptian monuments which the Supreme Council of Antiquities considers 100-percent copies,” he said. “If the law is passed then it will be applied in all countries of the world so that we can protect our interests,” Hawass said. He said that a ministerial committee had already agreed on the law which should be passed in the next parliamentary session, while insisting the move would not hurt Egyptian artisans.”

(via AFP and BBC News)

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“Welcome to Eternal Egypt, which brings to light over five thousand years of Egyptian civilization. Eternal Egypt is a living record of a land rich in art and history, people and places, myths and religions. The stories of Eternal Egypt are told using the latest interactive technologies, high-resolution imagery, animations, virtual environments, remote cameras, three-dimensional models and more.

There are many ways to begin your journey through Eternal Egypt. The guided tour is a quick way to experience the best that the site has to offer. You can also begin with one of the cultural highlights below, or make your own discoveries using one of the many other ways to explore.”

Eternal Egypt virtual tour

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a French architect says that after studying the pyramids for eight years, he has solved the mystery with the help of 3-D computer animation.

Jean Pierre Houdin believes the pyramids were built from the inside out, through an internal spiral ramp.

“This is completely new. Everyone [before] me thought that the pyramid was built from the outside, only the outside,” Houdin said.

Full Story: ABC News.

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The Egyptian authorities have given the go ahead for the underwater exploration of what appears to be a Roman city submerged in the Mediterranean, Egypt’s top archaeologist said on Monday.

Full Story: Reuters.

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Ancient war goddess statues unearthed in Egypt.

Granite head of a king with Nubian features discovered.

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Archaeologists have discovered an intact, ancient Egyptian tomb in the Valley of the Kings, the first since King Tutankhamun’s was found in 1922.

A University of Memphis-led team found the previously unknown tomb complete with sarcophagi and five mummies.

Full Story: BBC.

(via Vortex Egg).

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Obsidian Magazine has an article about the significance of Scarabs in Ancient Egypt and modern occultism. “To observing ancients, it seemed the sacred scarab spontaneously generated from the ball of dung, fully grown and capable of self-sustenance.”
Link.

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