62 replies to this topic

[SamDavies]

Excuse me if there’s already a thread specifically on Ancient Egyptian light bulbs but I can not find the subject here on UM.

NO I DO NOT BELIEVE THESE ARE LIGHT BULBS BY THE WAY. Nor that the ancient Egyptians had or used light bulbs.

HATHOR TEMPLE  has a relief sometimes known as the Dendera light because of a controversial fringe thesis about its nature. The Dendera light images comprise five stone reliefs (two of which contain a pair of "lights") in the Hathor temple at the Dendera Temple complex located in Egypt. The view of Egyptologists is that the relief is a mythological depiction of a djed pillar and a lotus flower, spawning a snake within, representing aspects of Egyptian mythology  

IMAGE  of the five depictions at Hathor Temple


SYMBOLS  explained.

It is believed that the Djed (Hieroglyph that looks a little like an Asian temple is the best way to describe it) is a rendering of a human backbone. It represents stability and strength. It was originally associated with the creation god Ptah. Himself being called the "Noble Djed". As the Osiris cults took hold it became known as the backbone of Osiris . A djed column is often painted on the bottom of coffins, where the backbone of the deceased would lay, this identified the person with the king of the underworld, Osiris. It also acts as a sign of stability for the deceased' journey into the afterlife.

Sesen: A Lotus Flower. This is a symbol of the sun, of creation and rebirth. Because at night the flower closes and sinks underwater, at dawn it rises and opens again. According to one creation myth it was a giant lotus which first rose out of the watery chaos at the beginning of time. From this giant lotus the sun itself rose on the first day. A symbol of Upper Egypt.

[Ryu]

Well..it is certainly far more plausible than this one, hysterical "professor" I seen on tv who insisted that it was obvious, once you covered up the captions in the book of the afore mentioned, that it was eggplants. Yet there he was telling everyone what the images really were depicting.
I doubt the Egyptians used eggplants much nor were they part of their mythology. Maybe they were but it doesn't seem likely.

Anyways...interesting topic.

[SamDavies]

Something else I’ve just thought of. If Ancient Aliens did set up their roots in Egypt, or anywhere else, and humans were living amongst them they definitely would like the idea of humans seeing them as gods. The sun was one of the most important basic symbols around the world including Egypt. The sun god comes out during the day. Without this entity there would be no light or life. Giving humans a light sources such as a light bulb would be rather revealing that there is no powerful sun god and if there were he would not be appreciated if one could look up at a ceiling during the night and have their own little light gods. That would rather detract from the respect and worship of any sun god. Take him for granted and not have humans think him that powerful which is not an acceptable situation for any self respecting self malevolent god/being. Humans, till recently, have thus relied solely on the flame to illuminate their nights and dark places.

Any power such as ancient batteries or generators would have been used to create chemical reactions and not to power light sources, IMO,...which was the role of the ‘gods’.

[SamDavies]

Ryu, on 21 February 2012 - 01:07 AM, said:

Well..it is certainly far more plausible than this one, hysterical "professor" I seen on tv who insisted that it was obvious, once you covered up the captions in the book of the afore mentioned, that it was eggplants. Yet there he was telling everyone what the images really were depicting.
I doubt the Egyptians used eggplants much nor were they part of their mythology. Maybe they were but it doesn't seem likely.

Anyways...interesting topic.

Lol, never saw the egg plant espect. Which is weird as I used to grow egg plant occassionally. But since I only saw a flower on a stalk and a snake within a flat oval disc that could have meant anything I saw no light bulb though I've been aware of the ludicrous theory for a couple years now. This really is a strong case for only wanting to see what one wants despite the obvious evidence to the contrary.

The depictions are lovely works of art . Beautiful. I'd love to know what the writing says that accompanies these images. I'm hoping someone here knows. Probably something like The King will rise in rebirth to the heavens forever . As an artist I always look deep into any art work before me.

[Ryu]

Well..some people look at the elongated oval as the bulb, the encapsulated snake as the bulb's filament and the stand it is on as the "socket"

I admit that at first I was intrigued by the theory but once you start thinking about it you'd have to wonder just how the electricity was generated and where those supposed generators were located.
Also..as far as I know, electricity has always been conducted through a system of wires so one would think there would be remnants of wires somewhere.

Since Egypt relied heavily on religion and mythology, as is seemingly indicated in their hieroglyphs, then it would only seem "logical" that they'd use such symbolism when trying to record key events.
If the ancient Egyptians did utilize bulbs then one would think that the advancement of their supposed technology would have been documented and or observed somehow yet we see nothing.

I'd find it highly unlikely that a civilization would develop some manner of lighting in an era where most people were still using stone spear to irritate tigers with, then abandon it and go back to using primitive technology. I mean, if you have something that works then why not keep using it and building on its basic structures?
Yet we see no such developments.

[kmt_sesh]

All I can say, SamDavies, is that it's awfully refreshing to see someone approach the Dendera "lightbulb" from the perspective of proper context and analysis. This topic has popped up countless times at UM and I've spent a fair amount of time myself trying to argue on the side of reason and logic.

Of course, the alternative is to close one's eyes to context and go with whimsical, sci-fi notions. It might be fun, but the person arguing this comes away the fool.

But this is what happens when one's primary source material is half-baked junk like Ancient Aliens.

Good job, SamDavies.

[Fluffybunny]

kmt_sesh, on 21 February 2012 - 02:56 AM, said:

But this is what happens when one's primary source material is half-baked junk like Ancient Aliens.

While not completely on topic, I do find some humor in this image.  

 alien.jpg   29.44K   77 downloads

[Ninhursag]

To Me It Looks A Bit Too Similar To The Lightbulbs We Have Now .. As They Say, Everything Is There For A Reason .. But That's Just Me  

Fluffybunny, on 21 February 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:

While not completely on topic, I do find some humor in this image.  

alien.jpg

Hahahahah Awesome!!  

[cormac mac airt]

Fluffybunny, on 21 February 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:

While not completely on topic, I do find some humor in this image.  

alien.jpg

Well, there appears to be one person who's convinced that Babylon 5 was a documentary.  

cormac

[SamDavies]

Ryu, on 21 February 2012 - 01:46 AM, said:

Well..some people look at the elongated oval as the bulb, the encapsulated snake as the bulb's filament and the stand it is on as the "socket"

I admit that at first I was intrigued by the theory but once you start thinking about it you'd have to wonder just how the electricity was generated and where those supposed generators were located.
Also..as far as I know, electricity has always been conducted through a system of wires so one would think there would be remnants of wires somewhere.

Since Egypt relied heavily on religion and mythology, as is seemingly indicated in their hieroglyphs, then it would only seem "logical" that they'd use such symbolism when trying to record key events.
If the ancient Egyptians did utilize bulbs then one would think that the advancement of their supposed technology would have been documented and or observed somehow yet we see nothing.

I'd find it highly unlikely that a civilization would develop some manner of lighting in an era where most people were still using stone spear to irritate tigers with, then abandon it and go back to using primitive technology. I mean, if you have something that works then why not keep using it and building on its basic structures?
Yet we see no such developments.

Exactly to all of the above.

Another thing I think most people seem not to appreciate is though a light bulb looks simple it is not. It's manufacture takes a lot of doing. But it is rather uncanny (and a little unfortunate perhaps) that the depiction looks so much like a light bulb. That's why it was good there were five different images to compare and contrast.

I 've always held a high respect for Egyptian art   and I'm sure if a light bulb had been around they would make it a bit more realistic and not mix that with their mythology. But that is only my opinion. Sure, like you I first got a bit excited about the light bulb image sometime ago but was never really easy with it due to my art interests, knowledge of plants and animals and knowing how b***** hard it is to make a light bulb.

[SamDavies]

Fluffybunny, on 21 February 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:

While not completely on topic, I do find some humor in this image.  

alien.jpg

So do I . I bet my bottom dollar that Giorgio is probably a   fan of the UM site and the more we post of his image the more he does with his hair to show his sense of humor.

HI, GIORGIO !!

[Harte]

It probably ought to be noted that the depiction itself dates to the Ptolemaic era and was thus an interpretation done by the Greeks.

In fact, the frieze itself depicts Harsomptus, as is stated in the accomapying text on the walls.

Harsomptus was the Greek name for Horus.

There are earlier examples of similar iconography, however.  But it looks somewhat less like lightbulbs in those.

Harte

[SamDavies]

kmt_sesh, on 21 February 2012 - 02:56 AM, said:

All I can say, SamDavies, is that it's awfully refreshing to see someone approach the Dendera "lightbulb" from the perspective of proper context and analysis. This topic has popped up countless times at UM and I've spent a fair amount of time myself trying to argue on the side of reason and logic.

Of course, the alternative is to close one's eyes to context and go with whimsical, sci-fi notions. It might be fun, but the person arguing this comes away the fool.

But this is what happens when one's primary source material is half-baked junk like Ancient Aliens.

Good job, SamDavies.

Thank you, kmt_sesh

[SamDavies]

Harte, on 21 February 2012 - 04:23 PM, said:

It probably ought to be noted that the depiction itself dates to the Ptolemaic era and was thus an interpretation done by the Greeks.

In fact, the frieze itself depicts Harsomptus, as is stated in the accomapying text on the walls.

Harsomptus was the Greek name for Horus.

There are earlier examples of similar iconography, however.  But it looks somewhat less like lightbulbs in those.

Harte

Thanks, Harte. You answered one of my questions re who was being depicted and the accompanying text. Today I decided to start learning how to read heiroglyphics and what all the 'gods' of Egypt looked like and represented. Something I ahve always wanted to do but circumstances did not afford me the time. Lot easier than English, for me anyway, that I've struggled my entire life with, lol.

[SamDavies]

cormac mac airt, on 21 February 2012 - 04:02 PM, said:

Well, there appears to be one person who's convinced that Babylon 5 was a documentary.  

cormac

Both Rob and me   . But I always believe there is a little truth in all fiction. And a little fiction in all truth.