SHaYap Posted January 4, 2017 #226 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Just now, kmt_sesh said: Oh, I got your point. I was just trying to be funny and didn't do well at it. Your post reminds me of a college professor I had who used to call us donkeys if we said or did something foolish. I miss him. Think nothing of good sir ... my fault entirely ... perhaps I should have posted 'posterior' but I got a wee bit tad lazy ... Gong Xi Fatt Chai old young fella ... ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
internetperson Posted January 4, 2017 #227 Share Posted January 4, 2017 21 hours ago, cormac mac airt said: It should also be pointed out that the timeframe of 20 years is based on Herodotus, but as we now know according to the Diary of Merrer the Great Pyramid was still under construction during Khufu's 27th regnal year. cormac I hate to do this because this has surely been answered but I got a 2 part question: 1 What's the general consensus of Herodotus' writings regarding pyramid construction? Reliable or no? 2 Didn't he write that a giant road was built prior to the construction of the Great Pyramid (to help transport materials)? Could this road still be in existence and buried under sand or does it seem to be non existent? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cormac mac airt Posted January 4, 2017 #228 Share Posted January 4, 2017 14 minutes ago, internetperson said: I hate to do this because this has surely been answered but I got a 2 part question: 1 What's the general consensus of Herodotus' writings regarding pyramid construction? Reliable or no? 2 Didn't he write that a giant road was built prior to the construction of the Great Pyramid (to help transport materials)? Could this road still be in existence and buried under sand or does it seem to be non existent? Unreliable, as he was wrong not only in the number of years the GP was in construction but also in its dimensions (i.e. length per side and height, amongst others). It should also be pointed out that the Ancient Egyptians didn't keep records over long periods of time detailing the total and exact construction requirements and resources used for any of the various structures located throughout Egypt, which means that they would have had nothing related to the Great Pyramid to have ever "told" Herodotus about. While this may actually be in reference to the remains of ramps leading to the base of the GP this is not exactly unexpected for such a large undertaking as the GP's construction. cormac 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenemet Posted January 4, 2017 #229 Share Posted January 4, 2017 1 hour ago, internetperson said: I hate to do this because this has surely been answered but I got a 2 part question: 1 What's the general consensus of Herodotus' writings regarding pyramid construction? Reliable or no? 2 Didn't he write that a giant road was built prior to the construction of the Great Pyramid (to help transport materials)? Could this road still be in existence and buried under sand or does it seem to be non existent? He didn't speak Egyptian, so he's reporting what guides and possibly friends told him who learned it from guides and so forth. So... fifth hand or so. I think he's as reliable as any travel writer when it comes to events that happened during his lifetime or within a hundred years previous- such as there was a festival of Bast where people sailed down the river to her temple and boat riders would tease people on shore. The pilgrimage was probably huge, and was like Mardi Gras. That bit, I believe. But his remarks on earlier Egyptian history are filtered through thousands of years of modification and remarks by guides and other travelers. So I don't rely on his writings about pyramid construction. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harte Posted January 5, 2017 #230 Share Posted January 5, 2017 He also related some other things - like people that always walk backwards and people that don't have dreams, etc. that are, shall we say, questionable. Harte 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaylemurph Posted January 5, 2017 #231 Share Posted January 5, 2017 2 hours ago, Harte said: He also related some other things - like people that always walk backwards and people that don't have dreams, etc. that are, shall we say, questionable. Harte He's known equally as "The Father of History" and "The Father of Lies." His admitted intent was to be entertaining rather than scrupulously accurate, so he's not someone to use indiscriminately or without outside verification. I'd very much agree with what Kenemet said earlier -- on things local to his time and place, he's mostly believable, but the further you move away from that, the less trustworthy he becomes. --Jaylemurph 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hanslune Posted January 6, 2017 Author #232 Share Posted January 6, 2017 26 minutes ago, jaylemurph said: He's known equally as "The Father of History" and "The Father of Lies." His admitted intent was to be entertaining rather than scrupulously accurate, so he's not someone to use indiscriminately or without outside verification. I'd very much agree with what Kenemet said earlier -- on things local to his time and place, he's mostly believable, but the further you move away from that, the less trustworthy he becomes. --Jaylemurph You just have to look at the travelers tales from the 16-19th century a whole lot of fantasy got reported and was written down as 'truth'. One of my favorites was the Madagascar man eating tree. http://hoaxes.org/archive/permalink/man_eating_tree_of_madagascar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man-eating_tree 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
internetperson Posted January 7, 2017 #233 Share Posted January 7, 2017 On 1/5/2017 at 4:35 PM, Harte said: He also related some other things - like people that always walk backwards and people that don't have dreams, etc. that are, shall we say, questionable I suppose The Bangles debunked that one. On 1/5/2017 at 6:43 PM, jaylemurph said: His admitted intent was to be entertaining rather than scrupulously accurate, so he's not someone to use indiscriminately or without outside verification. Now that's fascinating. Link? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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