****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Aliens with Photonic Levitators or simply old-fashioned elbow grease?If you are going to read just one book about the pyramids, it should be this one. Though written nearly 40 years ago it is still probably the most comprehensive book available on the subject.The book not only explains most of the prevaling theories about the purpose and construction of the pyramids, but also presents the factual and historic foundations for these theories.The author provides a lot of scientific detail about these wonders of the ancient world such as celestial orientation, dimensions and material. But Author Tompkins also has the editorial confidence to inform his readers where the underlying data or premises are "weak".For instance, the outer dimensions of the Great Pyramid are frequently quoted to a precision of several millimeters. Even so, author Tompkins lays out the simple facts that most of the Great Pyramid's base capping stones were removed centuries ago, that the base is largely obscured by tons of debris and also that the orignal ground level has been lost to salvagers of the valuable limestone paving stones.Moreover, Tompkins explains how astute early researchers performed their measurements and justified their calculations.Focus is clearly on The Great Pyramid of Giza (the so-called "Pyramid of Cheops"), yet thru comparisons made to many of the other major Egyptian pyramids, the reader gains a broad knowldege of this fascinating era of ancient engineering.Author Peter Tompkins has gone down in literary history as the coo-coo author of his much more popular work, "The Secret Life of Plants". Still, this exposition of Egypt's ancient wonders couldn't be more level-headed and thorough.His third book, "Mysteries of the Mexican Pyramids" is equally thorough as this Egyptian companion, but a bit harder to find.Read my other book reviews written specifically for Electrical Engineers at ee-island-dot-calm.
