Egypt, Temple of the Cosmos

As we journey through time and travel to eras known as ‘First Time’, or ‘Zep Tepi’, we find ourselves on an extraordinary and unforgettable trip, thanks to the book’s author. Whilst exploring pyramids and temples, we are led to discover famous ancient cities, like Abydos, Pi-Ramses and Memphis, which saw the rise of most of the Ramessides. They were a great dynasty of warriors, which produced the likes of Seti I and his son, the Pharaoh Ramses II ‘the Great’, who governed with his beloved wife, Queen Nefertary.

Author Ernesto Baron will awe readers with his research into the great mysteries of this culture, by featuring the giant sarcophaguses of Serapeum, the construction of Abu Simbel, the Ramesseum, the Temple of Eternity for Ramses II, the mysterious labyrinth of Hawara, the Chamber of Records and other interesting sites awaiting discovery.

The author also guides us, as we explore the tombs of the ancient pharaohs – many of which have been plundered – and discover their mummies and other treasures that were stolen and sold for vast sums of money. These artefacts embellished the display cases of many collectors of the day, or were displayed in the world’s large museums.

However, many of these raiders and those who dared disturb the pharaohs in their eternal slumber, in order to steal their belongings, fell prey to curses that loomed over them, causing them to get sick or die. In fact, many of these victims ended up suffering from delirium or went insane.

Through a plethora of real, thoroughly documented stories, author Ernesto Baron shares accounts of commercial tomb raiders, who did not go unpunished for their deeds. On the contrary, they were victims of curses, and several ships carrying sarcophaguses containing mummies ended shipwrecked or were caught unawares by terrible storms.

The curse of Tutankhamun is one of the most famous cases ever. It involved top archaeologists and explorers, and continues to this very day, as the author explains in great detail, in this interesting book.

However, these curses aside, history is rife with long episodes where mummies were subject to dreadful abuse. Many workers interrupted the repose of these kings and queens and ended up plundering their tombs. For this reason, priests decided to transfer them from their original location and bury them in more secret sites, in order to avoid future desecration.

It did not take long for these thieves to become aware of these valuable treasures. They plotted to take everything for themselves and then sell these objects at a high price. They were also involved in trafficking mummies, offering unwrapping shows, and touting their supposed medicinal properties – all of which became a huge business and triggered the widespread presence of fake mummies on the market.

This extraordinary book also offers novelties in this research, as the author reveals an unfamiliar part of history, regarding the ceremonies, festivities and celebrations of Ancient Egypt. The pharaoh’s coronation ceremony stands out among them, as does the Opet Festival, and Heb Set, or royal jubilee of renewal.

This interesting book truly transports readers to Ancient Egypt to show us the great mysteries of its glorious past, which continues to be of great relevance in the present and hugely important to the future, as we will see, in this very enjoyable read.