THE PYRAMIDS of the COLD • Chapter 35 How the central wooden Djed caisson has been glorified through Ptah, the deification of the simple but multitask wooden frame

In summary: if it is highly probable that ancient Egyptians had used reinforced specialized wooden caissons to create pressurized air and pressurized water for their scientific experimentations before the Great Pyramid, it is certain that they've glorified the individual wooden cases that enabled them to manufacture these sewn caissons; this is why Ptah has been created and why he was known as the Great Framer, why he was the One to have invented masonry and why he was the patron god of metal workers.

Ptah is nothing but the deification of the wooden mold, whether you need that mold to create mud bricks and metal objects, or to reconstruct misshapen ears of babies; and it is not like Egyptians wanted to hide this: a mold is nothing but a frame, and they did see Ptah, as the One who "framed everything".

But ancient Egyptians were also pure scientists who loved mathematics as well, this is why Ptah was also known as "the One with a beautiful face": the metaphor here, is about the face of the cube, because Ptah was pretty much a cube himself. Stack many of these wooden molds together and you have now the central wooden Djed caisson that gave life to the Great Pyramid, blowing air and water. This caisson needed to be airtight and the caissons sewn together, this is why Ptah has been represented receiving two different types of offerings of linen: the caisson needed linen ropes to sew the individual cases, and it also needed linen sealing tape so that air and water could have been pressurized.

“The tight-fitting skull cap, enveloping shroud, and animal-headed scepter identify this figure as Ptah, chief deity of the northern city of Memphis. Master craftsman to the gods, Ptah was the patron of artisans. A hole pierced through the back pillar indicates that this was meant to be suspended.” Ptah figure 2021.41.37 at the Metropolitan museum in New-York: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/329805

Operating diagram of the Great Pyramid of Khufu, showing the central wooden Djed caisson that was set in both the Grand Gallery and the inclined well so that pressurized air and pressurized water could have been produced by the fall of the piston-like composite impactor. Ptah is the deification of such wooden caisson, whether it was the caisson of the Great Pyramid or older caissons used in other structures as Ptah was already known during the First Dynasty.

35.01  The central wooden Djed caisson had two different but similar parts: an upper aerial part which was in the Grand Gallery, and a lower flooded part in the inclined well

“Creator-god of Memphis; god of craftsmen; consort of Sekhmet (q.v.); deity responsible for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony. Often recorded in inscriptions as Good or Beautiful of Face and King of the Two Lands, Lord, He who is abundant of praise in the House of Maat and Director of the Domains.” https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG55363

“He’s attested very early in Egyptian history – he is drawn on a bowl dating to the First Dynasty, probably the reign of Den. Unusually for such an early object this bowl has a secure provenance (tomb 231 at Taharkan, excavated by Petrie) and the drawing of the deity not only has the right iconography for Ptah but is labelled with his name in hieroglyphs. As this appears to be a fully developed depiction of Ptah it seems probable that he was worshipped back into Predynastic times.” https://talesfromthetwolands.org/2021/11/26/ptah-through-time-and-space/

The central wooden Djed caisson of the Great Pyramid was set inside the central gutter of the Grand Gallery which kept the caisson perfectly in place at all times. The markings on the floor of the gutter have been made by the individual wooden cases that formed the caisson. Original image of the Grand Gallery of the Great Pyramid of Egypt at Giza (taken from the upper platform, looking down the Gallery), built by pharaoh Khufu, from page 52 of "The call of the stars; a popular introduction to a knowledge of the starry skies with their romance and legend" (1919) by Kippax, John R. (John Robert), 1849-1922: https://www.flickr.com/photos/internetarchivebookimages/14597229618/

The central wooden Djed caisson of the Great Pyramid, and all the other wooden caissons produced by Egyptians before to create pressurized air and pressurized water necessary for their scientific work, was made of individual wooden cases sewn together, just like they were already doing to build sewn boats, just like the Khufu Ship.

35.02  The 'beautiful face' metaphor about Ptah is about the faces of a cube, because Ptah was literally made of these 'cubes'

Egyptians used every single part of their scientific knowledge as a source of the metaphors they’ve used to glorify their technological accomplishments, whether it was about human anatomy, medicine or physiology, whether it was about the specificities of the animals surrounding them or whether is was about mathematics, algebra or geometry: they simply used everything they could to illustrate and demonstrate technology with basic science.

The metaphor of Ptah, being described as the One with a ‘beautiful face’ is a mathematical metaphor, based on the geometry of the cube and its beautiful faces.

“Creator-god of Memphis; god of craftsmen; consort of Sekhmet (q.v.); deity responsible for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony. Often recorded in inscriptions as Good or Beautiful of Face and King of the Two Lands, Lord, He who is abundant of praise in the House of Maat and Director of the Domains.” [Information sheet about Ptah from the British Museum]: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG55363

See the Rhind mathematical papyrus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhind_Mathematical_Papyrus

and the Moscow mathematical papyrus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moscow_Mathematical_Papyrus

35.03  Ptah was responsible for the Opening of the mouth because his own 'mouth' was constantly opened: he was made of wooden boxes with only four faces made of thick wooden boards that looked like a mouth

“Creator-god of Memphis; god of craftsmen; consort of Sekhmet (q.v.); deity responsible for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony. Often recorded in inscriptions as Good or Beautiful of Face and King of the Two Lands, Lord, He who is abundant of praise in the House of Maat and Director of the Domains.” https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG55363

Adobe-brick manufacturing workshop at the National Park Service, Desert Research Learning Center, Tucson. “Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make Adobe Bricks”, by Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2018/11/04/hands-on-archaeology-how-to-make-adobe-bricks/

35.04  The wooden 'mold', or 'frame' used to make mud bricks is why Ptah was known as the one who invented masonry and also why he was known as the 'framer of everything'

We’ve already seen that the central wooden Djed caisson of the Great Pyramid was made of wooden frames stacked inside the central gutter of the Grand Gallery, but also inside the limestone structure of the inclined well; in other words, the Djed caisson was built with wooden girdles and Egyptians used this idea of wooden cases to glorify Ptah through these cases. And this is why Ptah has become the god who invented masonry, because at the time, masonry was building a structure by using mud bricks, and the only thing you need is a wooden mold to make the bricks.

But Ptah was much more than just the one who invented masonry: Ptah was also known as the 'framer'.

“Ptah is often described as an abstract form of the “Self-Created One”, who made the universe either by the wish of his heart (sometimes associated with Hathor or Horus) and by his tongue (or speech, identified with Thoth and Tefnut). Alternatively, you could argue that he was more directly in control of creation than either Ra or Atum). He was the patron of sculptors, painters, builders, carpenters, and other craftsmen, and was thought to have invented masonry. In fact, he may have formed the template for the idea of god as the great architect which is so popular in Masonic mythology and some branches of Christian theology, or as the Book of the Dead puts it, “a master architect, and framer of everything in the universe”. However, it is also worthy of note that some versions of the legend stated that Ptah created the heavens and the earth while Khnum fashioned the people and animals on his potter’s wheel, although it is still implied that Ptah created Khnum.” Jane Hill 2008: https://ancientegyptonline.co.uk/ptah/

[Brick Mold] from a Foundation Deposit for Hatshepsut's Temple. Object Number: 22.3.252 at the Metropolitan museum in New-York: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/547576

35.05  If Ptah was the patron of metalworkers and used to 'mould' the body of Ramesses II it is also because Ptah was made of wooden cases: these cases looked just like metal casting mold frames

Isn't that funny that whether Egyptians wanted to make very basic mud bricks or complex metal objects, they still had to use the exact same tool: a very simple wooden frame? But this frame was so important in their lives, that just like everything else, they've glorified it and created Ptah to worship it.

Probably over time, the wooden caissons that had been made with these wooden frames, just like the Djed caisson of the Great Pyramid, would have gained all the attention from the people of Egypt. But I may be wrong here: what ancient Egyptians may really have referred to in their worshiping of Ptah, may have changed over time.

“Throughout most of Pharaonic Egyptian history, from at least the Old Kingdom, Ptah was seen as both the patron deity of craftsmen and as a universal creator deity. Ptah’s original role was as the patron deity of crafts and craftsmen. He was associated with the mineral aspects of the world – the stone, the metal ores – and was seen as a metalworker. He was thus the patron of those who created metal objects, as well as those who created using metal objects”. https://talesfromthetwolands.org/2021/12/31/ptah-maker-of-things/

“The imagery used to describe Ptah’s creative powers is full of references to his origins as a craftsman. For instance he’s described as the craftsman who crafts kings – he moulds the body of the deceased and newly divine Ramesses II from electrum, copper and iron, a reference to his particular association with metalworkers. He’s described as crafting bodies for the gods to inhabit – in the same way as human craftsmen would make the cult statues for the temples.” https://talesfromthetwolands.org/2021/12/31/ptah-maker-of-things/

“Metal casting is an ancient crafting process where you pour molten metal into a custom mold to create objects like coins, swords, and jewelry. To successfully cast metal, you’ll first need to acquire a mold frame (also known as a mold flask) made of wood, iron, or a similarly solid material. Make sure the frame comes in 2 parts and is large enough to hold the object you want to cast.” How to Cast Metal, Building & Filling a Custom Mold; co-authored by Alvaro Mendoza, PhD: https://www.wikihow.com/Cast-Metal

“Did you know that infants with misshapen ears can have them corrected with The EarWell™ Infant Ear Correction System? We can reshape your babies ears in 6-8 weeks!” https://www.instagram.com/p/Cz7XoxEP7wt/?api=1

35.06  If Ptah was so strongly associated with ears it is also again because he was seen as the 'framer of everything', included misshapen ears that needed to be reshaped just like it was modeling clay that needed to be pushed back in place (do you see the pushing movement in the picture?)

It is really sad to see how egyptologists are so wrong about their description of what ancient Egypt really was; for example everybody knows there was medical treaties written on papyrus since the very beginning of the pharaonic era, but did you ever hear any  egyptologist describing Egyptian cities and mentioning hospitals and medical schools and universities?  Well, maybe you heard about these kind of structures, but I never did; and though you simply cannot have medical literature like these papyri, if there isn’t all the medical ecosystem as well. Egyptians had hospitals and universities like we do, and just like we take care of babies with misshapen ears, Egyptians did the same; and for that they used the exact same kind of tool we use today: molds. And because Ptah was the glorification of the wooden mold, they associated him with ears because they simply used molds to reshape ears. Now what’s even more interesting, is that it could be even possible to understand the number of ears that are represented onto the famous ear votive steles; because today, it takes a few weeks to reshape an ear, so maybe the number of ears on steles is about the number of weeks of treatment. Maybe.

The most famous of Egyptian medical papyri is the Edwin Smith Papyrus (1600 BCE), but the Kahun Papyrus is 200 years older: “Dated to circa 1800 BCE, the Kahun Gynaecological Papyrus is the oldest known medical text in Egypt. It was found at El-Lahun by Flinders Petrie in 1889, first translated by F. Ll. Griffith in 1893, and published in The Petrie Papyri: Hieratic Papyri from Kahun and Gurob. The papyrus contains 35 separate paragraphs relating to women's health, such as gynaecological diseases, fertility, pregnancy, and contraception. It does not describe surgery. Kahun papyri is efficiently divided into three different sections. These sections are there to provide a guideline on the interaction between patient and physician. The first being what are the symptoms, the second being how the physician should consult the patient along with diagnoses, and lastly a treatment is offered or advised.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_medical_papyri

“In the New Kingdom, the cult of the god [Ptah] would develop in different ways, especially in Memphis, his homeland, but also in Thebes, where the workers of the royal tombs honoured him as patron of craftsmen. For this reason, the oratory of Ptah who listens to prayers was built near the site of Deir el-Medina, the village where the workers and craftsmen were housed. At Memphis, the role of intercessor with humans was particularly visible in the appearance of the enclosure that protected the sanctuary of the god. Large ears were carved on the walls, symbolizing his role as god who listens to prayers.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ptah

“he [Ptah] was particularly revered by metalworkers and blacksmiths, but he was equally feared because it was he who caused earthquakes and tremors of the Earth's crust.”

[Votive Stele of Artisan Bay]: https://egypt-museum.com/votive-stele-of-artisan-bay/

Representation of Ptah in the tomb of Nefertari, QV66, Valley of the Queens. “Nefertari is shown making an offering of linen to Ptah. He was the creator god of weaving and crafts. The linen which she offers is in the shape of the hieroglyph for clothing, "Menkhet" more of them stand on a table in front of her. The text above the table states: "Giving cloth to the Lord of Truth (= Ptah) on the sacred land".” Photograph by kairoinfo4u: https://www.flickr.com/photos/manna4u/33687815140

35.07  The central wooden Djed caisson needed two kinds of linen: linen ropes of course to sew the individual cases, but it also required linen sealing tape to ensure the caisson was airtight and waterproof

I don’t know what egyptologists really believe about the above scene representing Nefertari offering linen cloth to Ptah, just like linen was the most important treasure of the entire ancient world and Ptah was only dying to get his monthly delivery of this incredible achievement of an entire civilization that is linen.

But now that we know what Ptah is all about, of course we understand why is he really needing that linen. Actually, to make the central wooden Djed caisson of the Great Pyramid, and again all the other caissons made before, and who knows, after the Great Pyramid was made, Egyptians needed two types of linen:

• they needed the strongest ropes they could find to sew the individual wooden cases together, just like they were building a sewn boat (hence the ‘reconstitution’ that had been made next to the Pyramid, with the Khufu ship): so they’ve used linen ropes.

• but the caisson also needed to be both airtight and waterproof, so they’ve used ‘linen cloth’: the ‘linen cloth’ is nothing but linen sealing tape.

“Linen fiber tape is made from natural renewable raw material - flax fiber. The ideal material for sealing log gaps in the construction of log houses. Suitable for parquet, wall, ceiling, roof and floor insulation. Easy to install and completely safe. The linen tape keep the level of humidity, it has a high heat insulation and sound insulation capacity. The material does not generate static electricity and does not conduct electricity.” linulenta.lv/p/en-linen-fiber-tape-20mm/

Linen sealing tape: https://buvniecibas-abc.lv/en/shop/building-materials/thermal-insulation-materials/natural-insulation-materials/linen-wool-sealing-tape-4mm-015x21m

For example here, Egyptians used two kinds of symbols to represent linen, one is about a rope (with a loop pointing down) and the other one is the 'menkhet' sign S27, standing in an upright position, is more questionable about its meaning; my guess is that they are precisely about the two kinds of linen used in the Djed caisson. But more importantly, it also looks like Egyptians depicted exactly how they’ve used the linen sealing tape, by using a tool to force the tape in the wood (red arrow), and to illustrate the fact that the taped made the Djed caisson waterproof by using the riddle hieroglyph.

What is certain, is that when you try to read some work of Gardiner about these two hieroglyphs for linen (link below), there is something that really is striking, and that’s the fact that even if it isn’t so clearly said by Gardiner, every single egyptologist seems to have his own vision of how to decipher the signs. In short, egyptologists are only really guessing here about the deciphering of hieroglyphs: it’s just their best guess. And again, when you have the whole context completely wrong and you don’t know what’s the whole meaning of every single deity is, there is nothing much to expect.

35.08  Probably the whole process of using the linen sealing tape with the appropriate tool to force the tape in the wood is what the hieroglyps are describing

Throughout this study of The Pyramids of the Cold, I’m conscious that I’m completely throwing away everything egyptologists are claiming for more than 200 years now and I know that this work will trigger in a few decades an unprecedented intellectual revolution. Egyptology as we know it today will change radically, and the most important changes will have to be about the deciphering of hieroglyphs. Because you can be certain of one thing: everything I’m describing in the study, also is perfectly depicted in the hieroglyphic texts; it’s just that as of today, we are still unable to really read them. Now, we have the context right, we have the main understanding of what really happened, so it is only a question of time before the exact meaning of every sentence can be deciphered. My guess is that Egyptians really used hieroglyphs as we do today when we’re playing with rebus: hieroglyphs are all about a story, only supposed to be understood by the ones who really knew what it was all about.

Hieroglyphs are officially called ‘cryptographic writings’, why would you encode the offering of linen to some deity if the whole thing was just about offering a simple piece of cloth in the first place?

“The menkhet sign (S 27) might represent either " horizontal strip of cloth with two or more strands of a fringe " or at least " two vertical strips of folded cloth on some kind of stand ". Sometimes it is interpreted as a warp threads of the textile. This sign is used as a determinative or as an ideogram in the word " clothing " , translated also as a " kind of fabric ". The menkhet sign can serve as a determinative in the names of specific kind of linen too. Besides texts, this clothing hieroglyph appears in the iconographic context in the tombs and temples wall decoration. Menkhet occurs in the ideographic lists and " friezes of objects " , where it is mentioned as a necessary thing for the deceased. Moreover, it is often depicted as an offered item in different types of rituals, e. g. the Daily Cult Ritual or funerary processions. According to the texts labeling such scenes-it may represent not only the cloth in general, but also very specific kinds of linen. This feature makes the menkhet sign one of the garments symbols in the Egyptian iconography.” Abstract from "The menkhet sign as clothing symbol in the Egyptian iconography, Sign and Symbol in Egypt and Mesoamerica", Warszawa, 30th June - 2nd July 2016, by Katarzyna Kapiec: academia.edu/36934985/

Standing Figure of Ptah 26.7.881 at the MET: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/571916

35.09  Ptah is as much the glorification of the individual wooden hollow frame as of the association of these frames in a single unit: this is why he is so proudly grasping a Was scepter that is the drilling tool that made the hollow part (previous chapter)

There is a probably unique particularity about Ptah, that is the fact that (in my opinion) he was seen in two ways:

• First, there is Ptah as the glorification of the wooden frame, the individual wooden case that was used to make wooden bricks or metal objects.

• But there is another kind of Ptah: the One resulting of the association of multiple individual identical cases. Actually, one of the photographs I’ve used is precisely showing just that: even today, when you want to work efficiently in making mud bricks, you don’t use just one individual case, instead you use a tool that is made of a few of these cases, bounded together in one single tool that resembles to a ladder. This is why Ptah could be seen as the entire central wooden Djed caisson itself: it was just made of many individual cases sewn together.

But in both cases, very often, Ptah is represented only holding a Was scepter in his hands; and because of the previous chapter explaining that the Was scepter is the way ancient Egyptians have glorified the drilling tool, a drill bit really, now we know why there could have been very short or very long Was scepters: depending on how many individual hollow cases would have been used in a single tool, Egyptians would have had to use metaphorically a very short or very long drill to create the hollow part of the wooden frame.

If the goal would have been to make a single wooden frame for ear molding, Egyptians could have used a very short Was scepter drill bit, but if the goal was to make a gigantic wooden structure like the central wooden Djed caisson of the Great Pyramid, Egyptians would have been forced to metaphorically use a gigantic drilling tool. And that is the reason why very often, Ptah is only represented proudly holding a Was scepter in his hands.

Ptah figurine 45.4.1, Metropolitan museum in New-York: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/545966

Statue of the Egyptian god Ptah, seated and gripping the Was and Djed symbols. Museo Egizio, Torino. Cat. 87: https://collezioni.museoegizio.it/en-GB/material/Cat_87

35.10  Because the central wooden Djed caisson was a hollow structure, Egyptians used the Was scepter, their own representation of a drilling tool, to show that the caisson was like 'pierced' from top to bottom by placing a Was scepter inside the staff of Ptah, just like it would have been drilled

We've just seen in previous chapter that the Was scepter has been the way Egyptians glorified the invention of the drill bit, whether it was just the bit, an auger or a bow drill; and here they've used this glorification of the Was scepter to demonstrate the central wooden Djed caisson was hollow: from a metaphorical point of view, it's like the staff of Ptah (which only is the caisson) would have been drilled from top to bottom.

Statue of the Egyptian god Ptah, gripping the Was and Djed symbols. Museo Egizio, Torino. Cat. 86: https://collezioni.museoegizio.it/it-IT/material/Cat_86/

35.11  If Ptah is grabbing so strongly his Djed staff which so mysteriously adopts the same form as Ptah himself, it is because Ptah really is this Djed staff, and that is the central wooden Djed caisson

We’ve already seen that the Djed pillar is the representation that ancient Egyptians have made of the association of the central wooden caisson in which the piston-like composite impactor was operated to generate pressurized air and pressurized water, with the structure of the hauling Beetle with its four transversal beams and six individual compartments for the crewmembers of the Beetle. So, strictly speaking, it is wrong to say that Ptah is the deification of the Djed pillar, because Ptah only is about the central caisson as it is so strongly suggested by the imposing staff he is holding, and by the fact Ptah is always represented constrained, evidently unable to move an inch.

*But, figuratively speaking it is not that wrong after all, simply because the wooden structure of the Beetle was probably sliding on the top of the central caisson  and was more or less dependant on the Djed caisson.

35.12  Again the same trick that Egyptians have used over and over: two representations of the same thing, all together and side by side

Anyway, Egyptians have made with Ptah and the Djed caisson the exact same thing they’ve made on the above representation of Bes, the pressure sensitive fuse on which was resting Taweret for the entire operating time of the Pyramid: Ptah is almost ‘resting’ onto himself (the Djed pillar), the same way that Bes is also resting onto himself.

This kind of ‘double representation’ of the same idea has been used over and over again in the glorifying process realized by ancient Egyptians.

Operating diagram of the Grand Gallery of the Great Pyramid of Khufu, showing the upper aerial part of the central wooden Djed caisson in the central gutter of the Grand Gallery, then extending inside the inclined well as well.

35.13  Ptah-Tatenen is about Ptah demonstrating his ability to constrain and pressurize air: the snake on his staff is simply holding air just like it was a balloon animal

Keeping in mind that the central wooden Djed caisson had to get also inside the inclined well so that the impactor would still be guided by the hollow rails of the caisson once it got into the water of the well, it isn’t surprising that Egyptians additionally to Ptah also wanted to glorify the upper aerial and lower flooded parts separately.

That’s what they’ve done here with an ‘evolution’ of Ptah: Ptah-Tatenen a god who was knows as "the risen land" and the one to "rise from the watery chaos" .

• the representation of contained and pressurized air onto the staff of Ptah-Tatenen: it’s funny because if I’m not mistaken, egyptologists are only seeing the disc of the sun being swallowed by a snake here, but they always only see things in binary terms every time they look at something that looks like a disc, it is either the sun or the moon; and what is even more fun is that everybody has probably already seen the metaphor that Egyptians used with the snake: the animal isn’t swallowing the sun, or the moon, but he did swallow all the air he could. In short, the whole air inflated snake metaphor is all about constraining pressurized air inside a closed structure.

• the references about Ptah-Tatenen whose name literally means “risen land”, and who was known “rising from the watery chaos”: “Tatenen (also Ta-tenen, Tatjenen, Tathenen, Tanen, Tenen, Tanenu, and Tanuu) was the deity of the primordial mound in ancient Egyptian religion. His name means "risen land" or "exalted earth", as well as referring to the silt of the Nile. As a primeval chthonic deity, Tatenen was identified with creation. Both feminine and masculine, he was an androgynous protector of nature from the Memphis area (then known as Men-nefer), the ancient capital of the Inebu-hedj nome in Lower Egypt. Tatenen represented the Earth and was born in the moment it rose from the watery chaos, analogous to the primeval mound of the benben and mastaba and the later pyramids. He was seen as the source of "food and viands, divine offers, all good things", as his realms were the deep regions beneath the earth "from which everything emerges", specifically including plants, vegetables, and minerals.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatenen

Ptah-Tatenen [edited], by PharaohCrab: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ptah-Tatenen.png#

35.14  Ptah-Tatenen and the air-inflated snake metaphor (not on but in the Djed pillar)

I really hope one day, egyptologists will stop seeing the sun disc every time they see a disc, in particular when the so-called sun disc doesn’t have any rays; it would be a very good start, I think. Of course, it would imply that egyptologists also start to look for and understand metaphors; and the particular metaphor that has been used here on Ptah-Tatenen with the air-inflated snake on top of the Djed pillar is a very good one to start with: what better illustration of pressurized air you want to use, than the snake that have eaten a prey ten times bigger than its own body? This metaphor is so good and so easy to understand, that we still use it today, as you can see on the above draw. Of course, when the air-inflated snake is put onto the Djed pillar, there is also another trick: the air is actually inside the Djed pillar.

Everything about ancient Egyptian religion is nothing but layers of metaphors, on top of layers of play on words, hidden behind more layers of visual tricks; it can be scary, and that may be why egyptologists never talk about any of these layers, and why they prefer to see sun discs everywhere. But it can change now, because what I’m doing is simply giving a new foundation for egyptology: I may have deciphered a few dozens of Egyptian deities glorifying how the Great Pyramid of Khufu has been operated, and how all this scientific and technological adventure started, but there are still about 2,000 other deities to understand.

Original draw of Ptah-Tatenen, by PharaohCrab: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ptah-Tatenen.png#

Ptah holding his Djed pillar, in front of Ramesses II. Temple of Derr, Amada, Lake Nasser. Photograph by Rivertay07: https://www.flickr.com/photos/rivertay/2493217074/in/set-72157604899322576/

35.15  If most of the time the staff of Ptah is associated with the Ankh; it is only because there is the Was scepter as well: because the Djed caisson was hollow, it would have looked like it had been drilled from top to bottom by the Was drilling bit, and cold would have been needed against the overheating problem (another illustration of the Ankh being the symbol of the cold)

Stela E13579 at the Penn museum, University of Pennsylvania. “Fragment of raised relief decoration showing Ptah seated and holding a scepter with symbols for dominion, life, and stability. A partial column of text in front of Ptah's head records his epithet (Anx-tA.wj). Behind him, the hand of his consort, Sekhmet, holding a papyriform staff. Two partial columns of text give her name as "Sekhmet the Great, Beloved of Ptah, Mistress of Ankh-tawy.": https://www.penn.museum/collections/object/176945

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Table of contents

Operating diagrams of the Great Pyramid

Timelines

Index