The Orion Mystery: Unlocking the Secrets of the Pyramids [Paperback]

Robert Bauval (Author), Adrian Gilbert (Author)

Book Description

Release date: August 22, 1995 | ISBN-10: 0517884542 | ISBN-13: 978-0517884546

A revolutionary book that explains the most enigmatic and fascinating wonder of the ancient world: the Pyramids of Egypt. "[An] absorbing and fascinating work of archaeological detection...clearly and rivetingly told...the book is highly and compulsively readable."--London Sunday Times. 16-page black-and-white inserts.

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

This fascinating archaeological detective story argues that the great pyramids of Egypt's Fourth Dynasty (c. 26002400 b.c.) were vast astronomically sophisticated temples, rather than the pharaonic tombs depicted by conventional Egyptology. In March 1993, a tiny remote-controlled robot created by Rudolf Gantenbrink, a German robotics engineer, traveled up airshafts within the Great Pyramid of Giza and relayed to scientists video pictures of a hitherto unknown sealed door within the pyramid. Bauval, a British engineer and writer who has been investigating the pyramids for more than ten years, and Gilbert, a British publishing consultant, use Gantenbrink's tantalizing discovery as a launching pad for an extended analysis of the purpose of the mysterious airshafts, which lead from the Great Pyramid's chambers to its exterior, and of the placement of other Fourth Dynasty pyramids. They were sited, the authors argue, to coincide with the key stars of Orion, a constellation that had religious significance for the Egyptians. Bauval and Gilbert claim that the shafts were pointed directly at important stars in Orion--that is, at those stars as they were placed in ancient times. Using astronomical data about stellar movement, they argue that the Orion stars coincide exactly with the pyramids' positions in approximately 10,400 b.c.--a period the Egyptians called the First Time, when they believed the god Osiris ruled the Earth. The authors also speculate that the mysterious space within the Great Pyramid discovered by Gantenbrink contains the mythical Benben stone, which the Egyptians linked to the creation of the world. The book's contentions are sometimes far-fetched and certainly unlikely to put scholarly controversy about the pyramids to rest. Still, this is an enjoyably radical rethinking of the mystery of the pyramids, with some ingenious arguments made in lucid style. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

For those who are intrigued by the world's ancient mysteries, this is the story of a secret, hidden for thousands of years: the Pyramids of Egypt. Dramatic and compelling, this book leads us step-by-step through a number of remarkable discoveries.

16 pages B & W photograph. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 325 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Books (August 22, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517884542
• ISBN-13: 978-0517884546
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #179,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

90 of 93 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A nice try to upset egyptologists August 11, 2000

By vlad

Format:Paperback

The nature of the pyramids is still a mystery, no matter how much the official Egyptology believes in its tomb theory and in the dates when the Fourth Dynasty built those enormous constructions.

You just have to visit Giza to realize there is something very strange, very impressive and so much beyond our understanding about Khufu, Khefren and Menkaure pyramids. You can even go to Meidum, Saqqara, or visit the Bent pyramid and the Red one to strenghten the impression about the Giza pyramids: they are simply unique, and that is really difficult to answer the questions like when and why were they constructed.

The Bauval's theory is well-shaped and rather smart enough. It may be one to entertain readers, or it may be true - one can hardly find out the truth right away. But it is really strong and explains so many things that were never explained before.

The importance of the theory, and the book as the whole, however, is in the different field: it shakes up the mainstream Egyptology, it wakes it, as well as other people, up, and it opens our eyes making us see that there is always a place for an alternate reality, and there is always a chance to explain what the official science fails to explain.

The book places a lot of evidence again that the ancient egyptians, or the people lived there before them, possessed the knowledge so much underestimated by modern egyptologists, the knowledge that was really huge and comparable with a today's one. That makes the book another breakthrough in the process of discussing the history of humankind.

The book will remind you now that it is not an easy way to argue with, or contradict the established scientific theory.... The saddest story of all times is Gantenbrink's tries to solve some of the Great pyramid's puzzles: since 1994 nobody, including egyptian egyptologists, has ever let him continue his investigations, no matter how hard he tried to get the permission, or how perfect his robot finally became.

The Orion Mystery may be considered another brick in the building of the real science. A must-read for everyone who does not feel indifferent to the problems of history and modern science. Read more ›

44 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars History revised November 29, 1999

By L. Blumenthal VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

This book not only takes apart the basic history of Egypt you learned in school, it introduces the radical concept that the Eygyptians weren't a). stupid, b). primitive, or c). superstitious twits.

Bauval shows how the pyramids were arranged so precisely because they were creating a heaven on earth--they reflect the patterns of Orion's belt on the ground. This had deep significance to a race of people who believed ''as above, so below.''

The reader who claims that Bauval now refutes his own Orion theory is sadly misinformed. Anyone who is interested can go read Bauval's letter to the BBC at [...] Apparently, the ''Horizon'' program, in its zeal to knock both Hancock (not a pseudo-scientist but a talented journalist)badly mis-represented Bauval's theories to the British viewing public.

But read it for yourself. I think the sequel, ''The Message of the Sphinx,''is even better.

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Orion Mystery - Unlocking the Secrets of the Pyramids April 15, 2000

By JEFFREY E FULLNER

Format:Paperback

I found this book to be absolutely stunning. A 'must read' for amateur Egyptologist. This book unlocks one of the most interesting secrets of the Pyramids at Giza and shows evidence of a long range organized master plan of the layout of the pyramids that must have been conceived many years before they were built. The relationship to the stars is uncanny and so accurate that the writer claims he is able to date the exact construction period of the pyramids within 50 years of the date they were actually built.

I was convinced without a doubt that the pyramids were built with measuring tools that have yet to be discovered. This books lays claim to one such tool although the actual physical device has proved elusive and only drawings exist to date.

The book leaves you hanging for a part II, which shows new convincing evidence that yet another hidden chamber, may exist in one of the pyramids that may contain the designs and the signature of the king who built it. As of the writing of this book, the door to this room was discovered but not yet opened. (An investigation was planned for 1994, but no details of this project have been given in this book.)

You will also see that the mathematics behind the pyramids are nothing less that electrifying. The relationship between the angles used and the rising sun and the relationship to other cities that may reference other stars, will keep you glued till the end. It doesn't take a scientist to figure out that the pyramids are a well-planned map of the stars...but you be the judge.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting read with new and fresh ideas! July 14, 2002

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

I find "THE ORION MYSTERY" an interesting book, and was quite hard to put down after reading the 1st chapter. Robert Bauval introduces new revolutionary theories that the Egyptians were not a heliocentric (solar-based) culture but an astral (star-based) one. Also included in his book are interesting details of the Upuaut 2 robotic exploration of the shafts in the Great Pyramid of Khufu. His writing was very down-to-earth and not confusing or scientific - a wonderful book for anyone interested in Egypt and the pyramids.

42 of 54 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Reasonable, if flawed. May 15, 1999

By Michael Bulger

Format:Paperback

The basic message of the forebodingly titled "The Orion Mystery" is that the ground plan of many, if not all, of the Egyptian pyramids, as well as their basic architecture, was intentionally designed to reflect the positions of stars in the sky. The most basic pattern to which Bauval calls attention is the correlation between the three pyramids at Giza with the positions of the three belt stars in the constellation of Orion. Bauval's hypothesis is reasonable, and though it may be difficult to test, it may provide some insight into the precepts that underlie the construction of these massive monuments. In particular, it is refreshing to read a book on the subject of pyramid-star correlations that is relatively free of the sort of pseudoscience practiced by the likes of Graham Hancock and others. The prospective reader should be warned, however, that the extension of the correlation of ground plan to star positions at Giza to other pyramids in Egypt has been effectively discredited, as I understand even Bauval admits; it would appear that there was no grand plan to draw Orion/Osiris across such a large region. This essentially reduces the useful portion of the book by half, but the remainder is still worthwhile. The writing fails to win awards, but is serviceable. I would assign three different recommendations: for those who plan to eventually take the plunge into the mystical fringes of pseudoscientific archaeology, this is a good gateway book; for those who have already dived in, this is tame stuff that will probably only bore you; for everyone else, this is speculative, but still rational.