Solar Boat Museum

12/17/2009

Our first day in Egypt, we went to visit the pyramids. Next to one of the pyramids was a museum called the Solar Boat Museum. Before we went on to see the Sphinx, we stopped into this museum to see a boat that had been found underground in 1954. The boat was found exactly in the area the museum was built in a huge pit, which was on the south side of the Great Pyramid. The boat was found in 1,200 pieces and was put back together using only ancient Egyptian materials which consisted of wooden pegs and grass rope. Over top of the boat were several heavy slabs of limestone. The boat was called the sun boat by archaeologists because it resembles the vessels seen in tombs paintings in which the sun god used. The boat was believed to be made for the pharaoh, Cheops, who laid to rest in the Great Pyramid. He would use this boat to travel through the twelve gates to reach his place of judgment. Cheops was to be accompanied by the sun god through this journey; therefore, it was called the Solar Boat. The paddles for the boat were too big for any human to row. The wood from the boat was not any kind of wood found in Egypt so it is believed this boat came from another country. It was used to transport the pharaoh’s body to be placed in his tomb, and then it was buried behind the pyramid. The boat was actually suspended in the air near the roof of the museum. This allowed for visitors to view the entire boat, including the bottom. I thought this piece of history was magnificent and I admired the time and work put into this boat. It is such an old piece and still looks in tacked. The Egyptians really knew how to preserve what they buried.


Posted at 10:32 AM by Tayler Oldin