Orion correlation theory

Star outline of the constellation of Orion (Osiris). Can be observed Orion Belt oriented with its extreme stars towards Sirio (Isis-Sothis) and Aldebaran.

The Orion Correlation Theory or OCT (initial acronym of Orion correlation theory in English) is a hypothesis of pseudoscientific Egyptology which postulates the existence of a correlation between the location of the three largest pyramids of the Giza pyramid complex and Orion's Belt of the constellation Orion, and that this correlation was intended as such by the original builders of the pyramid complex Giza pyramids. Orion's stars were supposedly associated with Osiris, the ancient Egyptian god of rebirth and the afterlife. Depending on the version of the theory, additional pyramids may be included to complete the picture of the Orion constellation, and the Nile River can be included to match the Milky Way galaxy. The theory was first published in 1989 in Discussions in Egyptology, volume 13. It was the subject of a best-seller, The Orion Mystery, in 1994, as well as a BBC documentary, The Great Pyramid: Gateway to the Stars (February 1994), and appears in some new age books.

Graphic representation of the three pyramids of Giza according to the theory of the correlation of Orion.

Criticism

Arguments made by Hancock, Bauval, Anthony West, and others about the importance of proposed correlations have been criticized.

Among them are criticisms from two astronomers, Ed Krupp of the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles and Tony Fairall of the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Using planetary equipment, Krupp and Fairall independently investigated the angle between Orion's belt alignment and north during the era cited by Hancock, Bauval, et al. (which differs from the angle seen today or in the 3rd millennium BC, due to the precession of the equinoxes). They discovered that the angle was somewhat different from the "perfect match" that existed between Bauval and Hancock in the theory of the Orion constellation. They calculate 47-50 degrees from the measurements of the orrery, compared to the 38 degree angle formed by the pyramids.

Krupp noted that the slightly bent line formed by the three pyramids deviated to the north, while the slight "deflection" at the Orion Belt line it was deformed to the south, and to make them coincide, one or the other of them had to turn inside out. In fact, this is what they did in the original book Bauval and Gilbert (The Orion Mystery), which compares images of the pyramids and Orion without revealing that the map of the pyramids had been reversed. Krupp and Fairall find other problems with their arguments, even noting that if the Sphinx is meant to represent the constellation Leo, then it should be on the opposite side of the Nile (the 'Milky Way') from the pyramids ("Orion"), that the vernal equinox of 10,500 BC was in Virgo and not Leo, and that, in any case, the constellations of the zodiac originate in Mesopotamia and were completely unknown in Egypt until the time late Greco-Roman. Ed Krupp repeated this statement about "backwards" in the BBC documentary Atlantis Reborn (1999).

In a ruling by the Broadcasting Standards Commission (UK), the committee found in favor of Robert Bauval that Krupp's claim that the maps were placed upside down was presented "unfairly" in the BBC documentary Atlantis Reborn, not including Bauval's filmed response. Bauval's and Hancock's filmed responses to Krupp's statements were included in the modified version of the documentary Atlantis Reborn Again, shown on December 14, 2000. The revised documentary continued to cast serious doubt on Bauval's and Hancock's ideas, as held by astronomer Anthony Fairall, Ed Krupp of the Griffith Observatory, Egyptologist Kate Spence of the University of Cambridge, and Eleanor Mannikka of the University of Michigan.

Andrew Collins and Rodney Hale have proposed an "alternative correlation theory" using three bright stars in the constellation Cygnus. They argued that not only did the plane fit the sky but also the stars could be observed above the corresponding pyramids. His proposal has also been contested.

The Orion Correlation

The pyramids

The authors state that what this theory proposes goes beyond being a simple astroarchaeological coincidence. They say that the three pyramids of Giza (belonging to the pharaohs Cheops, Khafre and Menkaure of the Fourth Dynasty) are aligned with great accuracy, despite their monumentality, with Orion's belt, that is, they form an image of its stars in the land. At present this is not exact: Orion's three stars form an angle that differs by a few degrees from that formed by the pyramids. But if you calculate the precessional changes of Orion's belt over the centuries, you see that there was a time when these three stars were aligned exactly the same in relation to the Milky Way as the pyramids were in relation to the Nile River: around 10,500 B.C. C. Robert Bauval made these calculations, which he shows in his book "The Orion Mystery", and speculates with the possibility that it is at this time that the master project of the pyramids of Gizeh was conceived, although these were built later in historical times. They even go further, stating that: not only are the latter within the Orion correlation, but also the rest of the pyramids (the majority built in later dynasties) have their image in the sky; these pyramids are those of Dahshur, Abusir, Zawyet el-Aryan and Abu Roash.

Orientations of the so-called vents of the great pyramid: Alfa Draconis, Osa Menor, Orion and Sirio.

In addition, the so-called “ventilation channels” of the Great Pyramid of Giza, discovered by R. Howard Vyse, and W. Dixon point directly to the stars. Those on the south side point to the constellation Orion (from the king's chamber) and the star Sirius (from the queen's chamber). The chambers on the north side point to the Ursa Minor (from the queen's chamber) and to Alpha Draconis or Thuban (from the king's chamber), the star that marked north some 4,800 years ago.

One of the greatest critics of the correlation theory, the Spanish Juan Antonio Belmonte, astrophysicist and one of the world's leading experts in archaeoastronomy in the world affirms: The assumptions that support such nonsense are not wasted and also invalidate other of his hypotheses.

The Great Sphinx

On the other hand, the writer and alternative history researcher John Anthony West, together with the geologist Robert Schoch, stated in their book Sperpent in the Sky: The High Wisdom of Ancient Egypt that twelve millennia ago, the Sphinx of Giza was built representing the sky of that time and was based on the direction of the vernal point of the earth that pointed directly towards the Constellation of Leo, having the initial shape of a lion, which was degraded by erosion and later restored, receiving his current half-lion, half-man form. They argue that they have found marks on the Sphinx that show erosion by rainwater; During the last ice age, which also dates from that time when the Sahara was a veritable orchard, it often rained in this area around 10,500 BC. c.

Criticism

Egyptologists maintain that the Great Sphinx was carved in the 25th century BCE. C., forming part of the Kefren pyramid complex, and that his face may represent that of the pharaoh himself.