November 30, 2011 - Statue of Ramses II Discovered

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nSomenconstruction workers dug down into the earth in Akhmim, in Egypt, innorder to prepare a foundation for a new post office. And…theynuncovered an ancient statue of an ancient pharaoh, Ramses II.

nThat’snhow things go in Egypt!

nInhave read that, in Akhmim, some people go into their own courtyardsnand begin to dig, and a few of them have discovered majornarcheological finds! Apparently the temple once built in that area wasnhuge—Arabic visitors from the ninth century said it took fromnsunrise to sunset to view the temple! However, most of the temple andnthe rest of the ancient city were torn down during the middle ages,nand the materials were reused to create other buildings. n

nChecknout some of the ancient statues in Akhmim here and here.

nWhat’snin a name?
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nInam not that surprised when I see that the Italian name for Romenis “Roma,” or the Spanish name for MexiconCitynis “la Ciudad de Mexico”n(sincenciudadnmeans city).nHowever, I am surprised when one place has very different names. Thisnis the case with Akhmim. Apparently the ancient town was called Ipu,nthen Khent-Min,nthen Khemisnby ancient Egyptians; Panapolisnbynancient Greeks; andnChmin bynCoptic Christians.
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nAnfamous pharaoh
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nSomenof the statues discovered in Akhmim depict pharaoh Ramses II and hisndaughters and wives. Ramses II lived more than three thousand yearsnago. And…speaking of varied names, his name is sometimes spellednRamesses,nand he sometimes is sometimes called Ramses (or Ramesses) the Great.nDon’t be confused: these are all names for the same guy.
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nWhatnmade him so great? Well, for one thing, Ramses II lived a reallynlooong time, even for modern times. He was around 90 years old when hendied—and back then, most Egyptians who made it past babyhood onlynlived to be 30 or 40 years old.
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This statue of Ramses was not found in Akhmim.
As a matter of fact, it is not in Egypt–it is
in Tennessee, in the United States!

nAlso,nRamses II is considered one of the most powerful pharaohs of thenEgyptian Empire, as he led successful military expeditions intonCanaan, Libya and Nubia and defeated sea pirates who had beennattacking Egyptian trading vessels on the Mediterranean Sea.
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nRamsesnII made sure he was remembered; he ordered a lot of colossal (huge) statues carved of himself,nand had temples and other monuments erected in his honor all over Egypt.nCheck out these photos of just a few…and then these.
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nExplorensome more
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nBBCnoffers “Mummy Maker” and “Pyramid Builder,” and Mr. Donnnpresents a colossal amount of ancient Egyptian stuff!
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