THE PORTCULLIS OF CHEOPS

THE AUTOMATIC PORTCULLIS SYSTEM OF CHEOPS

The Portcullis system in the heart of Cheops is an enigma. It sits between the King’s Chamber and the Grand Gallery. The Antechamber and the portcullis stones are shown in the center of the reconstruction below.

The King’s Chamber, Antechamber and top of the Grand Gallery

The three stones provide no more security for the pharaoh’s unfound treasure than one. As a result, there have been all manner of ideas associated with these stones. Some have suggested their weight provides some resonant properties. They have been included in ultra advanced systems to produce microwaves. There are many more proposals. Most of the ideas are subjective or impossible to test or prove.

The following short summary is part of the full mechanic of Cheops detailed in the upcoming book ‘Sailing to Atlantis’. The automated mechanism relies on one of the oldest and simplest known principles – buoyancy. It simply shows how the stones in the antechamber will open and close automatically if water is added.

The actual mechanic can have several variants. Without knowing the exact arrangement of the ropes between the portcullis stones it is not easy to decide which was used. The following is just one possible working example. This version integrates into the full mechanic of Cheops

When the first two stones are roped to the third over the pulleys like the diagram below, the first two stones lift the third one up.

Empty Ante Chamber

The balance can be changed by simply adding water. When the water level rises to the top of the lower two stones, the buoyancy of the water effectively reduces the weight of the first two stones. At this point the third stone has enough force to pull the two stones up slightly. This opens up a gap beneath the stones (See diagram below).

Ante Chamber half full

If the water level keeps on rising, the third stone becomes submerged in water too. This reduces its downward force and the balance of the system shifts again. The first and second stone fall back down to the original levels though now the chamber is flooded with water.

The Ante Chamber full of Water

By simply raising and lowering the water in the antechamber, the stones open and close the entrance to the King’s Chamber automatically. The change in water level is linked to the function of the Great Pyramid, which is described in the upcoming book.

‘Sailing to Atlantis’ is an extension of the Ancient Solar Premise (ASP). The Grand ASP deals with the ancient need for water and its uses. Once water is added to ancient structures the functions become clear. Mostly it is as simple as the Portcullis system above. Once the evidence of great water systems is revealed the nature of the prehistory is changed dramatically. For advanced copies e-mail SecretsoftheSunSects@yahoo.com or subscribe to this site for further updates and information.

Confusion & Realization

Confusion

Is it a pan-galactic Nephilim spacecraft with fusor drive, a secret military research project, flying saucer?

Nephilim spacecraft?

Military Research Project?

Flying saucer?

 

Realization

Actually, my daughter put those operating instructions on the back. She is into post-modern primitive impressionist symbolic art, she’s only four. I hope no one gets confused, that star is the sun. Her intended meaning was ”point this directly at the sun in order to generate intensities of up to 10Mw per square meter”. What she actually said was ”that gets really bright and hot” & ‘It can melt rocks’.

It is of course the parts for this example of a once common ancient tool?

 

Sun Dish at 1500C

 

Check out the rest of this site for the effects of using this device

Video Links

This series of videos show just what is possible with intense beams of sunlight. They do not all use sun dishes, but the physics is near identical in form. The inference from these modern solar technologists is that an ancient with a dish could pretty much deliver the same techniques (excepting the computer controls). Materials transforms and cutting are all practical without recourse to anything more exotic than a parabolic concetrator.

Solar sinter project

AMAZING this guy is making glass from sand by pointing a beam at it. He even makes pots with just a guided beam

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ptUj8JRAYu8

Rock cutting

Big Ass Fresenl lens These guys were just having fun and show how quick a beam will cut thru rocks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsPybcCps6U&feature=related

Fresnel melts metals easily

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6X_8Ob9XPU&sns=fb

5000 Suns this guy is getting famous for showing the potency of the mosaic method of concentrating sunlight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtxdYgkcGtc

The guys at Green energy are doing a great job showing a vast array of possibilities. This link shows one, it links to plent yof others at the end. Just point and click.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtzRAjW6KO0

Steel melting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5loiW3STzU&feature=related

”Solar Death Ray” more fun with great marketing

2700 degs F

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QbX3Fhlm-8

Stirling Engine Solar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AsnE9kwyDw

Glass cutting with a dish

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oP40BDFF1cQ

If you have any links that you think would make good additions to this post please post them at the bottom of the page. If any links have ceased to work please mention it in the same spot.

Solar Cooker Storage

This page has been compiled to address the Solar Cooking Storage issue with simple, inexpensive and effective methods of heat storage. It is based on some very old methods using stones and large sealed chambers that are outlined in The Ancient Solar Premise

Simple Storage

The first method just has a black sheet of metal wrapped tightly around a solid fired house brick; this is aligned with three others and placed in an insulating box. See diagram. The energy throughput can be increased by increasing the number of metal casings and reducing the size of the bricks. This is a slight improvement on just placing black stones in the base of a box cooker.

Simple Brick & Metal Conductor Storage Array

Storage with High Energy Throughput

The second arrangement increases the throughput of energy, both in and out, by increasing the metal contact area. The same metal sheaf is used as above, but there are pipes welded to the interior. The pipes fit tightly into the holes in hollow fired house bricks. The pipes are cut along one edge to allow for expansion without cracking the bricks.

Brick Storage with Metal plate & pipe conductor enhancements

Usage

Both arrays are used in the same way. Prior to cooking the brick arrays are left in the base of the solar cooker. As the sun heats the metal surface, the energy is transferred to the bricks. This allows the bricks to heat up and store the sun’s energy. If the array is exposed to the air, an insulating lid needs to be put on the metal surface when the sun disappears. This is also beneficial within enclosed box style cookers as an extra insulation measure.

Cooking can be carried out in the normal fashion by placing a pot or tray of food onto the surface whilst exposed to the sun. The heat within the stones allows the cooking to continue even if the sun is obscured.

Alternatively, cooking can be carried out purely with the heat stored in the bricks. At sunset, the food is placed in the box cooker and the lid is closed. This allows the food to slow cook with the heat from the bricks.

With this second approach, there is a clear relation between the amount of food that can be cooked and the mass of the bricks. The bricks should weigh more than the food and be heated to as high a temperature as possible. This is achieved with large reflector panels.

In both cases, the speed of cooking is improved because the heat is being directed at the base of the food. Convection currents take it upwards guaranteeing the whole is at temperature. The colors of the foods are also incidental in this approach since it is the stones and the metal conductor that deliver the heat.

Materials

Steel sheets were used in tests for the first arrangement and proved good enough conductors. Clearly copper would be a much better conductor of heat though significantly more expensive. Iron may be a good compromise.

Bricks were used in all of the tests. The principle is based on storing the sun’s energy in a variety of dark stones such as granite, basalt and obsidian. A variety of materials can be used in the arrangements. Natural stones are the most durable, store energy very well and do not even require the metal sheaf if they are black. However, because of the expense in some regions, fired house bricks prove a reasonable substitute. They can be used with paints, but the throughput is limited by the contact area. The designs above double or triple the surfaces through which the heat can be transferred.

There are composite bricks designed specifically for storing heat used in electric storage heaters. These may prove the best material for the task.

Reservations

There are several issues with this style of solar heat storage.

The primary one is that the stones have to be preheated before cooking occurs. This means there are initiation times  proportionate to the mass of stone and the temperature required. However, this is also the source of the utility, since the cooking can continue at night or whilst there is no sun. This removes the primary temporal restriction on solar cooking,

The brick heat capacities vary greatly from place to place. This is because of the different clays used and the variety of firing temperatures. This is also true of the natural stones, which form with different compositions and conditions. Each region requires the stones to be tested in practice to realize assured guidelines.

The insulator used in tests was a standard polystyrene icebox with layers of aluminum foil and cardboard protection. This proved an excellent insulator. It retained the heat within the stones overnight. The problem was the degradation of the polystyrene over time because of the heat. This reduces both the storage capacity and the time it can be stored. The exact figures for this area are a constantly moving target.

Ancient Solar Stonecutting Techniques

Fracturing stones with an intense beam of light is easy. In the first tests carried out with sun dishes, most stones shattered almost instantly. It was only after controlling the way the heat was delivered that stones ceased to split on contact with the beam. This allowed a number of more subtle effects to be realized.

Amongst these techniques, there is gem annealing, stone glazing, ceramic creation, food cooking, metal vaporizing, metal welding, metal cutting and many more. These procedures were developed originally over centuries of dish use. As a scientist with clues from the archaeological record and modern texts, they were all developed over the course of a year or two.

These techniques clearly point up the ladder of sun dish skills. Possibly at the top is the ability to cut and write in stone with light. Whilst simple roman numerals have already been written in stone and stones have been fractured, there are finer methods that use control systems.

These controls are nothing more sophisticated than paints or charcoal to protect or help heat particular areas. Light guards to guarantee the direction of the beam. Finally, there are templates that allow patterns to be made without error.

These are currently being developed and tested as time permits. The inspiration comes from the ancient Talmudic texts. They describe both stone cutting and writing in gems with the Shamir. The extract below from The Ancient Solar Premise relates the content from the various sources.

Current Research

The techniques currently being tested follow two streams. Firstly, gemstones are being coated with a mask of charcoal, paint or ink and the responses of various gems are being tested. Whilst ceramic paints have already been melted onto stone and pottery, this is an alternative way to write in stone. The body of the gem or stone will react differently in places where it is painted.

Buzzing stones after charcoal paint is applied

Gems have already been changed completely or partially with a beam of light. New fundamentals being established are as follows. Will the paint protect the gem color and allow the rest to change. This will lead to an original color under the paint and a faded color around the paint. Alternatively, will the reverse happen? Will the dark paint absorb more light and heat up the gem beneath the paint causing it to change color?

Testing requires the correct paint, ink, charcoal, light intensity, dish size, stone selection, time of exposure, ambient weather and patience.

 

The second technique involves using light guards to protect areas of the stone and expose other parts. When water is poured onto the heated section of stone, small chunks can presumably be fractured away quite quickly. This is a more sophisticated version of the fracturing already established. It also allows some degree of control over the beam. In principle, very small dishes can be used to deliver very fine work.

Cutting with Light Guards made of Gold or Aluminum

There is no doubt the stones will fracture, but there are additional things to discover. New fundamentals being established are as follows. How fast is the process with dishes, how small can the sun dish be, how accurate can the cuts be made, exposure times, water-cooling and which metals will be used?

In the past gold plates seem to have been used. Budgets preclude this option, but modern shiny metals should suffice. The reflective properties prevent too much light being absorbed and the metal will not melt. This process is already being used in laser systems that etch onto stones. Small movable metal plates move whilst the laser remains fixed. As they move, the tip of the beam is directed to a different spot. It is a very successful technique.

Testing requires the right ambient weather, exposure times, rock selection, light guard spacing, template alignment, template distances and of course patience.

Both techniques are outlined in the Talmudic texts summarized below. The techniques are only minor extensions to work already carried out with tools actually found in the archaeological record. This places a device in the hands of the ancient stonemason that:

• Requires no energy or effort apart from the sun
• Requires little if any maintenance
• Works noiselessly as mentioned below
• Cuts through virtually any stone hard or soft
• Delivers the requisite accuracy to inscribe in small gems
• Produces the fine stonework identified in antiquity
• Delivers the huge cuts noted in ancient rocks with large dishes

They also leave the tell tale marks of heat; vitrified surfaces, color changes induced by heat and many more. This page will be updated as the tests are completed.

Extract from The Ancient Solar Premise

The Shamir

Cutting stone might be thought of as rather an extreme application of solar techniques. There would surely be some text support for such an amazing method. Apart from the references from Peru, there are others that have a more surreal quality. The Shamir is a fabled device that is related from both Arab legend and Jewish texts. Its provenance can be traced back to the Exilic Jews, but there is much between it and fact. This is dealt with more fully in the book A Brief History of the Sun Sects. However, a brief summary is instructive.

There are two accounts of the Shamir being used in ways that have a certain resonance with the techniques in this text. Outside of the ideas expressed and tested here, no others even come close to matching this myth with real tools. The Shamir was used to write in stone by Moses during the exilic years and to build the Temple of Solomon.

In the oldest part of the myth, the Shamir was used in preparing stones for the ritual garb of the Tabernacle. In Exodus, it says that the precious stones for the Urim and Tummim were to be engraved with the names of the twelve tribes “like the engravings of a signet”. No ordinary tool was to be used in this sacred work making the cuts in the stones. Scripture required that the stones remain “in their fullness.”

Bezalel and his workers first wrote the names in ink on each of the gemstones (ruby, topaz, smaragd, garnet, sapphire, emerald, zircon, agate, amethyst, beryl, jasper, onyx). Then the shamir performed its work. This etched the names with such skill that not one atom of stone was lost. In some interpretations, the inked stones were shown the Shamir or exposed to its action.

In the more recent part of the tale, the Shamir neatly solves some problems caused by constraints put on the temple building process. The brief mention comes from Kings and notes that David was attempting to build the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. The main limit was that no metal tools were to be used: “For the house, while it was in the building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house while it was being built.”

The biblical injunction read: “….if you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones; for if you lift up your tool upon it, you have polluted it.” Iron tools were linked to the sword, which was a weapon of war and death. In contrast, the altar and temple were the symbols of peace and life. Solomon wanted the altar and all the stonework in the temple to be made ready at the quarry without using any metal tool or instrument.

This might be a big constraint, but there also seems to have been neighbor trouble. They were complaining about the noise of the temple construction. This seems unlikely since a ruler would not have to listen to the locals. Whether true or not, the Shamir provided an answer that betrayed another of its properties. At the end of the Arab version, the king summons the Jinns from the Samur Mountains to his aid. They seem to have had many Shamir stones (samurs), which could shape and polish the stone blocks ‘noiselessly’.

These actions have a certain parallel to the sun dish techniques noted. The gemstone changes of colors are related along with results where only parts of the stone were etched. Seven of the gems mentioned were tested and changed quite easily with a small dish. Likewise, the use of paints, inks or charcoal to change parts of stones is outlined. It also strikes a chord with the ink and template methods used to cut granites and other stones. Most of all it is the ability to cut stones silently. What other method of stone cutting is there that can cut stone without noise? This is definitely not the chisel, sander, boulder, power saw or any other tool but light.

Whilst the actions of the tool have a bearing, the physical properties also add some clues. The tool was said to be a worm, about the size of a barley grain and able to cut through anything.

The ‘worm’ description seems to derive from the fact that the tool is not a mineral but living. This defies even the best minds, unless it is simply the point of light at the tip being described. This intense spot of light is not living or dead, but a dynamic tube of intense power. How else would they have described it?

This point of light can be made the size of a barley grain and it will shatter anything, even hard, durable stones. The rocks were said to split of their own accord at the markings, as a fig opens. Indeed stones do split on there own when exposed to the beam as tests have shown. It is suspected that the barley connection arises from the storage box details.

From the Greek works on Solomon, the Shamir is described as a green stone. A dish made of brass or bronze or any non-gold alloy would green with age. The color is seen on many metal museum pieces. Whether this is correct or not, it is the best of a poor set of answers. There are no green stones able to cut through granites and other hard rocks.

Lastly, there is the storage of this fabled object to deal with. The tool was looked after by the Hoopoe-bird. He kept it in a lead box, wrapped in a cloth amongst some barley grains. Only lead could resist the action of the device. This would be a surprise if it were active because lead is easily melted with a dish. The contradiction in being the size of barley grain, but wrapped in a cloth amongst others is clear. For a start, it could get lost in with all the others if it fell out of the cloth. It would also be strange to wrap up something the size of a grain of barley.

If it were a dish, it would be wise to keep it within a sealed box. This prevents the dish becoming dangerous in the presence of the sun. Barley is a quite effective at keeping moisture at bay within a sealed box. This would be wise if the device was made of an alloy since it would degrade quite quickly. The cloth would protect a dish from being bent out of shape in the event the box was dropped.

On balance, it is hard to separate fact from myth as with most history. Some have taken these notions and made radioactive theories, the priests have invoked the powers of gods. As far as the author is aware, the solar tools here are the only ones able to deliver all of the facilities afforded to this device. There is much more of this type of reasoning in A Brief History of the Sun Sects. The tool is put into context alongside the Tabernacle and the needs of the people of Moses. For the moment, this tale is just a sidebar on an eminently useful device that still has a few more things to deliver.

Stone Circles Reconstructed

The Ancient Solar Premise (ASP) explains the simple principle under which all of the solar buildings of antiquity have been reviewed. The stone circles of Europe form a part of the Grand Ancient Solar Premise (GASP). They provide the temporal depth and geographic spread away from the more recent examples of the tropics. This page is simply an outline of the evidence and principles explored in detail within the Secrets of the Sun Sects. It transpires that the ancient Britons amongst others were early proponents of solar technology.

Stone Circle Buildings

There are some controversial elements to the application of the ancient solar premise to stone circles. The most controversial seems to be that Stonehenge had a roof. This is bizarre. What is the difference between a roundhouse, a Woodhenge and Stonehenge? Just bigger and better buildings as far as I can tell. Clearly Stonehenge is the remaining foundations of an incredibly ancient circular palace or fort. It still served this purpose at the time of the roman invasion.

Reconstructed Stone Circle with reflective doors and roof

The Solar Function

At the center of the solar stone circle, there was a large dark obelisk that supported the roof. This also absorbed and stored the sunlight. Who is going to say dark stones do not get hot in the sun? The simplest stone circles (roundhouses, woodcircles, yurts) can work like south facing bay windows, allowing light in and  absorbing it in the stone, floor and walls. This confers on the builder a domestic warming factor that is still useful in reducing fuel bills by 40% today. In ancient times this could be the difference between traveling miles to a wood and meeting enemies or animals along the way.

Whilst this is useful, it is the most controversial aspect of the ASP as it applies to stone circles that shows truly sophisticated use of sunlight. According to some ancient writers, there were circular stone palaces that were covered in reflective metals and allowed the monarch ”to sit in the central chamber warmed without fire, whilst snow lay on the ground”. If Levy’s accounts are to be believed, there were still wooden doors/barricades on the outside of Stonehenge, thousands of years after it’s original function had been displaced. These doors were similar in form and function to the brass/gold/silver covered doors that graced the sanctuaries of Asia. Each slit between the outer circle standing stones had a pair of large reflective doors that directed sunlight into the great chamber.

The Divine Dance of the Sun

To use a stone circle the doors had to be attended and opened when the sun was in front of them. The single stone pillar versions could only use three or five doors at the same time, for geometric reasons. The most exquisite forms like Stonehenge could utilize seven pairs. When seven pairs of doors were opened at the same time a dark stone from the inner circle warmed. As the sun moved around the most easterly door pair were closed and the next westerly pair were opened, this started to warm the next pillar in the inner ring. Any light that missed the inner ring of pillars would strike the central pillar and the whole palace warmed in the cold of winter. In summer, there were crops dried, meats cooked and waters boiled like the Asiatic devices.

Schematic of solar arrangement of stones and reflectors

There are further elements to the neolithic exposition of the solar concept including double stone absorbers, oval structures, amazing metal floors, natural night lighting, water collection, secondary circle absorbers etc. Each really deserves an article in its own right, particularly the source materials and comparisons. The complete model makes the constructors of the stone circles much more than stone lugging, sun worshiping fools the Roman historians would have us believe. There is a fundamental role in the inception of the great cultures of near antiquity to consider, but that is a long story.

This is a poor summary of the stone circles as described in the Secrets of the Sun Sects and it will not sit well with those interested in the ceremonial/ethereal functions that followed. However for those who wish to build working versions of the structures, it should be enough. It is guaranteed that if models are built according to this scheme or the detailed plans in the book, there will be no doubt. A few people have questioned the premise, one Swede even had a stone circle in his back garden, not one of them would pick up the center stone of the working scale models.

Archimedes’ Burning Mirror Problem Solved

 By Christopher Jordan

The ”Secrets of the Sun Sects” makes the case for the extensive use of solar technology by ancient civilizations. There are two strands of evidence, parabolic solar concentrators and heating large black stones. Through two simple devices, it is shown that the successful societies of antiquity were using the sun to underpin their industry, art and science. The solar relics are surprisingly common and are all tied together with the rediscovery of lost techniques that are proving useful today. The implications are explored in some re-framed histories of the important sun cultures.

The focus of this article is the parabolic solar mirrors that are supposed to have existed in antiquity. The majority of comparable proposals fall down primarily because there is no method to make the elusive devices. For centuries, the prevailing view has been that spherical reflectors make poor parabolas, ”The Math behind Burning Mirrors” refutes this completely. With this change of perspective, Christopher Jordan not only shows how they built and used these tools, but also explains many anomalies from the artifacts. These curved mirrors turn out to be the most powerful devices up until the twentieth century with amazing capabilities.

Parabolic concentrators

 The problem of how to make powerful solar concentrators has plagued historians and scientists from Archimedes’ time to Newton’s. The reasons for this interest are not abstract, but the practical uses of the ideal curve. A perfect parabola will concentrate sunlight almost infinitely, which can be very useful, alas, perfection is impossible to engineer.

A hemisphere is easy to make, but it is thought that it proves a poor parabola. The paper above shows explicitly that if smaller and smaller sections of a sphere are used, the approximation to a parabola increases exponentially. If a twentieth of a hemispherical surface is used, it is accurate to within one percent. If a hundredth of the surface is used, it is near perfect. Depending on the focal length chosen, these dishes can have incredible concentration ratios of hundreds of thousands. See the math paper for the calculations.

Concentration ratio as the pendulum length increases for a 1m Sun dish (Point source approximation)

The table above is calculated using the sun as a point source. When the size of the sun is taken into account the intensities range from hundreds of kilowatts to hundreds of megawatts per square meter. The math that underpins the idea is indisputable, but it is the physical proof that persuades most people. There is also the matter of whether the ancients had the technology to build such devices. To address these issues, the mirrors have to be made, tested, found in the archaeological record along with explicit evidence of ancient use.

Dish Construction

The construction task becomes much easier when only a small spherical section is required. To make a seven-degree spherical arc requires only a pendulum, grinder and patience. This can be combined with a potter’s wheel to speed up the process and guarantee the surface. No one argues that pendulums and potters wheels were unknown in the old world.

Pendulum & Potters Wheel Construction Method

With this set up, ancient craftsmen could make mirrors so powerful they could vaporize virtually anything at their maximum power. Beneath the upper limit, there are points where materials can be melted or just warmed. This is the solution to the ‘Burning Mirror Problem’ associated with Archimedes. These dishes have an intense beam focused at a distance equal to half the length of the pendulum. If the pendulum is 10m and the dish is 2m wide, there will be a point of light with just under 2MW/Sqm intensity created at 5m when the dish is pointed at the sun. This is powerful compared to the majority of these weapons, which were shield sized and designed to blind the enemy on the battlefields.

Historical Context

Weaponry is only a small field, in ”Secrets of the Sun Sects”, many of the other uses are demonstrated and then placed in their historical context. Some of the methods have been displaced by better ones, but others lost to time still have utility. The roles played in old stonework, fine art, jewelry, science and chemistry are explored in detail.

It becomes clear that many anomalous artifacts can only be explained by these devices. The most compelling are the huge vitrified stones found across the globe. Some experts deny that the finishes are glazes, primarily because they cannot be applied even today. These finishes cannot be created by any method other than an intense beam of light. This is adequate proof to most that the dishes were used in some cultures.

Alternatively, there are the countless references in texts that mention the devices in use. Prior to the rediscovery of the construction method, sun dish descriptions were considered fanciful exaggerations, now they can be fully appreciated. From the Iliad to the Bible, the Vedas to Conquistador accounts, the Greek and Muslim scientific tracts, each clearly describe mirrors in use. Intriguing references to long-range burning mirrors in Muslim papers, the blazing shields of the Greek wars, Incan sun dish competitions and the intense blinding light of Siva poetically attest to these ”divine” tools in key historical settings. Indeed this anecdotal evidence is the root of the persistent rumors of ancient burning mirrors.

Any remaining doubts as to the existence of sun dishes in the old world can be quelled by a museum trip. There are thousands of these devices on display. After creating and using a sun dish, it is obvious that the curve is almost as imperceptible as a shaving mirror. The once active items are cataloged as less interesting oxidized metal objects such as shields, helmets, trays, gongs and ritual garb. However, once the shallow curves are identified, the utility becomes clear. Dishes from the cultures of the Mediterranean, Egypt, Asia, the Americas and Neoliths are all to be found. Links for Ancient Mirrors

The definitive presence of these devices raises other questions about the development and decline of several disciplines and cultures for that matter. Alchemy and the lead to gold transform has left little doubt that these men had a poor grasp of chemistry and lacked the tools for most of the procedures. The more thoughtful look beyond the gold and recognize the origins of chemistry. With these powerful solar devices on hand, the alchemist had the ability not only to create certain materials, but also to readily experiment with others.

The history of ceramics helps illustrates the point. It is believed that ceramics evolved with the evolution of the wood kiln and complex firing techniques. Most stones when placed in a normal fire will not alter their composition in anyway at all, yet this leap in process was made throughout the ancient world. There is no doubt that kilns were eventually used to produce large quantities of potteries. However, Jordan contends that the first experimental work was carried out with these mirrors.

After some ceramists suggested it was impossible to make ceramics with sunlight, the technique was demonstrated at an International Ceramics conference. Despite the production of glazes in minutes as opposed to hours, the historical concept gained little traction. However, it was shown that it is easy for craftsmen to expose a range of materials to very high heats using parabolic dishes.

Parabolic Solar Concentrator melting rocks & metals

Recent mirror research followed a similar path to the speculative alchemist. Metals, rocks, gems, bricks and ceramic paints were just left in the beam for a few minutes to see what happened. The solar device was made and techniques were devised to anneal gems, cut stones, fire pottery, produce ceramics, vaporize, cut and smelt metals in less time than it takes to fire up a wood kiln. Even kids today appear to be treading the same path with homemade reflective dishes. This is not beyond the scope of an ancient craftsman, whose normal methods involved elaborate kilns and would mostly result in failure. The inference is that the development of many fields owes a great deal to the use of this solar technology.

Conclusion

Jordan shows techniques that delight artisans and scientists alike, with a tool that is a little cumbersome, but delivers a very high power to cost ratio. Uniquely historians find the knowledge useful in reframing the past. The lost tract ”On Burning Mirrors” has effectively been reconstructed and shows why ancient scholars obsessed over spherical surfaces. Despite doubts over the most famous Burning Mirror of Archimedes used at Syracuse, it is certain that these tools were utilized in the ancient world. Understanding the operation of sun dishes will surely lead to some famous historical texts being rewritten or at least reinterpreted.

Scientists can use dishes to reduce the costs of high temperature research. The solar concentrators have already been used to make unique new types of crystals for photovoltaic cells. It is expected that similar techniques will be developed for industrial production. Meanwhile artisans can recreate those revered finishes of the past. The sun cultures produced some of the finest stonework, it is only fair that artists trying to mimic it should at least have the same power at their fingertips.

In the present age when we are looking for ways to solve our current energy issues, it seems that the ancients can still teach us a thing or two.

Non-fiction Books & Research by Christopher Jordan

Secrets of the Sects

The Sun Devices

The Math Behind Burning Mirrors

Website: Secrets of the sun Sects Blog

Novels by Philip Newman

With research by Christopher Jordan

Meira and the Language Stone

Meira and the Seahorse

Website: Sothic Press

Sun Disks of Antiquity Links

These links support the view expressed in Secrets of the Sun Sects that sun dishes were common in antiquity. Some are imitations of the original devices, but the majority work at least as fire-starters. Some just link to images from the various cultures of the dishes being used or where they were worn. Once the construction technique outlined here is accepted as the method for making Burning Mirrors, these ‘ceremonial’ and vanity objects take on characteristics of devices.

Please feel free to add links to photos of similar dishes in the add a comment section below. Of particular interest would be the Atens/Sun dishes of Egypt, The Americas and the small dishes of the Neolithic peoples, the older the better.

South Asia

In South and South East Asia these sun dishes are so common, they can readily be found and bought in any decent antiques market. They barely rate a mention in the museums, there are so many of them. Most have had the concentric circles that grace their concave sides polished away so ancients can look at themselves in an enlarged form. Siva discs are a standard item in the hands of any statue of Vishnu.

Here are some from a museum with and without the concentric circles. The problem with this vanity mirror idea is that the blob in the center or the concentric circles makes the dishes useless as cosmetic mirrors, unless of course they did not like to look at their noses.

Siva Disks In National Museum

Here is an example with the surface recovered showing where the original circles have been filled and polished over. After coating with a reflective layer, this small dish still has a focal length of over five feet. This is more than adequate to start a fire in the kitchen.

Foil covered disk still displays original concnetric circles

Other examples without a shiny coating.

Curve showing on the side view

Face of dish showing remaing circles & curved surface

Back View of dish showing exquisite convex curve

EGYPT

Horus who emits rays of Datura from the sun disc on his head. Nice picture

Beetle god with two sun discs

http://www.lessing-photo.com/p2/080113/08011318.jpg

 Falcon God with a sun dish on his head

http://www.lessing-photo.com/p2/030302/03030263.jpg

 Bovine form of god with sun dish on her head

http://www.lessing-photo.com/p2/080116/08011606.jpg

Egyptian Objects

Crocodile & Scorpions adorned with sun discs

http://www.lessing-photo.com/p2/080114/08011452.jpg

Large bronze of Isis wearing a sun dish

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTWkQI8GMSu0HD13mgbJltcuKSGAfLYuMPncsdDi98aKihnTV07

Brass Bull with sun dish

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSOJqhVHkIByA9izCdHHJa1wYIx5iaqRyRlE7oaZgyWBA7Y310

 Lioness adorned with a sun dish

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTCTGXqekPHGlEueXsyGUoZSRtstrAirOrQSxQqs0XA-iiipagvTQ

*Egyptian Bronze snakes supporting a lovely sun dish

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ3-Lo_OiaciSTgcNvkL_cKFUJbpifoUTys7DuoyAjBja9Y1pe8

*Exquisite gold Horus with actual sun dish on head

http://heritage-key.com/files/PradPatel/images/chariot/ceremonial-chariot-5.jpg

Hathor stonework with sun dish on head

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQGsJT-QKbP3Og6Acu1Gy0alabcJwEp1mm3FKM_i_2rjLawAOxvnA

Egyptian sun disk/vanity mirror
Egyptian Bronze disk with Hathor
Egyptian dish with bronze handle

Egyptian Solar Weapons

  *Helmets with solar dishes attached

http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/images/seapeoples12.jpg

Fresco showing mycenei warrior, sea people

http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/images/seapeoples58.jpg

Some other ancient warriors carrying reflective shields and sun dishes on their head into battle.

http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/images/seapeoples15.jpg

Babylonian

Shamash with a disk

http://www.lessing-photo.com/p2/080206/08020663.jpg

 Bronze mirror disk with bull carving

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT1nyamRIxiVaO8witwUvSByQmRQNUANrdPPcVJLxM01O9x7bow

BRONZE AGE

 Incredible Bronze Age model of a chariot from Denmark with a Sun Disc on the back.

http://www.lessing-photo.com/p2/060301/06030143.jpg

Other side of the same chraiot

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRRuwxjtiABYPzg1xkRRLBQ50hZpFvSGp3WnUCimNJLKLwrylBnqQ

Bronze Age chariot sun shield

http://oldtiden.natmus.dk/typo3temp/pics/8f52b268c4.jpg

Bronze Age Dane with sun dish for starting fires

http://www.white-history.com/refuting_rm/romans/bronze_age_denmark_3.jpg

 Bronze Age Dane with shield plus two smaller sun dishes, amongst other valuables

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQXBbZz3tohBsIUnzFHG7PTF8oxgtidlIy_dmtV76vd8QHJr6mqNQ

 Wiltshire bronze age woman’s fire starting amber mirror

http://www.wiltshireheritage.org.uk/uploads/images/160/l_1amber_gold_disc.JPG

Bronze Age Georgian Woman’s fire starting mirror, looks to have been turned into a trinket.

http://www.braasch-megalith.de/docu0179.jpg

 Small welsh sun dish from the Bell beaker people, surprisingly similar to the Siva discs

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Banc_Ty%27ndd%C3%B4l_sun-disc.jpg/140px-Banc_Ty%27ndd%C3%B4l_sun-disc.jpg

Celtic sun dish /vanity mirror beautiful example

 SWEDISH Bronze age disk

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1308/4684757164_637ed4056a_s.jpg

 Massive sun shield from sweden

http://oldtiden.natmus.dk/uploads/pics/Svenstrupskjold.jpg_01.jpg

AMERICAS

Aztec shields

http://www.precolumbianweapons.com/images/armor.33.jpg

Gold armour, a little heavy unless it provides another function in battle

http://www.precolumbiangold.com/images/inca.h62.jpg

 Gold armour? Who would you want to kill and plunder?

http://www.precolumbiangold.com/images/vicas_2.jpg

More gold armour

http://www.precolumbiangold.com/images/sican.88.jpg

Just tons of it

http://www.precolumbiangold.com/images/sican.176.jpg

Gold Chest protector?

http://www.precolumbiangold.com/images/moche.390.jpg

Chinese

 Couple of nice Hang dynasty bronze mirrors

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQTjRgJ9tsGMdo8VaZLfnCqCh4BiomeJ1D0nkhULJWKorTYHfAc

 Chinese mirrors both sides

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSDQx9IlrDP5Td3NbmoIWTECn4q33hpQyi4okqT4UkkV23GtxVQ

 Hand mirror Chinese, Ming dynasty bronze

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQA_AG0vXeh_rrB7xtJtQJq9WXmGjNRmcpEfQL_o3yE8TulmKE8

 Copper drums with sun motif on the solar disc, common in SW china and SE Asia.

http://culture.teldap.tw/culture/plugins/content/fboxbot/thumbs/24_230x177_e736f12721075459954d1632c8fbb23d.jpg

SouthEast Asia

Sun dish drums from Vietnam, Cambodia and South china generally have suns on the outer face. When the drum is turned over and pointed at the sun, it will cook food! If the drum is banged it will make a rather tinny drum noise.

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSgOxvT2tXH5WUkLXf2ovjJrW66fa1UVA7T1vD3jZ_ZRmeYQ7X5jw

Vietnamese mirrors, with decal or spot in the center making them useless as vanity mirrors

http://storage.canalblog.com/32/49/119589/59087151_p.jpg

http://storage.canalblog.com/62/43/119589/59101638_p.jpg

http://storage.canalblog.com/76/44/577050/59101992_p.jpg

Vietnamese One with the phoenix on the back

http://storage.canalblog.com/47/11/119589/59100432_p.jpg

 Java  Mirror inlay

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTTNcpT-yt3tRq9F2OT7alS3UIKkRBKSn4alNCZR-k71Pf4fanm8Q

Subjects Covered in The Secrets of the Sun Sects

The Secrets of the Sun Sects covers a large number of areas,

Here is a summary

THE SUN DEVICES OF ANTIQUITY

Burning Mirrors
1.  Burning Mirrors – an overview of what parabolic mirrors are able to do
2.  Ancient Mirror Math – The simple math & geometric solution to Archimedes burning mirror problem
3.  Dish Construction – How to make 10Mw/Sqm solar concentrators in antiquity or a garage
4.  A New History of Mirrors – The implications for Greeks, Egyptians, Alchemy, Incans and more.
5.  Star Wars  – The use of burning mirrors on the ancient battlefields
The Sun Temples
6.  The Sun Temples – A description of a solar chamber, energy and usage across the ancient world
7.  Temple Mountains – The arrangement of sun chambers on step pyramids builds to ancient solar industries
8.  Temple Distribution & Climate – The rationale for the solar chamber variances across the globe
9.  Stone Circles – The solar premise applied to neolithic stone circles
10.Conclusion – The ancient world was powered by sunlight

THE SUN DEVICES

11. Solar Tools – A guide to making powerful sun dishes today
12. Food & Water – Using ancient techniques to fry, boil and cook at home or in the factory
13. Climate Control & Power – Using old technology to cool the home and produce power 24/7
14. Materials & Crop Processing – Solar Recycling, refining, materials synthesis & agricultural applications
15. Lost Techniques of the Solar Artist – Stone cutting, finishing, ceramics & gems
16. Miscellaneous Devices  – How to make & use powerful Ancient Telescopes
17. Commercial Concerns  – Benefits & reservations in the commercial environment

THE SUN SECTS
18. Revising the Past – Adding the Ancient Solar Sects to the record
19. The Inception of Civilization – Did civilization start with a hot black stone or fire?
20. European Sun Sects – The emergence of neolithic solar powered cultures
21. The Egyptian Sun Sects – The utility of sun gods & their temples/tools
22. Egyptian Priestly Orders – The skills hierarchy of the ancient solar orders
23. The Demise of the Sun Cults – The reasons for failure

Modern Solar Sects
24 The Transition Cultures – The switch from solar energy to sun worship
25. Eastern Religions – The Solar Cult legacies of the East
26. Western Religions – The Solar Cult legacies of the West
27. Miracles of Light – Biblical refs to solar devices
28. The Prophecies – 3 Ancient Prophecies reinterpreted

SUNNY FUTURES

29. A Bright Future – Some very optimistic outlooks

APPENDIX

A. Missing Greek Math – Tables of Hipparchus & Archimedes
B. The Power of Spherical Mirrors – The full math proof behind burning mirrors
C. Thermal Properties of the Sites – Detailed energy calculations for sun temples and stones
D. Projects – Completed and ongoing projects, High tech, low tech and historical