Free Republic

Amenhotep III became king while he was still a child. Image credit: Moraes et al., Clinical Anatomy (2024), Courtesy of Cícero Moraes Known by his superb nickname "The Magnificent", Pharaoh Amenhotep III oversaw arguably the most glorious period in Ancient Egyptian history, bringing peace and prosperity to the empire while commissioning the construction of some of its most lavish landmarks. Now, more than 3,350 years after his death, the ancient ruler has finally been restored to his former brilliance thanks to a new reconstruction of his mummified face. Presiding over Egypt for just under 40 years during the 18th Dynasty...

Discovering the grandeur of the monument built 3,400 years ago "Heya hup!" Deep in a muddy pit, a dozen workers wrestle with Egypt's fearsome lion goddess, struggling to raise her into the sunlight for the first time in more than 3,000 years. She is Sekhmet—"the one who is powerful"—the embodiment of the fiery eye of the sun god Ra, but now she is caked in dirt and bound by thick rope. As the workers heave her out of the pit and onto a wooden track, the sand shifts and the six-foot-tall granite statue threatens to topple. A half-dozen men in...