Ben Carson and the Pyramids
By: Donald Laine Clucas
November 19, 2015
I am not writing this piece as a letter of support for Ben Carson as president of the United States. In fact at this early “stage of the game,” I have no idea who I will be voting for. For one thing, none of us knows which candidates will be left standing when it comes voting time. However, one thing I know for sure is Ben Carson has a right to voice his opinion on a subject such as the use of the Egyptian pyramids without coming under verbal attack from other candidates such as Donald Trump.
First, a speech made in 1998 about a subject such as the use of the pyramids has no bearing on a person’s ability to be the so-called “leader of the free world.” What it does, on the other hand, is demonstrate a person’s ability to use his or her God-given intelligence to consider other possibilities (i.e. “think outside the box”) which is exactly what I challenged my students to do throughout my forty-year career as an educator.
As a college student, one of my areas of emphasis was anthropology, especially the discipline of archaeology. My main area of interest was local California Indian cultures. As a teacher, I had the privilege of passing on what I had learned to my students, both in the class and in the field. One of the main concepts I taught them was “archaeology is not an exact science.” The reason for this being that we do not (and most likely will not ever) know all the answers to the archaeologic puzzle. In other words, much of an archeologist’s time is spent in guess-work.
For example, many of the artifacts such as projectile points (arrowheads) or various grinding stones my students unearthed throughout the years were easily identifiable simply because their use has been noted in recent times. However, there were other pieces such as the obscure discoidal, a small shaped stone (similar to the mano, which is a small hand stone used for grinding seeds and grains) found in limited areas of Southern California. Archaeologists have several theories as to the purpose of the discoidal, but no one knows for certain. And no one probably will ever know because the stone has never been used in modern times, therefore knowledge of what it was meant for is lost to history. The most common theory is that it was used for religious purposes. But if an historian or archaeologist was to discover some form of proof that it was used for some other purpose such as, say, a weapon, would that entitle us to belittle the ones who had previously voiced their theories as to its use? It’s a rhetorical question because we know the answer. It would not.
In 1998, Ben Carson voiced his opinion concerning what might have possibly been the reason for building the pyramids – a theory which was first voiced by the Syrians in the 16th century. In fact, it is only one of 13 theories concerning the building of the pyramids. The use of the pyramids as tombs is simply another theory. Although it has usually been the most accepted theory, it is just that – A THEORY. The concept has been taught for so long, however, it has been accepted as complete fact. And it may actually be the true reason the pyramids were built. The fact “mummies” have been located within the pyramids have led to that belief. In fact, alternative archaeology reporter Scott Creighton has voiced the same theory and a 2011 article published in the Smithsonian stated there is no consensus as to why the pyramids were built.
However, we do not have enough historical records to give us all the answers. As with so many other things from the past, we may never know the exact truth. But then again, if we didn’t have these things to argue about, what would most of us have to talk about?
