Actually, there is a unique lens: AF MICRO NIKKOR 70-180mm 1:4.5-5.6 D
Made in Japan. A favorite for photographing orchids.
THANKS PAUL: THIS IS THE BEST COVERAGE EVER!
Congratulations Paul! Himalaya next?
Superb images! On the 5th image, left side, you will find some of the Sea Peoples wearing feathered helmets. The Egyptian texts give us nine different groups, the most prominent being Peleset, better known as Philistines. Ramses III settled these peoples in the land still named after them "Palestine". This is one of the most vexing historical problems of Egypt, the identity of the Sea Peoples. In my opinion Peleset, written as PLS, derives from the Greek Pelesgians which means the Sea Peoples and refers to the Cycladic civilization.
Hereford wrote:
According to our MS degreed Egyptologist iron & steel tools came very late in Egyptian civilization, and a quick google query also verifies that.
Simple as ABC, check Wikipedia: the Bronze Age introduced copper (3000-2200 BCE), then Bronze (ca. 2200-1200 BCE). The Iron Age (ca. 1200 BCE-present) carbon steel at first (already in use ca. 1400 BCE), then progressively harder alloys.
As for the ancients not having metal tools: a master mason had over 300 tools made of steel for hard stones and bronze for soft ones and details of carving, and an array of abrasives for polishing. Also, many assistants, including specialists for sharpening the tools.
Your photographs are wonderful and congrats for spotting the temple. To be sure, the temple was started in the 15th century BCE but completed during the 1st century CE. The exquisite style of the columns and carved capitals show the sophistication of Greco-Roman architecture.
Stardust wrote:
Although your facts are roughly correct your photo is not. The first shows Khafre's, the 2nd largest with some of the capping still on it. I climbed inside Khufu's to the Tomb room first trip, to the Khafre tomb room 2nd trip. What an experience! Nice photos.
BTW, Khafres (capped one) looks taller in your photos because it sits up on a hill, the larger Khufu is in a depression.
You are correct about identifying the great pyramids of Khufu (Cheops in Greek) and Khafra (Chefren in Greek) but not about visiting the burial chamber of the second. The small chamber below the pyramid of Khafra was made to deceive the tomb rubbers, the real chamber has not been found. The tomb rubbers had vandalized the pyramids, professional archaeologists have not entered intact pyramids out of respect for the dead. The name of the Pharaoh of the third pyramid is Menkaura. The reason for using the Greek names is simply because they have vowels and never change. The Egyptians did not use vowels, only consonants and semi-vowels. The name of the sun god is sometimes spelled today as Re or Ra, the latter is now considered as being closer to the original pronunciation.
Many thanks Mark and Gail for your excellent tour of the globe!
CHG_CANON wrote:
Nothing is more important than the brand markings: C A N O N.
But, it helps that the mirror is removed too.
An objective observer even by N I K O N standards!
NOT A JOKE: the entire ancient world believed the earth was flat until ca. 575 BCE when the philosopher Anaximander proved it was a sphere!
Spectacular views~ They show your love for mountains.
Actually, a tragic contrast that you captured in the title. Tolstoi's War and Peace, considered the greatest modern book by many, does the same in a much grander narrative. Few people may know that 3,000 years ago another author by the name Homer tried to do the same in 28,000 verses (Homer, The Iliad and The Odyssey) only he was thinking of a real PEACE, a permanent one in which women are in charge.
We are already so far removed from the prehistoric era of film cameras that even the experienced Jerry confused FM3A (made in 2001-2006) with the Nikkormat (made in 1965)!