Summer of 1798. Napoleon Bonaparte (not yet emperor, just a young general with an ambition bigger than France) landed in Egypt with an army and 167 scholars, scientists, and artists. They would catalog an ancient civilization and produce the famous Description de l'Egypte. But it was Napoleon's private encounter with the Great Pyramid that would haunt him to the grave.
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Riddles of the Past·2/4·1′
The place
Great Pyramids of Giza
Napoleon's Night Inside the Pyramid
What did Napoleon see in the King's Chamber?
Napoleonic Era (1798)Great Pyramids of Giza
Moral of the Story
“Some experiences transcend language. The deepest mysteries resist explanation — even at the end of life.”
Characters
N
Napoleon Bonaparte (not yet emperor — just a general who dared to sleep in a tomb)F
French expedition officers (the 167 scholars who cataloged Egypt)Source
Multiple contemporary accounts; Las Cases, Memorial de Sainte-Helene; Egyptological literature