03.02.08 -- Hieroglyphics and Acrostics

Luxor, Hatshepsut temple, paintings

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Sunday, March 2, 2008

ACROSTIC -- Puzzle by Emily Cox & Henry Rathvon, edited by Will Shortz

I am so reminded by today's acrostic of the deciphering of the hieroglyphics and what a fascinating adventure that must have been -- today's acrostic puzzle is a smaller adventure and yet one of a similar nature, piquing one's curiousity and rewarding time spent.

"The first Europeans to see the ruins of Luxor and Karnak were Napoleon's soldiers. They threw down their weapons, broke into spontaneous applause, and saluted.” is a quotation from “Madam, Have You Ever Really Been Happy?: An Intimate Journey” by Meg Noble Peterson, 2005. Today's acrostic quotation from is from Rosemary Mahoney’s “Down the Nile: Alone in a Fisherman’s Skiff”, 2007.

Quote: WHEN NAPOLEONS SOLDIERS WHO HAD NEVER SEEN A PHOTOGRAPH ROUNDED A BEND AND CAUGHT SIGHT OF THE TEMPLE OF KARNAK FOR THE FIRST TIME THEY WERE SO MOVED BY THE MARVELOUS SIGHT THAT THEY BURST INTO SPONTANEOUS APPLAUSE.

Author name and title of the work: ROSEMARY MAHONEY DOWN THE NILE

The defined words: A. ROWBOAT, Craft operated alone in Egypt by this quote’s author; B. OBELISK, Cleopatra’s Needle, for one; C. SHADOOF, Egyptian pole-and-bucket device for raising water; D. EVENKEEL, State of balance, nautically (2 wds.); E. MEMPHIS, First capital of ancient Egypt; F. ASTERN, Toward the back of a felucca; G. RUSTPROOF, Good thing for a hull to be; H. YOHOHO, Sound of piratical revelry (hyph.); I. MAPPED, Did a navigator’s job; J. AUGUSTUS, Defeater of Antony and Cleopatra; K. HAUNTED, Like the Flying Dutchman, per legend; L. OVERBOARD, To extremes; no longer on deck; M. NORTH, From Aswan to Luxor; N. EPITHET, “The Boy King” for Tutankhamen; O. YACHTSMEN, Guys who really need to learn the ropes; P. DANTE, Whom Charon ferried across the Acheron; Q. OFFSHORE, Away from the beach; R. WATERLOG, Make too soggy to sail; S. NEWS, Work that may require an anchor; T. TRAIL, A wake, for instance; U. HATSHEPSUT, Queen of Egypt whose husband was Thurmose II; V. EIGHT, Number of rowers in a varsity shell; W. NAVY Pea jacket’s typical color; X. INDEPTH, How experts in bathymetry study things? (2 wds.); Y. LENGTHS, Units of distance in a regatta; Z. ENNEAD, Group of nine, as an Egyptian pantheon.

For an excerpt from Down the Nile, go HERE. It looks to be quite a good read! In any event, this acrostic itself makes for a wonderful visit to Egypt!

I'm heading off now to Brooklyn to spy on the ACPT -- will be back later today.