--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At present there are only two land-based…" description: "\"“At present there are only two land-based cranes in the world that could lift weights of this magnitude. At the very frontiers of construction technolo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg" --- # At present there are only two land-based cranes in the… ![“At present there are only two land-based cranes in the world that could lift weights of this magnitude. At the very frontiers of construction technology, these are both vast, industrialized machines, with booms reaching more than 220 feet into the air, which require on-board counterweights of 160…” quote by Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg) > ““At present there are only two land-based cranes in the world that could lift weights of this magnitude. At the very frontiers of construction technology, these are both vast, industrialized machines, with booms reaching more than 220 feet into the air, which require on-board counterweights of 160 tons to prevent them from tipping over. The preparation-time for a single lift is around six weeks and calls for the skills of specialized teams of up to 20 men.13 In other words, modern builders with all the advantages of high-tech engineering at their disposal, can barely hoist weights of 200 tons. Was it not, therefore, somewhat surprising that the builders at Giza had hoisted such weights on an almost routine basis?”” [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Highlights ancient engineering feats that surpass modern capabilities, questioning assumptions about progress. **In simple terms:** Ancient builders moved massive stones with less tech. Key Takeaway Reevaluate modern engineering limits. Themes history engineering technology archaeology Mood reflective inquisitive Type analytical thought‑provoking When to use this quote - construction projects - historical analysis - engineering education Key Concepts ancient knowledge modern limits Questions to Reflect On - Why do we underestimate ancient skills? - What can modern engineers learn? A Different Perspective Modern tech may not always be superior. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [Everything was so designed by Hannibal to break down Will in the first season, until Will's sanity became questionable. It's so much easier to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-fuller/everything-was-so-designed-by-hannibal-to-break-down-will-in-the/) [Bryan Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-fuller/) > [There are more whooping cranes in the United States of America than there are women in Congress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/there-are-more-whooping-cranes-in-the-united-states-of-america-than/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [If only I could find a guy who wasn't in his 70s to talk to me about white cranes, I'd be madly in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leelee-sobieski/if-only-i-could-find-a-guy-who-wasn-t-in-his-70s-to-talk-to-me-about/) [Leelee Sobieski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leelee-sobieski/) > [When I got the camera on the shoulder, they give me a nickname. They call me 'the tripod' because I'm kind of short and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-besson/when-i-got-the-camera-on-the-shoulder-they-give-me-a-nickname-they/) [Luc Besson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-besson/) > [Not only after two or three centuries, but in a million years, life will still be as it was; life does not change, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/not-only-after-two-or-three-centuries-but-in-a-million-years-life/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [Conservation is sometimes perceived as stopping everything cold, as holding whooping cranes in higher esteem than people. It is up to science to spread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-lovejoy/conservation-is-sometimes-perceived-as-stopping-everything-cold-as/) [Thomas Lovejoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-lovejoy/) > [I love the joy of mountains Wandering free with no concerns Every day I find food for this old body There's leisure for thinking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanshan/i-love-the-joy-of-mountains-wandering-free-with-no-concerns-every-day/) [Hanshan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanshan/) > [My mother cranes her neck. Her ability to be fascinated by things is her best gift to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/my-mother-cranes-her-neck-her-ability-to-be-fascinated-by-things-is/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [I guess this is a bad time to mention I hung a dummy and painted Seneca Crane's name on it...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-guess-this-is-a-bad-time-to-mention-i-hung-a-dummy-and-painted/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Do you recall the story of the young Yogi in the Mahâbhârata who prided himself on his psychic powers by burning the bodies of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/do-you-recall-the-story-of-the-young-yogi-in-the-mah-bh-rata-who/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [A falcon who chases a warlike crane can only hope for a life of pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/a-falcon-who-chases-a-warlike-crane-can-only-hope-for-a-life-of-pain/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [Nature got it right with the cranes. They have been around since the Eocene, which ended 34 million years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-shoumatoff/nature-got-it-right-with-the-cranes-they-have-been-around-since-the/) [Alex Shoumatoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-shoumatoff/) > [Our large trading cities bear to me very nearly the aspect of monastic establishments in which the roar of the mill-wheel and the crane…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/our-large-trading-cities-bear-to-me-very-nearly-the-aspect-of/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) > [Working in 3D I didn't experience much of a difference, except that the cameras are very big so they can't be moved around with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-frain/working-in-3d-i-didn-t-experience-much-of-a-difference-except-that/) [James Frain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-frain/) > [Television in America is so elaborate. There are so many remote cranes, and they have all the toys to play with. The directors are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franka-potente/television-in-america-is-so-elaborate-there-are-so-many-remote-cranes/) [Franka Potente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franka-potente/) ## More by Graham Hancock > [Whether Earth was deliberately terraformed, in other words, or whether it was seeded with the spores of life from crashed comets or whether, indeed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/whether-earth-was-deliberately-terraformed-in-other-words-or-whether/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [I don't believe that consciousness is generated by the brain. I believe that the brain is more of a reciever of consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/i-don-t-believe-that-consciousness-is-generated-by-the-brain-i/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [“The same solution--that Easter Island was once part of a much larger landmass--would also explain another, very different puzzle, namely the so-called Rongo Rongo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/the-same-solution-that-easter-island-was-once-part-of-a-much-larger/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [“What is remarkable is that there are no traces of evolution from simple to sophisticated, and the same is true of mathematics, medicine, astronomy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/what-is-remarkable-is-that-there-are-no-traces-of-evolution-from/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [ “Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent, \[...\] came to teach \[the ancient inhabitants of Mexico\] the benefits of settled agriculture and the skills necessary to build… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/quetzalcoatl-the-feathered-serpent-came-to-teach-the-ancient/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [ “What would have made \[seeing Göbekli Tepe from Harran\] easier, in antiquity, would have been a tall tower annexed to the temple that once… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/what-would-have-made-seeing-g-bekli-tepe-from-harran-easier-in/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [“At Göbekli Tepe there is a creature, sculted in high-relief, identified by Klaus Schmidt as a beast of prey with splayed claws and powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/at-g-bekli-tepe-there-is-a-creature-sculted-in-high-relief-identified/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [I believe we are a species with amnesia, I think we have forgotten our roots and our origins. I think we are quite lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/i-believe-we-are-a-species-with-amnesia-i-think-we-have-forgotten-our/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [Do we as adults have the right to make decisions about what we put in our own bodies and what we experience with our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/do-we-as-adults-have-the-right-to-make-decisions-about-what-we-put-in/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [“The "Garcilaso" mentioned by Markham is the chronicler Garcilaso Inca de la Vega, the son of a Spanish conquistador and an Inca princess, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/the-garcilaso-mentioned-by-markham-is-the-chronicler-garcilaso-inca/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [Science has often resisted new ideas and fought bitterly to prevent them coming on board.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/science-has-often-resisted-new-ideas-and-fought-bitterly-to-prevent/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [My sense is that we are missing a huge part of the human story. I think it's possible, indeed probable, that we are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/my-sense-is-that-we-are-missing-a-huge-part-of-the-human-story-i/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [People think I'm a freemason, and I'm not. People think I believe the end of the world is coming on 21 December 2012, and I don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/people-think-i-m-a-freemason-and-i-m-not-people-think-i-believe-the/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [“at Heliopolis, where the Pyramid Texts were compiled, and announced ahead of time to all the other major temples up and down the Nile.53…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/at-heliopolis-where-the-pyramid-texts-were-compiled-and-announced/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [“Bauval found that the Pyramids/Orion’s Belt correlation was general and obvious in all epochs, but specific and exact in only one: At 10,450 BC…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/bauval-found-that-the-pyramids-orion-s-belt-correlation-was-general/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) [Explore all 62 Graham Hancock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) ## More Computers quotes > [I don't understand why we're all connected wirelessly via a little machine that goes in our pocket, to everybody in the world, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-don-t-understand-why-we-re-all-connected-wirelessly-via-a-little/) [Jon M. Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-m-chu/) > [“Probably it goes without saying, but time machine guys don't get a lot of action. Had a one night stand with something cute a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-yu/probably-it-goes-without-saying-but-time-machine-guys-don-t-get-a-lot/) [Charles Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-yu/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Note found in the patron suggestion box: "You have SIGNS up near the computers that say BE QUIET, but people don't be quiet. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-sheridan/note-found-in-the-patron-suggestion-box-you-have-signs-up-near-the/) [Gina Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-sheridan/) > [“You weren't born to be a cog in the giant industrial machine. You were trained to become a cog. There's an alternative available to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/you-weren-t-born-to-be-a-cog-in-the-giant-industrial-machine-you-were/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [The corporate state is an immensely powerful machine, ordered, legalistic, rational, yet utterly out of human control, wholly and perfectly indifferent to any human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/the-corporate-state-is-an-immensely-powerful-machine-ordered/) [Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/) > [The display is the computer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-hsun-huang/the-display-is-the-computer/) Jen-Hsun Huang > [The popular mind often pictures gigantic flying machines speeding across the Atlantic carrying innumerable passengers in a way analogous to our modern steam ships.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-pickering/the-popular-mind-often-pictures-gigantic-flying-machines-speeding/) William Henry Pickering > [“Alan Turing proposed the Turing Test: a computer is intelligent if you can't tell it from a human when you talk with it. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cjs-hayward/alan-turing-proposed-the-turing-test-a-computer-is-intelligent-if-you/) [CJS Hayward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cjs-hayward/) > [Computers can be taught that certain tune or certain chords changes will sound pleasant together, but I don't think it's going to reach a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonobo/computers-can-be-taught-that-certain-tune-or-certain-chords-changes/) [Bonobo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonobo/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [“According to this model, human beings are, at least in one aspect, sensation-receiving machines; and although our receptory apparatus is competent to select and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cruce-stark/according-to-this-model-human-beings-are-at-least-in-one-aspect/) Cruce Stark > [As in any machine, all the wires must be connected to the mains through one main wire. In the same way, you all must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/as-in-any-machine-all-the-wires-must-be-connected-to-the-mains/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) [Browse all 9,389 Computers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“At present there are only two land-based cranes in the world that could lift weights of this magnitude. At the very frontiers of construction technology, these are both vast, industrialized machines, with booms reaching more than 220 feet into the air, which require on-board counterweights of 160 tons to prevent them from tipping over. The preparation-time for a single lift is around six weeks and calls for the skills of specialized teams of up to 20 men.13 In other words, modern builders with all the advantages of high-tech engineering at their disposal, can barely hoist weights of 200 tons. Was it not, therefore, somewhat surprising that the builders at Giza had hoisted such weights on an almost routine basis?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Graham Hancock" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based-cranes-in-the-world-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Computers" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based-cranes-in-the-world-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/graham-hancock-10752_computers_at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based_1086510.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“At present there are only two land-based cranes in the world that could lift weights of this magnitude. At…” — Graham Hancock", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Graham Hancock", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“At present there are only two...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based-cranes-in-the-world-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/at-present-there-are-only-two-land-based-cranes-in-the-world-that/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```