DANVILLE — The ancient Egyptian toolboxes didn’t have precise, sophisticated measuring instruments like we have today … or did they?

Christopher Dunn examines that question in his new book, “Lost Technologies of Ancient Egypt: Advanced Engineering in the Temples of the Pharaohs.”

Dunn has made nine trips to Egypt since 1986, and each time he’s amazed at the precision of the columns, tunnels and statues. He brushes aside conventional thinking, and suggests the ancient Egyptians used highly refined tools and mega-machines.

“There’s more going on here than meets the eye,” he said.

A manufacturing engineer by trade, Dunn works as human resources director at Danville Metal Stamping.

His second book, a 400-page paperback, came out in June, but it’s already getting five-star reviews on http://www.amazon.com

And, despite its intimidating title, Dunn said it’s not an engineering textbook. The average reader would be able to follow it.

Judd Peck, president of Danville Metal Stamping, has accompanied Dunn to Egypt three times, and wrote one of the forewords.

“It’s great,” he said of the book.

The traditional explanation of how the pyramids were built, for example — by men rolling 60-ton granite on logs — doesn’t fit the evidence.

“There are huge implications that just boggle the mind — what they were able to do and how sophisticated they were,” he said, referring to the ancient Egyptians.

The idea that the Egyptians had advanced tools disrupts people’s linear view of history, that civilizations get more sophisticated through the years, he said.

Dunn has been fascinated with the pyramids since 1977, when he read Peter Tompkins’ “Secrets of the Great Pyramid.” After much research, Dunn concluded the pyramid must have originally been built to provide a highly technical society with energy — it was a very large machine.

In 1998, he published “The Giza Power Plant: Technologies of Ancient Egypt,” which describes a holistic energy device that is harmonically coupled with the Earth.

Dunn kept returning to Egypt; using his engineering skills, he measured the artifacts with precision tools, and also used the computer to analyze them.

He used modern digital photography, computer-aided design software and metrology instruments.

At the Luxor Temple, he was amazed at the symmetry of the Ramses II statues. His computer analysis reveals that the left and right sides of the faces are precise mirror images of each other.

“That is not a whimsical stroke of a chisel,” Dunn said.

Dunn took detailed photos and made transparencies on the computer, which showed the engineering precision, and also examined tool marks.

South of Cairo, more than 20 granite boxes in rock tunnels showed the same type of precision that would be found in a modern tool room.

“How did they maintain the precision over large surfaces?” he asked, adding they were precise to 1/1000th of an inch.

At Denderah, he examined 24 columns with images of a goddess on them. The columns are 50-60 feet high, 7-8 feet in diameter, and yet they’re all in perfect alignment. The ears, for example, are perfectly crafted and aligned from one column to another.

“This is unbelievable work,” he said. “I’m still astounded every time I look at this. The ancient Egyptians were very talented people.”

One question Dunn raises is: Did the ancient Egyptians build these monuments or were they there before civilization started?

“It’s a huge question and it causes us to re-examine the past and come up with different answers,” he said.

Dunn said all he’s done is scratch the surface, and one person can’t provide all the answers. It will take a concerted effort by specialists in different fields to dig deeper.

“I’m a bell ringer — you guys need to look at this a little closer and do your homework,” he said.

What’s next? Dunn said he’s interested in South American sites, and he’d like to examine some artifacts closely.

Dunn has published more than a dozen magazine articles and has appeared on several television programs. Most recently, he was on the History Channel in the Ancient Aliens episode, “The Evidence.”

FYI

Chris Dunn’s new book, “Lost Technologies of Ancient Egypt,” is published by Bear & Co., and is available through http://www.innertraditions.com, http://www.amazon.com and other bookstores.

His Web site is http://www.gizapower.com

Dunn will speak on Coast to Coast A.M., a radio show carried by 400 stations, from 1-5 a.m. Wednesday.