Unified Taphonomic-Ritual Theory: The Thermodynamic Cost of Sacred Permanence

This paper unifies the Toumai Code (Paper 1) with the pyramid evolution sequence (Paper 2) to establish a taphonomic-ritual theory grounded in thermodynamic cost-accounting. We propose that the construction of artificial mountains—from mastaba to true pyramid—followed principles of energetic optimization under environmental constraint. The Toumai Code operates as an evolutionary algorithm whose core heuristic seeks to maximize sacred permanence per unit labor. Under this model, pyramids emerge not as arbitrary cultural expressions but as local minima in the cost-surface of memory preservation across deep time. The transition to monumentality represents a phase shift in hominin niche construction: the monopolization of permanence through geometric abstraction.