EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS

Egyptian pyramids are great monument of a great civilization that was born seven thousand years ago. There are 138 pyramids discovered in Egypt as of 2008.The ancient Egyptians built pyramids as tombs for the pharaohs and their queens. The pharaohs were buried in pyramids of many different shapes and sizes from before the beginning of the Old Kingdom to the end of the Middle Kingdom. They built more than 90 royal pyramids, from about 2630 BC until about 1530 BC. During that time, the pyramid shape evolved from a series of stepped terraces to sloped pyramidal shape. The word 'pyramid' actually comes from the Greek word pyramis which means 'wheat cake'. The word pyramis was used to describe the ancient Egyptian buildings because they reminded the Greeks of pointy-topped wheat cakes. Historians believe that the triangular shape of the four sides of these huge structures may have been designed to indicate the journey of the pharaoh to the heavens and the afterlife. Egyptologists have developed many theories about why the tombs of the early pharaohs were built in the pyramid shape. Here are three different ideas:

1. The pyramid represented the first land to appear at the beginning of time- a hill called 'Ben-Ben'. 2. The pyramid had sloping sides so that the dead pharaoh could symbolically climb to the sky and live forever. 3. The pyramid represented the rays of the sun.

Historical Development

By the time of the early dynastic period of Egyptian history, those with sufficient means were buried in bench-like structures known mastabas.

The second historically documented Egyptian pyramid is attributed to the architect Imhotep, who planned what Egyptologists believe to be a tomb for the pharaoh Djoser. Imhotep is credited with being the first to conceive the notion of stacking mastabas on top of each other creating an edifice composed of a number of "steps" that decreased in size towards its apex. The result was the Step Pyramid of Djoser which was designed to serve as a gigantic stairway by which the soul of the deceased pharaoh could ascend to the heavens. Such was the importance of Imhotep's achievement that he was deified by later Egyptians.

The Giza Pyramids

In the fourth dynasty, three large stone pyramids were built at Giza. The design of these pyramids was based on the pyramids that had been built before. These are the largest and sturdiest pyramids that were ever built in ancient Egypt. These three massive tombs were built more than 4,500 years ago. The pyramids at Giza were built for Pharaoh Khufu (also known as Cheops), Pharaoh Khaefre and Pharaoh Menkaure. These pyramids were built around 2550 BC was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It covers an area of about five hectares and was approximately 147 meters high. It is one of the largest stone monuments on earth and is an example of Egyptian scientific skill - each of its sides aligns almost exactly with north, south, east and west. The Great Pyramid also represents an amazing building effort. Its sides are built at an angle of 51.5 degrees and it consists of at least 2,300,000blocks of granite weighing 2.5 tons each. At its base are three smaller pyramids one for each of Khufu's queens. Historians think that it took approximately 100,000 men and 20 years to build the Great Pyramid.

 Pyramid of Khufu
Khufu, son of Snefru and second ruler of the 4th dynasty moved the royal necropolis to Giza, north of modern-day Cairo. According to ancient Greek historian Herodotus, Khufu (aka Cheops) enslaved his people to build his pyramid. The largest Pyramid, King Khufus, is often called the Great Pyramid. It lies in the desert west of Giza, accompanied by the pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure (Khufus son and grandson). The Great Pyramid was built during Khufus reign (2551 bc-2528 BC). A question was commonly asked: How long did it take to build the Great Pyramid? The answer of this question is not confirmed but it probably took twenty to thirty years to complete the pyramid.The largest Pyramid, King Khufus, is often called the Great Pyramid. It lies in the desert west of Giza, accompanied by the pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure (Khufus son and grandson). The Great Pyramid was built during Khufus reign (2551 bc-2528 BC.

The base of the Great Pyramid forms a nearly perfect square, with only a 19-cm (about 7.5-in) difference between its longest and shortest sides, out of a total length of about 230 m (756 ft). This huge square is also almost exactly level. When newly completed, the Great Pyramid rose 146.7 m (481.4 ft)nearly 50 stories high. Researchers estimate that 2.3 million blocks were used to build the Great Pyramid, with an average weight of about 2.5 metric tons per block. The largest block weighs as much as 15 metric tons. The interior of the Great Pyramid is complex, with a series of passages leading to several rooms. The most important room is the Kings Chamber, the room in which Khufus body was placed during his funeral. In this room the priests left items that Khufu, like all Egyptians, would need for the afterlife. Although the builders tried to block passages and doors when they left the pyramid after the kings funeral, tomb robbers did eventually take everything of value. The entrance to the Great Pyramid was set 17 m (55 ft) above ground level. It was intended to be used only once, during Khufus funeral, when special scaffolding was erected. Once the scaffolding was dismantled, the entrances height served as a security measure against tomb robbers. The entrance leads to the Descending Passage, which runs down through the pyramid into bedrock beneath the pyramid and levels out

until it reaches the Subterranean Chamber. About 18 m (60 ft) from the pyramid entrance, before entering the bedrock, the Descending Passage intersects another corridor, called the Ascending Passage, now sealed with three large granite blocks.

Pyramid of Khaefre
Khaefre was Khufu's son. Khaefre's pyramid is smaller than the Great Pyramid, but looks larger because it was built on higher ground.

There are many theories of how the pyramids were built but nobody knows for sure the process ancient Egyptians followed to build the pyramids. One theory suggests that ramps were built to drag the blocks of building stones on sledges to the top. There was some evidence that this theory might be close to the truth as some parts of the mentioned ramps were found near building sites. These ramps were made of bricks and earth rubble and they were strong enough to carry the huge blocks used to build the pyramids. Stones used in the construction process were quarried from remote or local quarries where they were either transported using wooden sleds as the wheel had not yet existed and even it had it wouldn't be of much use due to the heavy weight of the blocks. Whatever the means of building the pyramids it remains a fact that Egyptians did all the work and there was no magic or aliens involved in the process as some naive people might think.

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