Pyramids of Giza in Egypt – Discover the history of the Pharaonic civilization “Ancient Egypt History” and The Secrets of Pyramid Construction recognized for building the pyramids of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, information about how the pyramids were built and why they were built, were they within the Egyptian Tombs or as in the Ancient Egyptian religion.
Discover the design of the Great Pyramid from the inside, visiting times and entry ticket prices for visiting Tourist Attractions in Cairo, in addition Learn about the tourist attractions in ancient Giza and the Curse of the Pharaohs associated with them.
The most important tourist attractions in Egypt and tourist attractions in Giza to discover the civilization of Ancient Egypt, the secret of building the pyramid of Khufu, Khafre, Menkaure, and more of the culture of the Pharaonic civilization.
Information and secrets of building the three Egyptian pyramids, the most important Pharaonic Egyptian Monuments.
Learn about the secrets of building the Seven Wonders of the World, the pyramids and the Sphinx, in addition to information you did not know before about the most famous Egypt Archaeological Sites to begin your journey to visit the most beautiful shrines of the Pharaohs in Egypt.
Pyramids of Giza Facts
The first pyramid of the three pyramids is the Great Pyramid of Giza, which is known as the pyramid of King Khufu in the era of the Old Kingdom of Egypt and is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World..
The Pyramid of Khufu, the first pyramid, is the largest of the pyramids in Giza:
Family: Fourth Dynasty of Egypt
Construction date: ca. 2560–2540 BC
Height: 146.5meters (481 ft) ancient
138.8meters (455 feet) currently
Base: 230.4 meters (756 ft)
Architect: Architect Hemiunu
The pinnacle reached by the development of Architecture in ancient Egypt is represented by the Great Pyramid built by Khufu in Giza, which was built by the minister (Ham Iono), the king’s cousin, and by virtue of his position supervising the king’s work in governance in ancient Egypt “Ancient Egyptian Government“..
The construction of this pyramid required the use of more than two million blocks of limestone, some weighing up to 15 tons, extracted from quarries near the area. As for the stones used in the external cladding, they are softer and purer stones.
The Pyramid of Khufu was built over an area of 12 acres and reached a height of 146 meters, while the height of the Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara was 60 meters, which was built by King Djoser of the Third Dynasty of Egypt.
The geometric design of the pyramidal tomb changed during the reign of King Khufu. The place of the underground burial chamber in the Pyramid of Djoser was moved to a room built in the body of the pyramid, whose walls and ceiling were covered with huge stones made of granite, the most famous Ancient Egyptian Metallurgy, and since the king’s tomb was usually in the middle of the royal cemetery, therefore we find in its east and south the small pyramids of Giza, especially for the organs. The royal family includes the Egyptian Pharaohs kings and the Pharaonic queens of Egypt “Female Pharaohs“, while the mastabas of statesmen are located in the south.
On the eastern side of the pyramid, King Khufu built his funerary temple, one of the most famous funerary Mortuary Temples, but nothing remains of it except the place of some of the foundations of the walls, visible above the rock, and part of the floor of the temple hall, which is made of basalt stone.
These few remains, despite their insignificance, have provided Egyptologists and archaeologists with sufficient evidence. To try to make a sketch of the eastern part of the temple, which is completely different.
About the Egyptian Temples that were before him or built after him. The entrance to this temple leads to a large hall with columns. It is rectangular and its long axis is from east to west. The roof of the portico (shed) was supported on granite columns, small pieces of which were found. The western part of this temple was almost completely destroyed.
Information about the pyramids – The Great Pyramid:
King Khufu built the pyramid in approximately 2650 BC.
The Pyramid of Khufu was erected in the Fourth Dynasty on a hill 45 meters above the ground.
The height of the pyramid is 137 meters, with a square base, and the length of each side of the pyramid is 226.5 meters..
The area of the Pyramid of Khufu is about 13 acres, and its angle is 51.50 degrees.
Huge stones were used to build the Great Pyramid. The average stone weighs 2.5 tons.
The pyramid consists of 2 million and 300 thousand limestone. The Great Pyramid is distinguished architecturally in terms of the beauty of its proportions and the harmony of its lines, indicating the development of Sculpture in Ancient Egypt.
It took twenty years to build the Great Pyramid.
One hundred thousand workers contributed to the construction of the Great Pyramid.
The original entrance to the pyramid is located in the middle of the northern side, twenty meters above the level of the plateau.
The current passage in the Pyramid of Khufu is the passage that Caliph Al-Mamun crossed in the ninth century AD during his visit to Egypt and exploring what is inside the pyramid..
The Great Pyramid is the greatest cemetery and the most famous archaeological building in the world, as the Pyramid of Khufu represents the greatest efforts and experiences of the pyramid builders. It will remain the most important of the Seven Wonders of the World
It was built as a tomb for the Fourth Dynasty Pharaoh Khufu.
The pyramid of Khafre, son of King Khufu
Family: Fourth
Height: 136.4 meters, equivalent to 448 feet. At the beginning of construction: 143.5 meters, equivalent to 471 feet..
Base: 215.25 meters equals 706 feet
Slope: 53°10′
King Khafre, one of King Khufu’s successors, built Pyramid of Khafre, which is slightly smaller in size than Khufu’s Pyramid.
The foyer of the Valley Temple of Khafre’s pyramid, which is designed in the shape of a burning T, is considered one of the most magnificent architectural works of the Old Kingdom era and indicates the development of Astronomy in ancient Egypt.
On the eastern side of the pyramid is the Temple of Khafre and a complete pyramid group in the Giza necropolis, discovered by the von Zebahlin mission under the supervision of Egyptology and archaeologist Holscher and Steindorff..
It includes two secondary hypostyle halls and a hypostyle hall almost as wide as the width of the building. Between the temple and the pyramid is an open courtyard, the walls of which are made of limestone covered with granite. The pyramid of Khafre is slightly smaller than the pyramid of Khufu
It was built by King Khafre, the fourth king of the Fourth Dynasty, son of King Khufu. He married Queen Meresankh III.
The duration of King Khafre’s rule was twenty-six years.
The pyramid of King Khafre is lower than the pyramid of his father, “King Khufu.” Its height was 143 meters and now it is 136 metres.
Khafre called his pyramid the Great.
The height of this pyramid of Khafre when it was built was 143.5 meters, and the length of each side of its square base was 215.5 meters, while its angle was 53.10 degrees. The part near the top remained of its outer covering..
The Pyramid of Khufu has two entrances in the middle of the northern side, leading to a long corridor that ends with the burial chamber. A visit to this collection gives the visitor a deep sense of greatness, and the visitor can also follow its diagram.
Among the most famous ancient works highlighted by oriental art is a group of statues of Khafre, the builder and creator of this group. Among them is the famous diorite statue, which is now considered one of the masterpieces of The Egyptian Museum “Museums in Cairo” in Tahrir Square and is made of hard diorite stone that was brought from Toshka quarries..
The Pyramid of Menkaure or the Pyramid of King Menkaure
Family: Fourth
Height: 65.5 meters, which equals 215 feet
Base: 103.4 meters equals 339 feet
Pyramid of Menkaure is the last of the large pyramids in Giza. It is smaller than the Pyramid of Khufu in size, and it seems that its funerary facilities were not completed.
There are those who believe that the high costs of building the pyramids exhausted the Third Dynasty, so construction on it stopped..
The Pyramid of King Menkaure is located in the southwestern part of the Pyramid of Khafre, and the Pyramid of Menkaure is the smallest of the three pyramids of Giza..
The pyramid of King Menkaure was built on top of a slope of the plateau, and the place was leveled using blocks of limestone. A large portion of the granite covering still remains in place.
The length of each side of the base is 108.5 metres.
The height of King Menkaure’s pyramid is 66.50 degrees and its inclination angle is 51 degrees.
Its entrance on the northern side is approximately four meters above ground level.
The internal layout of the Pyramid of Menkaure is not simple. The original entrance was discovered by Wess in July 1837, while he was trying in vain to reach the burial chamber through the artificial corridor.
He continues with a slight descent until he reaches a chamber that was clearly originally intended to be the burial chamber. There is evidence that the coffin was placed in it, and this room is large in size and indicates the development of Ancient Egyptian science.
The coffin of the Pharaoh “Ancient Egyptian Coffins” King Menkaure is made of basalt and decorated with Egyptian drawings, such as gates, to indicate the development of Industry in ancient Egypt.
This coffin was found without a cover. Inside Menkaure’s burial chamber, there are some Arabic writings written carelessly on the walls..
King Menkaure died before completing his pyramid, and he completed it after the death of his son, King Shepseskaf.
The height of the Pyramid of Menkaure was 65.5 meters, and now it is 62 meters after the fall of its outer covering.
Menkoura’s Mummy is now preserved in the The British Museum in London.
Menkaure called his pyramid the Holy One).
The angle of inclination of the pyramid of Menkore from perspective is 51°20′25“.
The entrance to the pyramid is on the north side. The entrance rises about 4 meters above the ground, with a descending 31 meters long. Its slope angle is slight, about 17 degrees.
The pyramid of Menkaure was built of limestone, but Menkaure chose to build the lower part of it from granite that was brought from Aswan via the Nile River..
The height of the granite stone coverage reaches about 17 metres. The rest of the coverage was done with white Tura stones up to a height of 65 and a half meters.
Theories of how the Pyramids of Giza were built?!
The first theory of the secret of building the pyramids of Giza:
One of the important theories that explains how the pyramids of Giza were built is the theory mentioned by the ancient historian Diodorus of Sicily, which is the method of bridges or ascending roads, and many modern archaeologists believe that this method is the closest to reason, including Edwards.Id. Ahmed Fakhry, Somers Clark, R. Engelbach, Dr Zahi Hawass.
This theory explains the construction method, explaining that the ancient Egyptians were building a road of gradual height using gravel mixed with clay, and this ascending bridge had mud walls to hold this mixed gravel in place. This road ascends with the height of the pyramid until its height in the corner reaches the level of the top of the pyramid itself..
At the same time, this road must be extended in length so that its slope angle remains the same. This ascending path was reinforced with beams of wood to reduce the friction and noise of the wooden stretcher legs, which are used to transport stone blocks. After the completion of the construction of the pyramid, this road was removed..
It is noteworthy that there are ships or models of them near the pyramids, and this is most likely a religious practice related to eschatological beliefs. The ships that were found near the pyramids are usually called sun boats, but this designation is not accurate..
However, the ancient Egyptians had several types of ships that were intended to provide the deceased king with a material alternative to the ships that he might need in the afterlife..
From studying the Pyramid Texts, we find that there were at least eight types of ships that the king used in his heavenly travels. Two of them were for crossing the sky, the sun god riding one for the day trip and the other for the night trip.
That is why only two of these ships can be called sun ships, and they are not for any other purpose. Therefore, it is better to call these two ships funerary or ritual ships, as they were undoubtedly closely related to religious beliefs regarding resurrection after death, as in the myths of the Pharaohs “Egyptian Mythology” and the stories of Ancient Egyptian Literature.
The construction of pyramids spread west and south of Egypt. Some small-sized pyramids were found in Libya, as well as the pyramids of southern Nubia.
It is also believed that the pyramids of Mexico were motivated and influenced by Egyptians. The building of pyramids spread in Nubia as well, and the pyramids of Mexico ranged in shape from ziggurats to pyramids..
That is, it is closer to the Step Pyramid of Djoser. “One of the most famous monuments of the ancient Indians in Mexico is a pyramid-shaped temple called (the Magician’s Pyramid).
It is built in the form of terraces graduated in height and degree of inclination. It is a shape that differs from the shape of the Step Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara, in addition to the difference in purpose. Of construction and difference in size.
The Mexican pyramid, whose ruins were found in the remains of the ancient city of Uxmal, was originally built to be a temple, and the same is true for other ancient American Indian pyramids that were built for a religious purpose, which is sun worship… As for the difference in size, the height of the Mexican pyramid does not exceed 25 feet. meters, and its base is different from the shape of the bases of the Egyptian pyramids, as it is a rectangular base and not equilateral, as it is 73 meters long and 55 meters wide..
The second theory for building the pyramids of Giza: “aliens.”“:
The ancient Egyptian builders placed a basic slope on the outside to build the first 140 feet, and then they built an internal spiral corridor to complete the construction of the remaining 450 feet of the pyramid..
The third theory of building the pyramids of Giza:
The ancient Egyptians cast stones in place, by making huge molds the size of the stone, adding building materials and water, and then linking them together using building materials..
The ancient Egyptian workers knew a secret mixture that, when used, formed a rock that was harder than stinky concrete and closely resembled natural rock..
The fourth theory of building the pyramids of Giza:
It was built using either an outer ramp or a spiral ramp around the outer layer to transport stones.
The fifth theory for the speedy construction of the pyramids of Giza:
The ancient Egyptians cut the rocks from Upper Egypt, as in the Geography of ancient Egypt, in which the pyramid was built, from either the Giza Plateau or the mountains in Upper Egypt, as the granite stones used in the pyramid were from the far reaches of Upper Egypt, as were some of the building stones..
The stone is cut with such extreme precision that its sides become smooth and smooth, like mirrors, so that they fit together due to atmospheric air pressure, and do not require any cement to hold them together..
These stones were transported from their locations in southern Egypt to the pyramid site using boats on the Nile or using water movement.
The sixth theory of building the pyramids of Giza:
The Pharaohs’ engineers canceled the Earth’s gravity when lifting the stones used in building the pyramids and moving them over long distances, by directing special sound vibrations and electrostatic charges to facilitate the process of lifting them.
The seventh theory of building the pyramids of Giza:
Many far-fetched fanciful theories have emerged, including::
It was explained that there was a large group of alien beings who helped the ancient Egyptians build all the pyramids.
The priests used magic and astrology to use natural energy to build the Great Pyramid with the help of alien creatures.
Built by scientists of the continent of Atlantis.
The Pharaohs were giants as tall as a palm tree. It was easy at that time to build the pyramid and lift stones easily to build the pyramid..
The Pharaohs used Jewish slaves at that time to build the pyramid.
Why were the Pyramids of Giza built?
The pyramids were built as luxurious and elegant tombs for the Pharaoh kings and to protect the king’s treasures and the mummy of the Pharaohs after burial from thieves of the Pharaonic tombs “Ancient Egyptian Grave Robbers“, as religious beliefs were that the king would wake up to a second life after death to begin another journey, indicating the development of Medicine in ancient Egypt and the science of mummification among the ancient Egyptians “Mummification in ancient Egypt“.
Who built the pyramids?
Controversy and discussion have spread since ancient times among archaeologists and historians about the truth about who were the people who built the pyramids, slaves who were enslaved, or ancient Egyptians, according to each person’s occupation..
The collective graves of the pyramid builders’ workers “Tombs of the Pyramid Builders” were discovered for a group of workers next to the Giza Pyramids, and the following were discovered::
Supervisors and workers were distinguished from each other by symbols found next to the tombs.
In Food in ancient Egypt was buried next to the mummy to help them in their second life after death.
Workers were paid money to work on building the pyramids of Giza.
Myths and wonders of the pyramids of Giza:
- When colored water is placed inside the pyramid’s corridors for a few days, it returns pure without contamination.
- When meat is placed inside the pyramid’s corridors, it does not rot.
- Plants grow larger when placed in the pyramid’s aisles for a few days.
- The disappearance of nicotine from cigarettes after they were placed in the corridors of the pyramid.
Secret rooms inside the pyramid:
A snake-shaped robot was developed to enter the most precise passages in the pyramid and photograph the pyramid from the inside. Secret rooms and tunnels were found inside the pyramid that have not been discovered yet, in addition to drawings and engravings in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs “Ancient Egyptian Language“..
An opening was found at the top of the Pyramid of Menkare, allowing the sun to enter once a year on the king’s birthday.
The construction of the Pyramids of Giza is linked to astronomy:
The pyramid was built on 4 corners indicating 4 directions.
The three pyramids of Giza were built according to the three stars of Gemini’s belt and the The Sphinx of Giza of Leo..
Secrets of the tombs of queens and sons?
The Pharaohs’ kings were interested in building luxurious and elegant tombs for their wives and young children next to the pyramid. A group of royal tombs were discovered, such as the tomb of Junker and Prince Steindorf..
Giza pyramids from inside:
Design of a front section of the Great Pyramid:
- Original entry
- Al-Ma’mun entrance.
- A meeting point between the descending and ascending corridors
- Down corridor
- A subterranean chamber in the rock
- Rising corridor
- Queen’s cabin and two ascending wind tunnels.
- Horizontal corridor
- The large foyer
- The king’s chamber and two ascending wind tunnels
- A hall to enter the coffin and the closing stones of the king’s chamber
- Exit tunnel and cave.
King Khufu was influenced by his father, King Sneferu, in building the Leaning Pyramid of Sneferu “Bent Pyramid” and many pyramids in the Meidum and Dahshur region.
After his death, Khufu became the ruling god on earth and received the Coronation of the Pharaohs. It is natural for him to think about building his tomb, which is the first national project in ancient Egypt.•
Prince Ham-Iono was the engineer of King Khufu – and there is a larger-than-normal sized limestone statue of him in the Romer-Belizius Museum in Hildesheim, Germany. He sent priests and engineers to the city of On to choose a name for the pyramid.
That name was: “Akhet Khufu,” meaning “Khufu’s horizon.” It represents the horizon from which the god Ra, the most famous of the ancient Egyptian deities – Ancient Egyptian gods and Goddesses, will board the sun’s boats in order to sail on them and the stars will row for him, and with their oars he will kill evil spirits in the other world so that evil may be destroyed and his people sanctify him..
King Khufu is the first king to consider himself God Ra on Earth. We note that his son, King Djedefre “Pyramid of Djedefre“, and his grandson, King Sahure “Pyramid of Sahure“, King Neferirkare “Pyramid Neferirkare“, King Neferefre “Pyramid of Neferefre“, King Nyuserre Ini “Pyramid of Nyuserre Ini“, and King Djedkare “Pyramid of Djedkare Isesi” include the name of the god Ra in their names..
Secrets of building the Great Pyramid
Egyptologist Werner wrote: “We can conclude that although the ancient Egyptians did not know how to precisely determine a value, they did in fact use it.” This applies to the lengths of the pyramid.
The pyramid of Khufu ended at the top with a small pyramid. This small pyramid is missing, and it is most likely that it was made of a different type of stone other than the Tora stones, perhaps basalt or granite..
The chamber systems and tombs of the pharaohs in that period were devoid of inscriptions.
Writings inside the subsequent pyramids began to appear about 250 years later, during the Fourth Dynasty, starting with king Unas, who built the Pyramid of Unas, because we find the texts of the pyramids on them.
These texts show the ancient Egyptian perception of the afterlife and the sanctification of the king after his death in those eras.
The Queen’s Chamber is located exactly halfway between the north and south faces of the pyramid.
The Queen’s Chamber measures 5.75 meters (18.9 ft) from north to south and 5.23 meters (17.2 ft) from east to west..
There is a ventilation tunnel prepared for the exit of the priests and workers after burying the Pharaoh and blocking the rooms.
Researchers believe that the tunnel was for the purpose of ventilation for workers in the rock chamber and at the same time to exit. If the purpose of the tunnel was only to exit, the ancient engineers would have chosen a shorter route to build it and connect it to the descending passage..
The ascending passage is located 27.4 meters below the original entrance inside the pyramid at the ceiling of the descending passage. This branch connects the lower structure in the rock to the building of the upper pyramid and its system of rooms. The corridor is 1.2 meters high and 1.05 meters wide.
The researchers “Maragioglio” and “Rinaldi” explain it as being for the purpose of protecting the descending passage, as it gives it stability, and distributes the weight of the pyramid on it and on the adjacent structure..
In 2017, while working on a pyramid survey project, scientists were able to detect the presence of a new cavity and hall in the Great Pyramid, using tomography technology using muon radiation..
They found that the new hall or cavity of the Great Pyramid is about 30 meters long, and its cross-section is similar to the Great Hall.
The existence of this new hall or cavity was confirmed using three techniques: And it is
- Nuclear emulsion plates
- Indicator of the flashing path of the gas detector.
Information about the Pyramids of Giza:
The purpose of this new foyer is not yet clear, and there is no current possibility of accessing it, but according to the opinion of the scientist Dr. Zahi Hawass, it is likely that it is a building gap that was used to reconstruct the great foyer..
As for the King’s Chamber, the dimensions of the room are 10.47 meters (34.4 feet) from east to west, and 5.234 meters from north to south..
The King’s Chamber has a flat roof at a height of 5.974 meters above the floor, and two narrow openings at a height of 0.91 metres, one in the northern wall and the other in the southern wall of the chamber..
These openings are connected by two narrow tunnels that reach almost the surface of the pyramid. They turn to the stars in the northern and southern skies.
The purpose of this spending is not yet clear. Egyptologists have long thought that their purpose was ventilation, while the more common belief is that these small tunnels were made to serve the ritual purpose of guiding the king’s soul to heaven..
Each of the two narrow tunnels is directed to a star or constellation that was important in ancient Egyptian religious beliefs.
This era is collectively called the Age of the Pyramids (or pyramids) because the pyramids are considered the most important architectural and cultural feature in it.
So what are the pyramids? They are the burial places (graves) of the god king (the pharaoh). The number of pyramids discovered up to the year 2008 is about 138 pyramids in Egypt, while the number of pyramids built in Nubia (in Sudan) is approximately 220 pyramids, and they are smaller in size than the Egyptian pyramids of Giza in general and were built about 800 years.
As for the methods that the ancient Egyptian is believed to have used to arrange and organize the ascending paths in building the pyramid, many theories have been developed for them and many hypothetical drawings have been drawn for them, including the use of ziggurat grading to facilitate work and transport of rocks, then concealing it and leveling the terraces to appear as a slanting wall representing the face of the pyramid, which is the most accepted method.
There is the existing wall on which one climbs to the heights of the pyramid and other things. Below are these hypothetical forms of the construction method.
Visiting times for the Pyramids of Giza:
Daily 6:00 AM – 10:00 PM
Entry ticket prices for the Giza Pyramids and the pyramids area:
Where are the pyramids located:
Address: 22 Abu Al-Houl Tourist Street, Mashal, Al-Haram, Giza.
Note: Facts and secrets of the history will be added soon…
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