EGYPT PYRAMIDS:
The ancient Egyptians built more than 80 pyramids mostly between 2600 BC and
1500 BC approximately. Earlier pyramids were built from large stone blocks and
the later ones from mud-brick. The ancient Egyptians built pyramids as tombs for
the pharaohs and their queens. After a ruler died, his or her body was treated
and wrapped to preserve it as a mummy, it was then placed in the pyramid.
Egyptians believed, the pyramid provided a place for the king to pass into the
afterlife. The burial chamber often has paintings on the walls and beloved
things of the ruler and valuables. There are about eighty pyramids known today
from ancient Egypt. The three largest and best-preserved of these were built at Giza.
Egypt Pyramids have often been robbed of their precious belongings in the past.
The Egyptian Pyramids were not made from cut stone.
The three famous Egypt pyramids of Giza are:
Pyramid of Khufu (the Great Pyramid),
Pyramid of Menkaure and Pyramid of Khafre's which still has its original
polished limestone casing towards the top. These ancient monuments are located
eight kilometers (5 mi) inland into the desert from the old town of Giza on the
Nile, about 25 kilometers from Cairo city centre. Their most active construction
phase was 25th century BC.
THE GREAT PYRAMID OF EGYPT:
The most well-known of these pyramids was built for the pharaoh Khufu. It is known as the 'Great Pyramid' one of the Seven Wonders of the World and was built around 2550 BC. It is almost a perfect square and rises 146 meters, or apx. 50 stories high. It is believed that as many as 35,000 workers were involved in the project (estimates vary from 30,000 to 300,000 people). From inside there are lot of passages leading to several rooms including the Kings chamber and Queens chamber.
Even though site of Egypt Pyramids looks remote its actually located very close to the civilization. You will find Pizza Hut and other chains close by. Today there are about 80 Egypt Pyramids.
A very good place for information on Egypt Pyramids is http://www.nationalgeographic.com/pyramids/pyramids.html
QUICK FACTS (about The Great Pyramid):
- The Great pyramid of Egypt is estimated to have about 2,300,000 stone blocks weighing from 2-30 Tons each with some weighing as much as 70 tons.
- Centre of Land Mass: The Great Pyramid is located at the centre of the land mass of the earth. The east/west parallel that crosses the most land and the north/south meridian that crosses the most land intersect in two places on the earth, one in the ocean and the other at the Great Pyramid.
- There is so much stone mass in the pyramid that the interior temperature is constant and equals the average temperature of the earth, 20 Degrees Celsius (68 Degrees Fahrenheit).
- The outer mantle was composed of 144,000 casing stones, all highly polished and flat to an accuracy of 1/100th of an inch, about 100 inches thick and weighing about 15 tons each.
- With the mantle in place, the Great Pyramid could be seen from the mountains in Israel.
- The average casing stone on the lowest level was 5 ft. long by 5 ft. high by 6 ft. deep and weighed 15 tons.
- The king's chamber is accessed via the 26-foot-high (8-meter-high) Grand Gallery, which was sealed off from thieves by sliding granite blocking systems.
- Two types of limestone were used for construction. A soft limestone either pure or nummulitic was used for the bulk of the core blocks and a hard white limestone for the mantle. Hard limestone becomes more polished with age.
- The mortar used is of an unknown origin. It has been analyzed and its chemical composition is known but it can't be reproduced. It is stronger than the stone and still holding up today.
- The cornerstone foundations of the pyramid have ball and socket construction capable of dealing with heat expansion and earthquakes.
- There are no hieroglyphics or writing in the Great Pyramid.
- Aligned True North: The Great Pyramid is the most accurately aligned structure in existence and faces true north with only 3/60th of a degree of error. The position of the North Pole moves over time and the pyramid was exactly aligned at one time.
