The History Of  Pyramid

Built at a time when Egypt was one of the richest and most powerful civilizations in the world, the pyramids - especially the Great Pyramids of Giza - are some of the most beautiful man-made buildings in history. Their large size reflects the unique role played by Pharaoh, or king, in ancient Egyptian society. Although the pyramids were built from the beginning of the Old Empire until the end of the Ptolemaic period in the fourth century A.D., the highest number of pyramid construction began near the end of the third empire and continued until about the sixth (c. 2325 BC). More than 4,000 years later, Egypt's pyramids still retain their immense size, providing a glimpse of the world's rich and magnificent ancient world.

Pharaoh in the Egyptian Community

During the third and fourth kingdoms of the Old Kingdom, Egypt enjoyed great economic prosperity and stability. Kings had a prominent position in Egyptian society. Somewhere between the human race and the supernatural, they believed that they were chosen by God himself to act as their mediators on earth. Because of this, it was not everyone's intention to keep the emperor's throne strong even after his death, when he was believed to have been Osiris, the god of the dead. The new Pharaoh, too, became Horus, the falcon god who served as the protector of the sun-god Ra.

Did you know? The smooth and ax-shaped sides of the tower symbolized the sun's rays and were designed to help the king's soul ascend to heaven and join the gods, particularly the sun-god Ra.

The ancient Egyptians believed that when a king died, part of his spirit (known as “ka”) lived in his body. In order to take good care of his spirit, the corpse was embalmed, and all that the king would need in the afterlife was buried with him, including gold vessels, food, furniture and more. The pyramids focused on the religion of the dead king, which was supposed to continue in the afterlife. Their wealth was not limited to him, but also to the relatives, the nobles, and the priests who were buried beside him.

The first pyramids

From the beginning of the Dynastic Era (2950 B.C.), royal tombs were carved out of rock and covered with a rectangular flat roof known as the “mastabas,” which preceded the pyramids. The oldest known pyramid in Egypt was built around 2630 B.C. in Saqqara, in the third dynasty of King Djoser. Known as the Step Pyramid, it began as a traditional mastaba but grew into a very prominent one. As the story progresses, the builder of the pyramid was Imhotep, a priest and healer who, some 1,400 years later, would become the patron deity of writers and physicians. During Djoser's reign for nearly 20 years, pyramid builders collected six stone blocks (unlike mud bricks, like many tombs before) that eventually reached a height of 62 feet (62 m); it was the tallest building in its time. The Step Pyramid was surrounded by a complex of courtyards, temples, and sanctuaries where Djoser could enjoy his afterlife.

After Djoser, this pyramid was trampled into a royal burial rite, although none of his successors' plans were completed (possibly because of their short rule). The first tomb to be built as a "true" pyramid (on the smooth, unmixed sides) was the Red Pyramid at Dahshur, one of three burial mounds built by the first king of the fourth kingdom, Sneferu (2613-2589 BC) named after limestone blocks used to build the pyramid.

The Great Pyramids of Giza

There are no more celebrated pyramids than the Great Pyramids of Giza, located on the western bank of the Nile River, on the outskirts of modern Cairo. The oldest and largest pyramid in Giza, known as the Great Pyramid, is the only surviving structure in the seven world-famous wonders of ancient times. It was built by Pharaoh Khufu (Greek, Cheops), succeeding Sneferu and the second of eight kings of the fourth kingdom. Although Khufu reigned for 23 years (2589-2566 B.C.), very little is known about his reign beyond the size of his pyramid. The sides of the base of the tower are between 755.75 meters (230 meters), and its initial height was 481.4 feet (147 meters), making it the largest pyramid in the world. Three small towers erected for the queens of Khufu have been erected along the Great Pyramid, and a nearby tomb found the empty sarcophagus of its mother, Queen Hetepheres. Like other pyramids, Khufu is surrounded by strands, where relatives or chieftains of the king were buried to accompany him and support him in the afterlife.

The central tower in Giza was built for Khufu's son Pharaoh Khafre (2558-2532 B.C). The Pyramid of Capernaum is the second longest pyramid in Giza and contains the tomb of Pharaoh Khafre. A unique feature inside the Khahafan pyramid was the Great Sphinx, a limestone statue with a human head and the body of a lion. It was the largest statue in the ancient world, measuring 1,600 feet [240 m] by 160 feet [66 m]. In the 18th century (c. 1500 BC) the Great Sphinx was to be worshiped itself, as in the image of the local form of the god Horus. The south tower at Giza was built for the son of Khafre Menkaure (2532-2503 B.C.). It is the shortest of the three pyramids (218 meters) and is the precursor to the smaller pyramids to be built between the fifth and sixth empires.

Who built the Pyramids?

Although some popular histories say that pyramids built by slaves or foreigners were forced to work, local fossils suggest that these workers may have been Egyptian agricultural workers who worked on the pyramids during the year when the Nile River overflowed much of the surrounding land. About 2.3 million stones (approximately 2.5 tons each) had to be cut, transported, and assembled to build the Great Pyramid of Khufu. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus recorded that it took 20 years to build and required the labor of 100,000 men, but later archaeological evidence suggests that there may have been as many as 20,000 workers.

The end of the Pyramid Age

The pyramids continued to be built in all the fifth and sixth kings, but the general quality and measurement of their construction declined during this period, as did the power and wealth of the kings themselves. In the ancient Pyramids of the Old Kingdom, beginning with the ones in King Unas (2375-2345 B.C), pyramid builders began to write written accounts of the king's reign on the walls of the tomb and the entire interior of the tower. Known as the tower record, these are the first important religious songs known in ancient Egypt.

The last of the great builders of the pyramid was Pepy II (2278-2184 B.C.), the second king of the sixth dynasty, who began to reign as a young boy and ruled for 94 years. During his reign, the prosperity of the Old Kingdom diminished, and Pharaoh had lost his divine position as the power of non-monarchy authorities grew. Pepy II's pyramid, built in Saqqara and completed about 30 years in his reign, was much shorter (172 meters) than in the Old Kingdom. With Pepy's death, the empire and its central government almost collapsed, and Egypt plunged into a tumultuous period known as the First Intermediate Period. In time, the kings, the 12th emperor, could return to the pyramid building during the so-called Middle Kingdom, but they were never on the same level as the Great Pyramids.

Pyramids Today

Grave robbers and other destroyers in both ancient and modern times have removed most of the carcasses and funeral paraphernalia from the Egyptian pyramids and looted those outside. Stripped of most of their smooth white cover, the Great Pyramids no longer reach their original locations; Khufu, for example, measures only 451 meters. Nevertheless, millions of people continue to visit these towers each year, attracted by the sheer size and permanence of Egypt's rich and glorious past.