A report on the ancient Egyptian pyramids. When were the pyramids built in Egypt? Power and greatness

The great seven wonders of the world - the hanging, the Alexandria lighthouse, the statue of Zeus, the colossus of Rhodes, etc. Everyone knows about them. But only one "miracle" of these seven has survived from our days. They are mysterious Egyptian pyramids which are more than 4,500 years old.

Location and structural features of the Egyptian pyramids:

The pyramids are located on the territory of the ancient cemetery in Giza, which is on the opposite bank from the (modern capital).

Scientists note that during the entire existence of the Ancient Egyptian kingdom, more than 80 pyramids were built, but only a small part has survived to us. In total, there are three pyramids that have survived - these are the pyramids of Cheops, Khafren and Mikerin (they also have Egyptian names - Khufu, Khafra and Menkaur). Only the first of this list formally belongs to the legendary seven. However, they are all mysterious and majestic.

The views of these structures are impressive. They stand out clearly against the blue sky and dark yellow sand. You notice them from afar, before you approach them. For anyone, giant pyramids evoke sacred awe. They seem to be something cosmic, it's hard to believe that man had anything to do with their construction.

The main pyramid is the pyramid of Cheops (Khufu). Each side of the base is 233 m long. The height of the pyramid is 147 m. The area of ​​the pyramid is more than 50 thousand square meters. Its internal premises occupy a very small volume - no more than 4% of the total area.

Until the middle of the 19th century, the Cheops pyramid was considered the largest structure on our planet. According to Napoleon's calculations, the stone blocks of the three pyramids of Giza would be enough to encircle the entire wall with a wall three meters high and 30 centimeters thick.

All sides are almost symmetrical - such accuracy is surprising. The pyramid consists of 2,500,000 huge blocks, each of which weighs at least two tons, the heaviest block weighs 15 tons. The architect of this pyramid is also known - the Egyptian Hemuin.

A lot of misunderstandings arise from the layout of the inner corridors and the so-called "main royal chamber" with an empty sarcophagus of the Cheops pyramid. As you know, a narrow passage - a ventilation duct - leads out from this room at an angle, and above the chamber there are several empty unloading rooms, built in order to reduce the huge stone mass. One of the mysteries, for example, is the location of the main room - it is not located along the central axis, as in all tombs, but deviated to the side.

Khafre pyramid(Khafre) is almost not inferior to the pyramid of Cheops. It is slightly smaller - 215 m long and 143 wide, but due to the fact that it is located on steeper slopes, it seems larger. Khefren is buried in it - this is the son of Cheops.

Not far from this pyramid is the legendary Great Sphinx, which is also part of the burial complex. The size of the figure is rather big: its height is 20 meters, and its length is 57 meters. The figure, carved from solid rock, depicts a lying lion with a human head.

Pyramid of Khufuso has come down to our times in good condition compared to other pyramids: it is the only one that has preserved the lime cladding at its top.

Menkaur pyramid(Mikerina) is the smallest of the legendary pyramids. It is almost 10 times smaller than the Cheops pyramid. Its height is only 66.4 meters. The pyramid was intended for the grandson of Cheops.

History of the Egyptian pyramids:

The time of the erection of the Egyptian pyramids refers to the beginning of the Old Kingdom, and this is approximately 2800 - 2250 BC. NS.

Almost 5 thousand years ago (28th century BC), the founder of the III dynasty, Pharaoh Djoser, having barely ascended the throne, ordered the construction of his tomb to begin. The construction was entrusted to the architect Imhoten. The innovation that the architect used in the construction of the tomb for Djoser was that he erected it in the form of six benches, placed on top of each other. Moreover, each subsequent one was smaller than the previous one. Imhoten created the first step pyramid. Its height was 60 m, length - 120 m, width - 109 m. Unlike the previous tombs, the pyramid of Djoser was built not of wood and brick, but of large limestone blocks. This pyramid is considered the ancestor of the great Pyramids.

The first of the great pyramids is the Pyramid of Cheops... It is absolutely impossible to imagine that it was erected, according to the manuscripts that have come down to us, in just 20 years. Even today, with all modern technology, it is difficult to build such a huge structure, not to mention the fact that the pyramid was erected 4,500 years ago, when no mechanisms were even suspected. Sometimes the opinion is expressed that the people living in the Bronze Age could not build the pyramids, and that ... aliens took part in the creation of these colossal structures. But, according to the official scientific version, the construction of the pyramid is the work of ordinary people. The main builders were nearly 100,000 slaves.

Millions of blocks were literally gouged out of the rock with primitive red copper drills that were quickly dulled by such hard work. Fitting wooden boards under the future slab, they were constantly poured with water. The tree swelled and tore off the stone from the rock. Then the resulting block was carefully polished, giving it the required shape. One has only to marvel at the impeccable result, because, in fact, the work was carried out with completely primitive tools. Without any measuring instruments, they ended up with a block that was ideal in proportion and shape. In the vicinity of Aswan, there are still ruins of ancient quarries, on the territory of which many ready-made blocks have been found. As it turned out, this is a marriage that was not used when laying the pyramids.

The processed blocks were transported by boats to the other side of the Nile. Then they were taken along a specially paved road, the construction of which took 10 years and which, according to Herodotus, is only slightly simpler than the construction of the pyramids. The pyramid was erected on a bedrock limestone massif, cleared of sand and gravel. Workers dragged them to the site using ramps, blocks and levers, and then pulled them together without any mortar. The stones of the pyramid are so tightly "fitted" that it is impossible to put even a knife blade between them. To raise the blocks, the Egyptians built an inclined embankment of brick and stone with an angle of rise of about 15. When the main structure was completed, it resembled a series of steps. As the pyramid was built, the embankment was lengthened. Perhaps they also used wooden sledges, on which blocks were dragged up by hundreds of slaves. In some places, traces of these carts have been found.

When the construction was mostly finished, the inclined embankment was leveled, and the surface of the pyramid was covered with facing blocks.

Construction ended in 2580 BC. NS. Initially, the height of the pyramid was 150 meters, but over time, due to destruction and advancing sands, it has become smaller - today by 10 meters.

There is no doubt that this pyramid was built as a tomb for Pharaoh Cheops. In ancient Egypt, it was customary to build structures for burial long before the death of the person to whom it was intended. The Egyptians believed in an afterlife and prepared carefully for it. They believed that in the event of a person's death, his body should be preserved so that the spirit could continue to live after death. They removed the internal organs, filled the body with salts and wrapped it in linen sheets. So the body turned into a mummy. Together with the pharaohs, they buried jewelry that, according to the ancients, could be useful to him in another world. In addition, a large number of servants were often buried together with the ruler, who would serve the master even after death. The pyramids served the pharaohs, according to their religious beliefs, as a ladder along which souls ascended to heaven.

After the construction of the Cheops pyramid, the cocking of the Khafre pyramid began. Huge money has been invested in these buildings. The third pyramid should have been no less majestic in design. But Menkaur could not afford to build a large pyramid. The country was ravaged by the construction of the Khufu and Khafre pyramids. Hunger began. The population, worn out by overwork, grumbled. But, despite its smaller size, the Menkaur pyramid still looks unusually beautiful.

Secrets of the Egyptian pyramids:

There are absolutely fantastic assumptions about the pyramids. For example, that these are not tombs at all, but something like observatories. Astronomer Richard Proctor claims that the descending corridor could have been used to observe the movement of some of the stars, and the Great Gallery, open above, was used to map the sky. Still, the official version is that the pyramids were built primarily as tombs.

Since the pharaohs were buried along with various valuable things, it is undoubted that jewelry can be found in them. The search for treasures in the tomb of Cheops does not stop today. Until now, there is a lot of unknown. That is why the ancient pyramids are a favorite place for treasure seekers. For a long time, the plundering of the pyramids was considered the main problem. It seems that this problem existed in the Old Kingdom, so the tombs were designed according to the principle of labyrinths, with secret rooms and doors, decoys and traps.

According to the official version, they first entered the pyramid in 820 AD: the Arab Caliph Abdullah Al Manum decided to find the treasures of Khufu. Immediately, the treasure hunters were faced with the fact that it was completely impossible to find the entrance to the tomb. After a long search, we decided to dig under the pyramid. They soon found themselves in the passage that led down. These digging continued for several months. People were simply in despair - as soon as they entered a corridor, it immediately ended in a blank wall.

The first room they managed to find was what is now known as the "royal room." From it they were able to find a way out into the space at the junction of two corridors and come to the "large gallery", which, in turn, led to the "king's room" - about 11 meters long and 5 meters wide. Here they found only an empty sarcophagus without a lid. There was nothing else in the room.

Several years of work gave nothing - no treasure was found. Most likely, the tomb was looted long before the arrival of Abdullah Al Manum, but the workers said that this was simply impossible, since all the slabs inside the pyramid were intact, and it was impossible to pass through them. True, in 1638 John Greves discovered a narrow passage in the Great Gallery, which was littered with debris. It is possible that all the treasures were taken out through this passage. But many scientists doubt this, since the passage is very small and a thin person can hardly fit into it.

What happened to Khufu's mummy and his treasure2 Nobody knows. Various investigations have found no other rooms or passageways. However, many people still believe that the main rooms and the treasures hidden there have not yet been found.

The first wonder of the world of all time, one of the main structures of our planet, a place full of secrets and mysteries, a point of constant pilgrimage for tourists - the Egyptian pyramids and in particular the pyramid of Cheops.

Building the giant pyramids, of course, was far from easy. Huge efforts of a large number of people were made in order to deliver stone blocks to the Giza or Sakkara plateau, and later to the Valley of the Kings, which became the new necropolis of the pharaohs.

At the moment, there are about a hundred pyramids found in Egypt, but the finds continue, and their number is constantly increasing. At different times, one of the 7 wonders of the world meant different pyramids. Someone meant all the pyramids of Egypt as a whole, someone the pyramids near Memphis, someone the three large pyramids of Giza, and most critics recognized only the largest pyramid of Cheops.

Afterlife of Ancient Egypt

One of the central moments in the life of the ancient Egyptians was religion, which shaped the entire culture as a whole. Particular attention was paid to the afterlife, perceived as a clear continuation of earthly life. That is why preparation for life after death began long before her, was posed as one of the main tasks of life.

According to the ancient Egyptian belief, a person had several souls. The soul of Ka played the role of the Egyptian's double, with whom he was to meet in the afterlife. Ba's soul connected with the person himself, and left his body after death.

Religious life of the Egyptians and the god Anubis

At first it was believed that only the pharaoh had the right to life after death, but he could bestow this "immortality" on his entourage, who were usually buried next to the tomb of the ruler. Ordinary people were not destined to get into the world of the dead, the only exceptions were slaves and servants, whom the pharaoh "took" with him, and who were depicted on the walls of the great tomb.

But for a comfortable life after the death of the deceased, it was necessary to provide everything necessary: ​​food, household utensils, servants, slaves, and much more needed for the average pharaoh. They also tried to preserve the human body so that the Ba soul could later reconnect with him. Therefore, in matters of body preservation, embalming and the creation of complex pyramid tombs were born.

The first pyramid in Egypt. Djoser's pyramid

Speaking about the construction of the pyramids in Ancient Egypt in general, it is worth mentioning the beginning of their history. The very first pyramid in Egypt was built about five thousand years ago on the initiative of Pharaoh Djoser. It is in these 5 millennia that the age of the pyramids in Egypt is estimated. The construction of the pyramid of Djoser was led by the famous and legendary Imhotep, who was even deified in the later centuries.

Djoser's pyramid

The entire complex of the erected building occupied an area of ​​545 by 278 meters. Along the perimeter, it was surrounded by a 10-meter wall with 14 gates, only one of which was real. In the center of the complex was the Djoser pyramid with sides 118 x 140 meters. The height of the Djoser pyramid is 60 meters. A burial chamber was located almost at a depth of 30 meters, to which corridors with many branches led. Utensils and sacrifices were kept in the branch rooms. Here archaeologists have found three bas-reliefs of Pharaoh Djoser himself. Near the eastern wall of the Djoser pyramid, 11 small burial chambers were discovered, intended for the royal family.

Unlike the famous great pyramids of Giza, the pyramid of Djoser had a stepped shape, as if intended for the ascent of the pharaoh to heaven. Of course, this pyramid is inferior in popularity and size to the Cheops pyramid, but still the contribution of the very first stone pyramid to the culture of Egypt is difficult to overestimate.

The Pyramid of Cheops. History and short description

But nevertheless, the most famous for the ordinary population of our planet are the adjacent three pyramids of Egypt - Khafre, Mekerin and the largest and highest pyramid in Egypt - Cheops (Khufu)

Pyramids of Giza

The pyramid of Pharaoh Cheops was built near the city of Giza, which is currently a suburb of Cairo. When the pyramid of Cheops was built, at the present time it is impossible to say for sure, and research gives a wide spread. In Egypt, for example, the date of the beginning of the construction of this pyramid is officially celebrated - August 23, 2480 BC.

Pyramid of Cheops and Sphinx

About 100,000 people were simultaneously involved in the construction of the wonder of the world, the Cheops pyramid. During the first ten years of work, a road was built, along which huge stone blocks were delivered to the river and the underground structures of the pyramid. Work on the construction of the monument itself continued for about 20 more years.

The dimensions of the Cheops pyramid at Giza are striking. The height of the Cheops pyramid initially reached 147 meters. Over time, due to being covered with sand and the loss of cladding, it decreased to 137 meters. But even this figure allowed it to remain the tallest human structure in the world for a long time. The pyramid has a square base with a side of 147 meters. The construction of this giant is estimated to require 2,300,000 limestone blocks weighing an average of 2.5 tons.

How were the pyramids built in Egypt?

The technology of building pyramids is controversial in our time. Versions range from the invention of concrete in Ancient Egypt to the construction of pyramids by aliens. But it is still believed that the pyramids were built by man exclusively by his own strength. So for the extraction of stone blocks, first a shape was outlined in the rock, grooves were hollowed out and a dry tree was inserted into them. Later, the tree was doused with water, it expanded, a crack formed in the rock, and the block was separated. Then it was processed to the desired shape with tools and sent down the river to a construction site.

A report on the topic: "Egyptian pyramids" will help prepare for the lesson and learn interesting information.

The message "Egyptian pyramids"

The pyramids are architectural monuments of Ancient Egypt known to everyone. The pyramids of Cheops and Giza are one of the seven wonders of the world. The pyramids are huge pyramidal stone structures that were used as tombs for the pharaohs. The word "pyramid" - Greek, means polyhedron. In total, over 118 pyramids of various shapes and heights were discovered in Egypt.

Ancient Egyptian architecture, even today, amazes with the power of its huge stone structures. At the entrance to these structures, there are huge statues of the pharaohs, there are sphinxes made of stone. The Sphinx - in Ancient Egypt - the embodiment of royal power, a statue depicting a fantastic creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man or a sacred animal.

The Great Pyramid of Cheops is the face of the Egyptian pyramids and the largest structure of antiquity. The construction of the pyramid took two whole decades and was completed in 2560 BC. At 146.5 meters high, it has been the largest structure in the world for over 4 millennia. The weight of the pyramid is over 6 million tons. The area of ​​this giant is about 5 hectares. The Pyramid of Cheops consists of 2.3 million stone blocks.

The second most important is the pyramid of Chephren, the son of Cheops. It was built on a 10-meter plateau, so it seems to be higher than the Cheops pyramid, but it is not. Its height is 136.4 meters. Not far from the pyramid of Khafre is the Great Sphinx - a monument carved into the rock. The facial features of the Sphinx repeat the face of Pharaoh Khafre.

The crypts of the Egyptian pharaohs are not inside the pyramids, as many mistakenly believe, but not far from them, in the Valley of the Kings. According to one theory, the Egyptians mastered the mathematical "principle of leverage" to build the majestic pyramids. But, at the same time, in this way it would have been possible to build the Cheops pyramid in a century and a half. Whereas it appeared in just two decades. The Egyptian pyramids were built for about two centuries in a row. While one was being built, another appeared on the sands.

You can write a message about the pyramids yourself using this information to get a good grade.

The pyramid of Pharaoh Khufu (in the Greek version of Cheops), or the Great Pyramid, is the greatest of the Egyptian pyramids, the oldest of the seven wonders of the world of antiquity and the only one that has survived to our time. For over four thousand years, the pyramid was the largest building in the world.

The pyramid of Cheops is located in the distant suburb of Cairo Giza. Nearby are two more pyramids of the pharaohs Khafre and Menkaura (Khafren and Mikerin), according to ancient historians, the sons and successors of Khufu. These are the three largest pyramids in Egypt.

Following ancient authors, most modern historians consider pyramids to be burial structures of ancient Egyptian monarchs. Some scientists believe that these were astronomical observatories. There is no direct evidence that the pharaohs were buried in the pyramids, but other versions of their purpose are less convincing.

When the pyramid of Cheops was built

On the basis of ancient "royal lists" it is established that Cheops ruled around 2585-2566. BC. The construction of the "Sacred Height" lasted 20 years and ended after the death of Khufu, around 2560 BC.

Other versions of the construction time, based on astronomical methods, give dates from 2720 to 2577. BC. The radiocarbon method shows a spread of 170 years, from 2850 to 2680. BC.

There are also exotic opinions expressed by supporters of the theories of aliens visiting the Earth, the existence of ancient civilizations, or adherents of occult movements. They determine the age of the Cheops pyramid from 6-7 to tens of thousands of years.

How the pyramid was built

The Pyramid of Cheops is to this day the largest stone building on the planet. Its height is 137 m., The length of the side of the base is 230.38 m., The angle of inclination of the face is 51 ° 50 ", the total volume is about 2.5 million cubic meters. However, over the past centuries, almost the entire lining of the pyramid has been dismantled.Natural factors have also done their job - temperature drops and winds from the desert carrying clouds of sand.

Ancient Greek historians reported that the labor of millions of slaves was used in the construction. Modern researchers believe that with the correct organization of work and engineering, the Egyptians would have had several tens of thousands of workers for the construction. For the supply of materials, temporary workers were involved, whose number, according to Herodotus, reached 100 thousand. Modern scientists fully agree with this, as well as with the reality of the 20-year construction period.

The construction of the pyramid was supervised by the head of the royal works, Khemiun. The tomb of Hemiun is located next to his creation, in which a statue of the architect was discovered.

The main material for the construction was gray limestone, which was cut in the nearest quarries or brought from the other side of the Nile. The pyramid was faced with light sandstone, which made it literally shine in the sunlight. For interior decoration, granite was used, which was delivered over a thousand kilometers, from the area of ​​present-day Aswan. The structure was crowned with a hewn gilded granite block - a pyramidion.

In total, the construction of the pyramid took about 2.3 million blocks of limestone and 115 thousand facing slabs. The total mass of the building, according to modern estimates, is almost 6 million tons.

The block sizes differ among themselves. The largest ones are laid in the base, their height is one and a half meters. The higher the blocks are, the smaller they are. The height of the block at the top is 55 cm.The length of the facing slabs ranged from 1.5 to 0.75 m.

The work of the builders of the pyramid was extremely hard. It took a lot of time and effort to extract the stone, trim the blocks and fit them to the desired size. In those days, neither iron nor bronze was known in Egypt. The tools were made of relatively soft copper, so they were quickly grinded and very expensive. Flint tools were widely used - saws, drills, hammers. Many of them were found during excavations.

The delivery of materials was carried out by the river, and the stone was brought to the construction site on a wooden sled or roller. It was a hell of a job, because the average weight of one block is 2.5 tons, and some of them weighed up to 50 tons.

A variety of devices were used to lift and install the monoliths, and inclined embankments were erected to drag up the most massive elements that make up the lower rows. Images of construction work have been found in a number of Egyptian temples and tombs.

Recently, an original theory has emerged regarding the building methods of the Egyptians. Scientists who studied the microstructure of the blocks in order to establish their origin found foreign inclusions. According to experts, these are the remains of animal hair and human hair, from which the scientists concluded that limestone was crushed at the mining sites and in a crushed form was delivered to the construction site. Directly at the place of laying, blocks were made of limestone mass, which thereby were a semblance of modern concrete structures, and the traces of tools on the blocks are in fact imprints of the formwork.

Be that as it may, the construction was completed, and the grandiose size of the pyramid fully justifies the supporters of the theories of the Atlanteans and aliens, who do not believe in the possibility of human genius.

What's inside the pyramid

The entrance to the pyramid was made at a height of almost 16 meters in the form of an arch made of granite slabs. It was later sealed with a granite plug and covered with cladding. The current entrance, 10 meters lower, was pierced in 831 by order of the Caliph Al-Mamun, who hoped to find gold here, but did not find anything of value.

The main premises are the pharaoh's chamber, the queen's chamber, the Great Gallery and the underground chamber. The passage made by Al-Mamun leads into a 105-meter inclined corridor, ending in a chamber carved into the thickness of the rock below the base of the pyramid. Its dimensions are 14x8 m., Its height is 3.5 m. The work here, for unknown reasons, was not completed.

At 18 meters from the entrance, a 40 m long ascending corridor is separated from the descending corridor, ending in the Great Gallery. The Gallery itself is a high (8.5 m) tunnel 46.6 m long, leading to the pharaoh's chamber. The corridor to the queen's chamber branches off from the Gallery at its very beginning. In the floor of the Gallery, a rectangular ditch in cross-section, 60 cm deep and 1 m wide, was pierced, its purpose is unknown.

The pharaoh's chamber is 10.5 m long, 5.4 m wide, 5.84 m high. It is faced with black granite slabs. There is an empty granite sarcophagus here. The queen's chamber is more modest - 5.76 x 5.23 x 6.26 m.

Channels 20-25 cm wide lead from the burial chambers to the surface of the pyramid. The channels of the tsar's chamber exit at one end into the room, with the other on the surface of the pyramid. The channels of the queen's chamber begin 13 cm from the wall and do not reach 12 m to the surface, and both ends of the channels are closed by stone doors with handles. It is assumed that the ducts were made to ventilate the premises during the work. Another version, associated with the beliefs of the Egyptians, claims that this is the path to the afterlife, which the souls of the deceased had to pass.

No less mysterious is another small room, the Grotto, to which an almost vertical passage leads from the beginning of the Great Gallery. The grotto is located at the junction of the base of the pyramid and the hill on which it stands. The walls of the Grotto are fortified with rather rough-cut stone. It is assumed that this is part of some structure older than the pyramid.

It is necessary to mention one discovery related to the pyramid. In 1954, at the southern edge, two pits faced with stone were discovered, in which there were Pharaoh's boats made of Lebanese cedar. One of the boats has been restored and is now in a special pavilion next to the pyramid. Its length is 43.5 m, width is 5.6 m.

The study of the Cheops pyramid continues. Research using the latest methods used in the exploration of the earth's interior shows with a high degree of probability the existence of unknown caverns within the pyramid. So it is quite possible that scientists are expecting new and interesting discoveries and discoveries.

In the meantime, the Great Pyramid keeps its secrets, proudly towering in the middle of the desert, as thousands of years ago. After all, as the ancient Arabic proverb says, everything in the world is afraid of time, but time is afraid of the pyramids.

An endless series of eras of human civilization keeps a huge amount of secrets and mysteries. Each of them requires close attention and study. The study is made difficult by those huge time intervals that separate the modern man from the affairs of the past. The greatest architectural and artistic creations looking at living people from eternity are not at all going to talk about how, by whom, and most importantly why they were created.

One of the most mysterious masterpieces of the times gone into oblivion are, without any doubt, pyramids of ancient egypt... These grandiose creations of human hands delight and fascinate, amaze in size and at the same time cause a feeling of deep bewilderment: why was it necessary to spend so much effort, energy, time on absolutely useless constructions.

Most likely, those who lived 45 centuries ago wanted to emphasize the greatness of their era, the importance of their rulers, the inviolability of their power and closeness to the gods. Or maybe these structures contain some other meaning beyond the comprehension of modern man. All this is a secret behind seven seals, reliably hidden for millennia.

The first ancient pyramids of Egypt

The facts indicate that the first pyramid was built in Ancient Egypt under the founder of the III dynasty Pharaoh Djoser... He ruled approximately in 2780-2760 BC. NS. and radically changed the architectural style of tombs practiced before him.

From the end of the IV millennium BC. NS. the rulers were buried in mastabas - truncated pyramids. These were small structures made of stones, fastened together with clay mortar. In those distant times, they may have made an impression on people, but in the present century they are shapeless stone piles, not much like architectural creations.

The tomb of Djoser (located in Sakkara - 20 km south of Cairo) had nothing to do with mastaba. Rather, it was six mastabas stacked on top of each other. The lowest was also the widest. The subsequent mastaba was smaller, it was even smaller, even smaller higher. Thus, a stepped pyramid with a height of 62 meters and dimensions along the perimeter of 125 by 115 meters was obtained.

For those times, the building was, of course, majestic. Developed it, designed it, and then implemented it into life pharaoh's vizier Imhotep... Apparently he was a very extraordinary person, since her name survived for almost five thousand years. Imhotep is rightfully considered the founder of a new architectural style that held out in Ancient Egypt for almost 200 years.

The shape of the pyramids underwent significant structural changes during the time of the founder of the 4th dynasty Pharaoh Sneferu(ruled 2613-2589 BC). Two pyramids are associated with his name, but these are no longer stepped, but fundamental structures with smooth sloping walls. One pyramid is called broken line- its height is 104 meters, another pyramid has a name pink... It is higher, its height is 109 meters.

The pyramids are located in Dahshur, a desert area 26 kilometers south of Cairo. They are not alone in their greatness. Next to them there are 20 more pyramids of the pharaohs of the XII and XIII dynasties. In this necropolis, the Sneferu pyramids are the oldest, but despite the fact that other man-made tombs were built many centuries later, these two pyramids are much better preserved. They have not lost their geometric forms, have not crumbled under the weight of centuries, but continue to rise royally above the mortal earth, dispassionately looking at the world around them.

Such an amazing vitality is explained by completely different construction technologies, completely different from those by means of which the rest of the necropolis was built.

The pink and broken pyramids are assembled from granite blocks, perfectly processed and fitted to each other. These blocks are not fastened with mortar, but the structures stand like a monolith. The enormous weight reliably binds all the nodes of these ideal architectural structures, while 46 centuries that have passed since their construction serve as proof of their strength.

The rest of the pyramids are assembled from ordinary rough stones, or rather cobblestones. They were tied with mortar and, laying on top of each other, created structures that were significantly inferior in strength to the pyramids of Sneferu. All this is rather strange, since for 700 years it was possible not only not to lose the technologies practiced during the 4th dynasty, but also to significantly improve them. The fact remains: during the construction of the broken and pink pyramids, more advanced construction methods were used than in later centuries.

In general, it falls out of the usual range of similar building structures. This is already indicated by its name. The fact is that the angle of inclination of the walls of this structure from the base to the middle of the height is 54 ° 31 ′. Further, the angle changes and is equal to 43 ° 21 ′. What is the reason for such an architectural sophistication is unknown, although there are a great many assumptions and theories.

Basically, the prevailing opinion is that in connection with the death of the pharaoh, it was decided to accelerate the construction work and therefore made the slope of the upper parts of the walls steeper. Other researchers believe that it was just a "test of the pen." Until that time, nothing like this had been built in Ancient Egypt, so they decided to create something original and dissimilar, but apparently this form did not find support from others and did not take root.

It got its name due to the peculiar color of the stone blocks from which it is laid. The blocks have a pale pink color and are filled with a corresponding shade in the setting rays of the sun. This was the reason to call it the pink pyramid. Although in ancient times it was not pink at all, but white. This was the color of the white limestone cladding. Over the centuries, the coating peeled off and exposed pink limestone, from which, in fact, the pyramid was assembled.

The Sneferu pyramids are huge, but they cannot be compared with similar structures located on the Giza plateau (northwest of Cairo). There are three pyramids here, two of them are striking in their size. The largest is the pyramid of the son of Sneferu Pharaoh Cheops(ruled 2589-2566 BC). Its original height was 146.6 meters, and it is composed of 2.3 million limestone blocks.

A bird's eye view of the Great Pyramids of Giza

The top of the pyramid was covered with white limestone, the top was decorated with a pyramidion: a stone of polished granite. It was covered with gilding and shone majestically in the rays of the sun. At the base of the stone there was a square ledge, at the top of the pyramid there was a recess for it. The pyramidion was thus securely fastened at a great height, perfectly complementing the grandiose picture of the greatest structure on the planet.

On the east side, a temple and three pyramids for queens adjoined the pyramid. Nowadays, only one foundation remains from the temple, while small pyramids have survived. The temple located in the valley was also destroyed. It was connected with the pyramid of Cheops by a road. But the "sun boat" of the ruler, made of cedar, remained in excellent condition. After the death of the pharaoh, it was dismantled and placed in a vault at the foot of the pyramid, apparently considering that in the afterlife it would be necessary for the formidable sovereign.

How the pyramid of Cheops was built

Such a huge structure at all times caused people to ask one question - how did they manage to create such a masterpiece. Each block of the pyramid weighs at least two tons; in total, as already mentioned, there are more than two million. They are all perfectly matched to each other and raised to different heights. In addition, there are three chambers inside the pyramid. The uppermost burial chamber of the king is lined with granite blocks weighing 60 tons each.

This chamber is located at a height of 43 meters from the base of the monumental structure. Raising such blocks by tens of meters is a truly difficult task. However, the Egyptians somehow coped with this and even perfectly fitted the granite slabs to each other. There are no gaps between them, which speaks of the highest production technique.

Hemiun

The architect of the pyramid is called the vizier of the pharaoh Cheops Khemiun... It was Hemiun who designed this structure and supervised its construction. He died shortly before the end of the work, which, according to ancient sources, lasted 20 long years. Two decades of titanic labor have produced the greatest architectural masterpiece “on the mountain”, which has staggered the human imagination for 45 centuries.

So how could Hemiun build such splendor? There is no definite answer to this question. There are various versions and assumptions. One of the versions claims that the blocks were not raised to a great height at all. The workers pounded the limestone, turned it into powder, removed the moisture, and thus it became ordinary cement. The latter was poured into special formwork located directly on the pyramid under construction, diluted with water, added stone, crushed stone for bundling and received monolithic blocks.

Does this theory have a practical basis? Limestone is a rocky rock of medium hardness. It is cut and sanded using modern technologies. But how to turn more than six million tons of rock (the weight of the Cheops pyramid is 6.3 million tons) into powder is a rather laborious task, rather even impossible. It is unlikely that Hemiun would have dared to do such an action. Besides, where would he take so much wood to make several hundred formwork at the same time.

Wood in Ancient Egypt was worth its weight in gold. It was transported from distant lands, and it was very expensive. Taking into account all the costs, it would be easier to cast gold bars and mold them into a tomb for the pharaoh. True, then it would not have stood for 45 centuries, but it would have cost less.

Another point of view looks much more realistic. It is adhered to by some American and French researchers. Having carefully studied the internal and external structure of the ancient structure, they put forward a rather interesting theory, which is offered to the judgment of discerning readers.

In this case, it is planned to install an external ramp at the beginning of construction. A ramp means an embankment along which the slabs are dragged to the place where they should lie. The pyramid grows, the height of the ramp also increases. In addition to the height, its length also increases: after all, the flatter the embankment, the easier it is to drag blocks along it.

But at a certain height, a moment comes when it becomes problematic to lengthen the ramp. To maintain the minimum angle, it is necessary to build up the embankment by a kilometer or more. In terms of its volume, such a structure is already beginning to surpass the pyramid under construction. But its height is 146.6 meters. This is what kind of embankment is needed, and even with a slope angle of a maximum of 10 °.

Hemiun found a way out of a seemingly hopeless situation. The tomb chamber for the king is at a height of 43 meters. It was up to this point that the outer ramp was made in order to drag 60 ton slabs along it. If the size of the embankment allowed, the camera would have been made much higher, but this height was critical.

To this place, along the outer ramp, 600 people could easily drag a huge and heavy block. These blocks of stone were moved on a sled. Logs were hardly used, since the wheel was not yet known at that time, so the corresponding analogies most likely could not come to the minds of the builders.

Above, according to the project, there were already stone blocks weighing 2-3 tons. In order to lay them, an internal ramp was made. It was a narrow spiral cavity, gently rising upward. It was located, and even now it is located, very close to the edges of the pyramid, above the "king's chamber". If you know where to hammer the walls, then the internal ramp is easy to find.

Above the chamber itself, five unloading cavities were installed, between which stone slabs were placed. A gable floor was placed over them. We did this to evenly distribute the weight of the overlying layers of a huge structure.

The weight of these layers is 1.5 million tons. If there were no unloading cavities, then a huge mass of stones would have crushed the "king's chamber" trimmed with black granite, like a nut shell.

The very process of installing the upper blocks was as follows: the outer ramp was dismantled to a height of over 15 meters. That is, to the place where the main entrance to the pyramid is located (after the completion of the work, it was sealed with a granite plug). This is where the stone blocks were dragged, from which the entire upper part of the pyramid was laid out with a height of more than 100 meters.

The blocks were dragged along an ascending corridor, which rests on the "king's chamber". Currently, this tunnel is divided into an ascending corridor and a Grand Gallery. The Great Gallery is a high and narrow passage 48 meters long and 8 meters high. Right in the middle of the gallery, a square depression stretches along its entire length. Its width is 1 meter, depth is 60 centimeters. There are 27 pairs of indentations on the side projections. The passage ends with a horizontal ledge with a smooth surface, 2 and 1 meter wide and long, respectively.

Here, 45 centuries ago, wooden guides were installed, along which a sled was moved, with a stone block lying on them. The guides were held on wooden blocks driven into the grooves of the side protrusions. The next block was dragged to a horizontal ledge, and from it was moved to the inner ramp, the entrance to which is located next to the "king's chamber". Researchers have not yet reached it, but there is no doubt that it will be discovered in the near future.

Then the two-ton block was pulled along the ramp to the construction site. Here the builders laid it in one of the rows and took up the next one. First, the outer rows of blocks were laid out, and then the inner ones, in order to preserve the correct geometric shapes of the huge structure. It was a very complex and precise matter: after all, it is many times more difficult to correctly expose an inclined surface than a vertical one. However, the ancient engineers succeeded brilliantly.

The Pyramid of Cheops
and the highest
structures of the world

After the majestic structure was erected, it was covered with white limestone slabs. Now there is nothing left of the facing on the Cheops pyramid. All of it was taken away long ago by the inhabitants of Cairo for the construction of their homes. The pitiful remains of white limestone can only be observed on the neighboring pyramid - pyramid of Khafre.

The height of this structure is 143.5 meters. According to legend, it was crowned with a granite pyramidion decorated with pure gold. When he disappeared from the top, where he is now is unknown. The construction technology of this structure is fully consistent with the one by which the largest pyramid was erected - the pyramid of Cheops.

Hefren created his creation almost 40 years after the father of Pharaoh Cheops. The years of his reign fall on 2558-2532 BC. NS. From 2556 to 2558 BC NS. in Egypt, another pharaoh reigned - Jedefra. He was the elder brother of Khafre, but he built his pyramid in Abu Roash - 10 km. north of Giza.

Its height after construction was only 68 meters, but the pyramid was faced not with white limestone, but with red granite. They took him from the very south of the country, since they could not find it closer.

The third pyramid at Giza, standing next to two giants, is pyramid of Mikerin... Unlike its colleagues, its height is only 66 meters. In volume, it is 10 times smaller than the Cheops pyramid. This pharaoh, who took power after Khafre, was not distinguished by apparently exorbitant ambitions and showed modesty unusual for such people.

It seems that most likely the matter is not in the modesty and vanity of the ruler, but in the economy of Ancient Egypt. Seventy years of continuous construction of gigantic structures that do not bring absolutely any profit, but, on the contrary, siphon off all funds from the treasury, have undermined the welfare of the state so much that it simply did not have the opportunity to build further something grandiose and prohibitively huge.

So you can only sincerely sympathize with Mikerin. His creation looks very faded against the general fundamental and majestic background and does not make the proper impression on true connoisseurs of antiquity who come from all over the world to look at the pyramids of Ancient Egypt.

Other ancient pyramids of Egypt

Actually, with Mikerin, the construction of the Great Pyramids stopped. Nothing else was created by the pharaohs that would take the breath away and lead to a state of delight. The first pharaoh of the V dynasty Userkaf (ruled 2465-2458 BC) built a pyramid 44.5 meters high. It is located in Saqqara and today represents a pile of poorly processed stones that bear little resemblance to an architectural structure.

For some unknown reason, the brilliant technologies used in the installation of the pyramids of the pharaohs of the 4th dynasty came to naught. They have never been reborn. The pyramids, over all subsequent centuries, were built from carelessly processed stones or unbaked clay bricks and did not even remotely resemble the fundamental structures of the XXVI century BC. NS.

Such construction continued until the XIII dynasty. This is the XVIII, beginning of the XVII century BC. NS. It was in the 17th century BC. NS. the era of the construction of grandiose structures ended, and the pyramids of Ancient Egypt became history. In the future, the rulers of this state have never practiced anything like this.

Thus, in Ancient Egypt, about a hundred pyramids were built. They are all located on the left bank of the Nile from Abu Roash to Meidum (70 km south of Cairo) on a limestone plateau. They were created in different centuries by different people, but there are no architectural differences in the appearance of these structures, unless they differ in volume and height.

Who built the Great Pyramids and why

The pyramids of the pharaohs of the 4th dynasty stand apart. During their construction, completely different technologies were used, and the quality of work stands out sharply against the general background of rather primitive and clumsy structures. Some researchers explain this by the fact that during the construction of these structures, slave labor was not used. Hired brigades of workers built majestic structures - hence the corresponding quality. Subsequently, forced labor was used in such works, which was immediately reflected in such original tombs for the pharaohs.

Perfectly crafted and fitted stone blocks from one of the Great Pyramids

Such an argument may convince someone, but certain things catch the eye, which cannot be explained from this position. In particular - the ideal processing of stone blocks from which the pyramids are assembled. Their surfaces appear mirror-smooth. This can only be done using special equipment for stone processing. Nowadays there are corresponding machines and tools, but where could they come from 45 centuries ago, in the Bronze Age.

Another particular - traces of erosion in the lower layers of the pyramids, which indicates their long stay in the water. They even find shells - this once again emphasizes that the time of the creation of such majestic structures can be safely attributed to more ancient eras, when the climate was not so arid, and the limestone plateau was very often flooded with water.

And finally, why did everyone decide that the Great Pyramids were built by Sneferu, Cheops and their successors. Where is that written? This point of view exists with the light hand of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus (484-425 BC). This venerable husband visited Egypt in 445 BC. e., communicated with local representatives of the nobility, priests and even described the construction of the pyramid of Cheops. But to what extent does all this correspond to the truth? This master was more than once caught on serious distortions of historical facts, but when they mean the pyramids of Ancient Egypt, they believe him unconditionally.

And one more particular - in the same pyramid of Cheops there are no images and inscriptions indicating its creator. But such attributes were an integral part of the funerary art of this state. And the granite sarcophagus itself in the "king's chamber", apparently, never served as a storage place for his mummified body. At least there is no evidence and traces that it was once there.

Sculpture of the Great Sphinx

It is also impossible to ignore such a creation of architecture as sculpture of the Great Sphinx... It is carved from a monolithic limestone rock and although it has nothing to do with any of the pyramids of Ancient Egypt, it is an integral part of the man-made complex in Giza.

The dimensions of the sphinx are truly enormous: 73 meters long, 20 meters high. Over the millennia, the sculpture has been covered with sand up to its neck. From time to time, they tried to clear it, although they were limited only to the front part. They completely cleared and learned the true volumes only in 1925.

The face of the Great Sphinx has pronounced negroid features.

There is an assumption that it was built during the time of Pharaoh Djedefre. He created it in memory of his father, but for some reason the face has pronounced negroid features. Some researchers, pointing to a disproportionately small head, argue that at first it was the face of a lion, but then one of the later rulers of the state ordered the unnecessary to be cut down and immortalized his face.

Interestingly, there are clearly visible horizontal stripes on the sculpture. This is erosion, indicating that the sphinx was once in water up to its neck. When? During the great flood that took place 11 thousand years BC. NS. according to Sumerian mythology, or during floods - they were a frequent occurrence in the 5th millennium BC. NS. Then it turns out that it was created long before the Egyptian pyramids or simultaneously with them, but at a time much earlier than 45 centuries ago. Who created, when and why?

There are many questions, but no specific answers. Even the above-described theory of the construction of the Cheops pyramid does not have a single practical proof. All these are just guesses and assumptions.

Based on all that has been said, the conclusion suggests itself: the Great Pyramids were created by some other civilization that existed in these places for millennia before Ancient Egypt. And they were erected for purposes that the human mind cannot comprehend.

Maybe it was a powerful power station, maybe a connection with space was carried out through the pyramids. It is also possible that this could be a treatment center: the properties of the pyramids indicate that they have a beneficial effect on a living organism and kill pathogenic bacteria.

And then what about Cheops? Unfortunately, there are no traces of the powerful ruler, except for the pyramid with his name. The only thing is a small ivory figurine depicting this man. She was found in Giza in 1903.

People are looking, wondering, guessing, doubting. The pyramids of Ancient Egypt are devoid of throwing and hesitation. For 45 centuries, they have seen everything, it is impossible to surprise or excite them with something. Great man-made creations dispassionately gaze at the vain world, and even Time itself respectfully bows its head before them, recognizing them as equal to Eternity.

Article by ridar-shakin

Based on materials from foreign and Russian publications