- Oh Osiris, I don't want to die! - Who wants to? Osiris shrugged. - But I ... I'm still a pharaoh! .. Listen, - Cheops whispered, - I will sacrifice a hundred thousand slaves to you. Only let me perpetuate one of my lives! - One hundred thousand? And you're sure they'll all die in the construction? - Rest assured. Such a pyramid, as I conceived... - Well, if so... Perpetuate, I don't mind.
The Pyramid of Cheops
No one remembers Cheops alive. Everyone remembers him only dead. He was dead a hundred, and a thousand, and three thousand years ago and always, always will be dead - the pyramid immortalized his death.
1. What is called the first wonder of the world?
Already in antiquity, the pyramids of Giza were considered one of the seven "wonders of the world." The largest of the pyramids was built by Pharaoh Khufu (2590 - 2568 BC), in Greek his name was Cheops. At present, the height of the pyramid is 138 m, although originally it was 147 m: the upper stones fell during earthquakes. The pyramid is made up of 2.5 million limestone blocks of different sizes, weighing an average of 2.5 tons. Initially, it was lined with white sandstone, which was harder than the main blocks, but the lining was not preserved. At the base of the pyramid lies a square with a side of 230 m, oriented to the cardinal points. According to some legends, the corners of the square symbolize Truth, Reason, Silence and Depth, according to others, the pyramid is based on four material substances from which the human body is created.
TO the greatest creations antiquity among the pyramids include only the pyramid of Cheops, also called the Great Pyramid.
At a distance of about 160 meters from the pyramid of Cheops, the pyramid of Khafre rises, the height of which is 136.6 meters, and the length of the sides is 210.5 meters. A part of the original cladding is still visible on its top. 
The Pyramid of Menkaure, which is even smaller, is located 200 meters from the Pyramid of Khafre. Its height is 62 meters, and the length of the sides is 108 meters. But the most famous Egyptian monument in the world after the pyramid of Cheops is the figure of the sphinx, vigilantly guarding the city of the dead.
The three pyramids are part of the complex, which also consists of several temples, small pyramids, tombs of priests and officials.
Smaller and located south of the pyramid were probably intended for the wives of rulers and remained unfinished.
2. How was the pyramid of Cheops built?
Its height is 146.6 m, which roughly corresponds to a fifty-story skyscraper. The area of the base is 230x230 m. Five of the largest cathedrals in the world could easily fit on such a space at the same time: St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome, St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Abbey in London, as well as Florence and Milan Cathedrals. From the building stone that went to the construction of the pyramid of Cheops, it would be possible to build all the churches in Germany, created in our millennium. The young pharaoh Cheops ordered the construction of the pyramid immediately after the death of his father Snefru. Like all previous pharaohs since the time of Djoser (approximately 2609 -2590 BC), Cheops wanted to be buried after his death in a pyramid.
The ivory statue of Pharaoh Cheops is the only surviving image of the pharaoh. On the head of Cheops is the crown of the Ancient Egyptian kingdom, in his hand is a ceremonial fan.
Like his predecessors, he believed that his pyramid should exceed all other pyramids in size, splendor and luxury. But before the first of more than two million blocks that made up the pyramid was cut in a quarry on the east bank of the Nile, complex preparatory work was carried out. First, it was necessary to find a suitable site for the construction of the pyramid. The weight of the huge structure is 6,400,000 tons, so the ground had to be strong enough so that the pyramid would not sink into the ground under its own weight. The construction site was chosen south of the modern Egyptian capital of Cairo, on a ledge of a plateau in the desert seven kilometers west of the village of Giza. This solid rocky platform was able to support the weight of the pyramid.
First, the surface of the site was leveled. To do this, a waterproof shaft of sand and stones was built around it. In the resulting square, a dense network of small channels was cut down, intersecting at right angles, so that the site looked like a huge chessboard. The channels were filled with water, the height of the water level was marked on the side walls, then the water was let down. Stonemasons cut down everything that protruded above the smooth surface of the water, and the channels were again laid with stone. The base of the pyramid was ready. 
Over 4,000 people - artists, architects, masons and other craftsmen - carried out these preparatory works for about ten years. Only after that it was possible to proceed with the construction of the pyramid itself. According to the Greek historian Herodotus (490 - 425 BC), construction continued for another twenty years, about 100,000 people worked on the construction of the huge tomb of Cheops. Only 1600 talents were spent on radishes, onions and garlic, which were added to the food of construction workers, i.e. approximately $20 million. Data on the number of workers are questioned by many modern researchers. In their opinion, there simply would not be enough space on the construction site for so many people: more than 8,000 people would not be able to work productively without interfering with each other.
Herodotus, who visited Egypt in 425 BC, wrote: "The method used was to build in steps, or as some call it rows or terraces. When the construction of the base was completed, the blocks for the next row above the base were raised from the main level with devices made of short wooden levers; on this first row there was another that raised the blocks one level higher, thus, step by step, the blocks were raised all 
Higher and higher. Each row or level had its own set of mechanisms of the same type that easily moved loads from level to level. The completion of the construction of the pyramid began at the top with the highest level, continued down, and ended with the lowest levels closer to the ground.
During the construction of the pyramid, Egypt was a wealthy country. Every year from the end of June to November, the Nile overflowed its banks and flooded the adjacent fields with its waters, leaving a thick layer of silt on them, which turned the dry sand of the desert into fertile soil. Therefore, in favorable years, it was possible to harvest up to three crops a year - grain, fruits and vegetables. So, from June to November, the peasants could not work in their fields. And they were glad when every year in mid-June a scribe of the pharaoh appeared in their village, compiling lists of those who wanted to work on the construction of the pyramid.
3. Who worked on the construction of the pyramid?
Almost everyone wanted this work, which means that it was not forced labor, but voluntary labor. This was due to two reasons: each construction participant received housing, clothing, food and a modest salary while working. Four months later, when the waters of the Nile left the fields, the peasants returned to their villages. 
In addition, every Egyptian considered it his natural duty and honor to participate in the construction of the pyramid for the pharaoh. After all, everyone who contributed to the fulfillment of this grandiose task hoped that a particle of the immortality of the god-like pharaoh would touch him too. Therefore, at the end of June, endless streams of peasants rushed to Giza. There they were placed in temporary barracks and united in groups of eight people. You could start work. Having crossed in boats to the other side of the Nile, the men were heading to the quarry. There they cut down a stone block, hewn it with the help of sledgehammers, wedges, saws and borers and received a block of the required size - with sides from 80 cm to 1.45 m. Using ropes and levers, each group installed its block on wooden skids and on them along the log flooring she dragged him to the banks of the Nile. The sailboat transported workers and a block weighing up to 7.5 tons to the other side.
4. What was the most dangerous job?
On the roads lined with logs, the stone was dragged to the construction site. Here came the turn of the hardest work, since cranes and other lifting devices had not yet been invented. Along an inclined entrance 20 m wide, built of bricks from the Nile silt, skids with a stone block were pulled to the upper platform of the pyramid under construction with the help of ropes and levers. There, the workers laid the block in the place indicated by the architect with an accuracy of a millimeter. The higher the pyramid rose, the longer and steeper the entrance became, and the upper working platform became more and more reduced. So the work got harder and harder.
Then came the turn of the most dangerous work: the laying of the "pyramidon" - the upper block nine meters high, dragged upward along an inclined entrance. How many people died doing just this job, we do not know. So, twenty years later, the construction of the body of the pyramid was completed, which consists of 128 layers of stone and is four meters higher than the Strasbourg Cathedral. By this time, the pyramid looked about the same as it looks now: it was a stepped mountain. However, the work did not end there: the steps were laid with stones, so that the surface of the pyramid became, although not quite smooth, but already without protrusions. At the end of the work, the four triangular outer faces of the pyramid were faced with slabs of dazzling white limestone. The edges of the plates were fitted so precisely that even a knife blade could not be inserted between them. Even from a distance of several meters, the pyramid gave the impression of a giant monolith. The outer slabs have been polished to a mirror finish with the hardest grinding stones. According to eyewitnesses, in the sun or moonlight, the tomb of Cheops mysteriously sparkled like a huge crystal glowing from within.
5. What's inside the pyramid of Cheops?
The pyramid of Cheops is not made entirely of stone. Inside it there is a branched system of passages, which, through a large passage 47 m long, the so-called large gallery, leads to the chamber of the pharaoh - a room 10.5 m long, 5.3 m wide and 5.8 m high. It is entirely lined with granite, but not decorated with any ornament. Here stands a large empty granite sarcophagus without a lid. The sarcophagus was brought here during construction, as it does not pass through any of the passages of the pyramid. There are such chambers of the pharaohs in almost all Egyptian pyramids ah, they served as the last resting place of the pharaoh.
There are no inscriptions or decorations inside the Cheops pyramid, except for a small portrait in the passage leading to the Queen's chamber. This image resembles a photograph on a stone. On the outer walls of the pyramid there are numerous curvilinear grooves of large and small sizes, in which, at a certain angle of illumination, one can discern an image 150 meters high - a portrait of a man, apparently one of the deities of Ancient Egypt. This image is surrounded by other images (the trident of the Atlanteans and Scythians, a flying bird, plans of stone buildings, pyramid rooms), texts, individual letters, large signs resembling a flower bud, etc. On the north side of the pyramid there is a portrait of a man and a woman with their heads bowed to each other. These huge images were painted just a few years before the main pyramid was completed and installed in 2630 BC. top stone.
Inside the pyramid of Cheops there are three burial chambers located one above the other. The construction of the first chamber was not completed. It is carved into the rock. To get into it, you need to overcome 120 m of a narrow descending corridor. The first burial chamber is connected with the second horizontal corridor 35 m long and 1.75 m high. The second chamber is called the "queen's chamber", although according to the rite, the wives of the pharaohs were buried in separate small pyramids.
The queen's chamber is overgrown with legends. It is associated with a legend according to which the pyramid was the main temple of a certain Supreme Deity, a place where ancient secret religious rites were held. Somewhere in the depths of the pyramid lives an unknown creature with the face of a lion, which holds in its hands the seven keys of Eternity. No one can see him, except for those who have undergone special rites of preparation and purification. Only to them did the Great Priest reveal the secret Divine Name. The person who owns the secret of the name became equal in its magical power to the pyramid itself. The main sacrament of initiation took place in the royal chamber. There, the candidate, tied to a special cross, was placed in a huge sarcophagus. The person receiving the initiation was, as it were, in the gap between the material world and the divine world, inaccessible to human consciousness. 
From the beginning of the horizontal corridor, another one goes up, about 50 meters long and more than 8 meters high. At the end of it there is a horizontal passage leading to the pharaoh's burial chamber, finished with granite, in which the sarcophagus is placed. In addition to the burial chambers, voids and ventilation shafts were found in the pyramid. However, the purpose of many rooms and various hollow channels has not been fully figured out. One of these rooms is a room where there is an open book on the table about the history and achievements of the country during the period when the construction of the pyramid was completed.
The purpose of the underground structures at the foot of the pyramid of Cheops is also unclear. Some of them were opened in different time. In one of the underground structures in 1954, archaeologists found the oldest ship on Earth - a wooden boat, called the sun, 43.6 m long, disassembled into 1224 parts. It was built of cedar without a single nail and, as evidenced by traces of silt preserved on it, before the death of Cheops, it was still floating on the Nile.
6. How was the burial of the pharaoh?
After death, the carefully embalmed body of the ruler was placed in the burial chamber of the pyramid. The internal organs of the deceased were placed in special hermetic vessels, the so-called canopies, which were placed next to the sarcophagus in the burial chamber. So, the mortal remains of the pharaoh found their last earthly refuge in the pyramid, and the "ka" of the deceased left the tomb. "Ka", according to Egyptian ideas, was considered something like a double of a person, his "second self", which left the body at the time of death and could freely move between the earthly and the afterlife. Leaving the burial chamber, "ka" rushed to the top of the pyramid along its outer lining, so smooth that none of the mortals could move along it. The father of the pharaohs, the sun god Ra, was already there in his solar boat, in which the deceased pharaoh began his journey to immortality.
V Lately some scholars doubt that Great Pyramid indeed was the tomb of the pharaoh Cheops. They put forward three arguments in favor of this assumption:
The burial chamber, contrary to the customs of that time, does not have any decorations.
The sarcophagus, in which the body of the deceased pharaoh was supposed to rest, was only roughly hewn, i.e. not completely ready; lid is missing.
And, finally, two narrow passages through which air from outside enters the burial chamber through small holes in the body of the pyramid. But the dead do not need air - this is another weighty argument in favor of the fact that the pyramid of Cheops was not a burial place.
7. Who first entered the pyramid of Cheops?
The entrance to the pyramid of Cheops was originally located on the north side, at the level of the 13th row of granite slabs. Now it is closed. You can get inside the pyramid through a manhole left by ancient robbers.
For more than 3,500 years, the interior of the Great Pyramid was not disturbed by anyone: all the entrances to it were carefully walled up, and the tomb itself, according to the Egyptians, was guarded by spirits ready to kill anyone who tried to enter it. 
That's why the robbers came here much later. The first person to penetrate the pyramid of Cheops was Caliph Abdullah al-Mamun (813-833 BC), son of Harun al-Rashid. He dug a tunnel to the burial chamber in the hope of discovering treasures there, as in other tombs of the pharaohs. But he did not find anything except the droppings of bats that lived there, the layer of which on the floor and on the walls reached 28 cm. After that, the interest of robbers and treasure seekers in the pyramid of Cheops disappeared. But they were replaced by other robbers. In 1168, after R. Chr. part of Cairo was burned and completely destroyed by the Arabs, who did not want it to fall into the hands of the crusaders. When the Egyptians then set about rebuilding their city, they removed the shiny white slabs that covered the outside of the pyramid and used them to build new houses. Even now, these plates can be seen in many mosques in the old part of the city. From the former pyramid, only a stepped body remained - this is how it now appears before the enthusiastic gaze of tourists. Together with the lining, the pyramid also lost its top, the pyramidon, and the upper layers of the masonry. Therefore, now its height is no longer 144.6 m, but 137.2 m. Today, the top of the pyramid is a square with sides of about 10 m. This site in 1842 became the venue for unusual festivities. The Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm IV, known for his love of art, sent an expedition to the Nile Valley led by archaeologist Richard Lepsius in order to acquire ancient Egyptian art objects and other exhibits for the Egyptian Museum being created in Berlin (it was opened in 1855).
Powerful, surrounded by mystery .. - this is the pyramid of Cheops that stood for 4500 years
Pyramid of Cheops (Egypt) - description, history, location. The exact address, phone, website. Reviews of tourists, photos and videos.
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Probably, there is no person who would not know the main Egyptian attraction - the pyramid of Cheops. Yes, and tourists who have visited Egypt and not visited the only one of the surviving Seven Wonders of the World, except that they can be counted on the fingers.
Despite numerous studies, the Cheops pyramid keeps many secrets. The sarcophagus of the pharaoh has not yet been found.
The height of the largest pyramid in Egypt today is 140 meters, and total area over 5 ha. The Pyramid of Cheops is built - attention - from 2.5 million stone blocks! To deliver these blocks to the construction site, the ancient Egyptians had to overcome distances of hundreds of kilometers! It took 20 years to build the pyramid of Cheops.
Millennia have passed, but the pyramid is still highly revered in Egypt. Every year in August, the Egyptians celebrate the day the construction began.
True, historians have not found reliable information confirming this fact.
ascent
The entrance to the pyramid of Cheops, like all ancient Egyptian tombs, is located on the north side at a height of about 17 m. Inside the pyramid there are three burial chambers and a whole network of descending and ascending corridors leading to these rooms. For the convenience of tourists, multi-meter passages are equipped with wooden steps and railings. Lighting in the pyramid has been done, but it is better to take a flashlight with you.
Despite numerous studies and excavations, the pyramid of Cheops keeps many secrets. So, for example, it has not yet been possible to find a corridor leading to the chamber with the pharaoh's sarcophagus.
In the burial room of the ruler's wife, scientists discovered secret doors that supposedly symbolize the way to the afterlife. But the archaeologists could not open the last door...
Near the pyramid of Cheops, several disassembled boats were found. Now everyone can admire the assembled ships (by the way, it took the researchers almost 14 years to do this).
Practical Information
How to get there: by bus or taxi from Tahrir Square in Cairo (about 20 minutes on the way), from Hurghada (5-6 hours), from Sharm El Sheikh (7-8 hours).
Working hours: daily from 8:00 to 17:00, at winter time- until 16:30.
Entrance: on the territory - 80 EGP (for adults), 40 EGP (for children); to the pyramid - 200 EGP (for adults), 100 EGP (for children).
Today we will take a trip back several millennia, to the time of the ancient pharaohs and majestic pyramids. To do this, we will go to the Giza plateau - a suburb with a population of more than 3 million inhabitants, which is visited by tens of thousands of tourists every year. After all, it is here that the Great Pyramids of Egypt are located, and not in Cairo itself, as many used to believe. And it is this place that provides us with an amazing opportunity to see with our own eyes the only one of the 7 wonders of the world that has survived to this day - the pyramid of Cheops, as well as one of the most big statues in the world - the famous Great Sphinx. Just think, the complex has existed for more than 4500 years! My head is spinning from these numbers.
What is Giza, a suburb of Cairo, today.
The modern district of Giza looks poor and nondescript. Nothing special - lots of cars, people, shops, signs...
…sometimes not entirely clear.
Smiling inhabitants of modern Giza.
Ironically, the inconspicuous town is adjacent to one of the most famous ancient architectural complexes in the world. What immediately catches your eye is an unusual combination of city buildings and the tops of the pyramids hanging over them. The majestic pyramids seem to beckon you, inviting you to come closer to open the veil of their secrets and legends.
GIZA PYRAMID COMPLEX
Information:
Giza pyramid complex
Location: Pyramids Road, Giza
How to get there: by bus: stop next to the Ramses Hilton hotel - 357 bus, or minibuses towards Giza; by metro: The Giza station, then by minibus or taxi to the pyramids; by taxi (20-30 pounds)
Cost: 80 LE, students - 40 LE
Opening hours: summer - 7:00-19:00, winter - 8:00-17:00
The ticket includes entrance to the Giza Plateau (visiting the pyramids from the outside), a visit to the Temple of Khafre in the valley (Valley Temple of Khafre), satellite pyramids of Cheops, and some separate small pyramids
Individual tickets:
Pyramid of Khufu - 200 LE, students - 100 LE; summer - 8:00-11:00, 13:00-18:00, winter - 8:00-11:00, 13:00-17:00; only 150 tickets are sold before the break and 150 after.
Pyramid of Khafre - 40 LE, students - 20 LE; Pyramid of Menkaure - temporarily closed;
Museum of the Solar Boat - 60 LE;
ISIC card discounts for students
Light show (Sound and Light Show)- daily at 19:00 - in English, 20:00 - German, Italian, Spanish, French (depending on the day of the week), 21:00 - in Arabic. Duration - about an hour. It is possible to translate into Russian, Japanese, Polish, Chinese and other languages (through headphones, included in the price).
Phones: (+202) 338-57320, (+202) 338-47823, (+202) 338-67374
Photography is prohibited inside the pyramids. Shooting on a plateau with a tripod - 20 LE. Tickets for the plateau and separate tickets for the entrance to the pyramids of Cheops and Khafre, as well as to the light show, are sold near different entrances.
Briefly about the main thing. The Giza Plateau lies in the Libyan Desert. Here are the buildings ancient kingdom(XXVI-XXIII centuries BC). The basis of the complex is 3 Great Pyramids along with their satellite pyramids. Also on the plan of Giza you can see the tombs of members of the families of the pharaohs and the nobility, the statue of the Great Sphinx, 4 cemeteries, several temples, a modern center for the study of the pyramids and a museum. To see all these buildings in detail, you will most likely need a whole day. I, unfortunately, did not have so much time, so only the most important objects are included in my article.
Complex plan:
And so the Great Pyramids look from a bird's eye view. You can even see them from the window of an airplane if you fly over Cairo. So during my first flight to Egypt, a good half of the passengers gathered at the windows when the captain announced that if we all moved to the right side of the cabin together, the plane would tilt from such a weight, and we could see the pyramids. It worked 🙂
In the evenings at the Sphinx pass light shows on the theme of Ancient Egypt and the pyramids (Sound and Light Show) in several languages (for an additional fee).
I want to warn you - be careful with such barkers. One friend told me the story of how her son was almost forcibly put on a camel and began to take pictures "absolutely free." But in order to remove the frightened guy from the hump of the proud ship of the desert, and return the camera to the mistress, they began to demand baksheesh. I had to threaten with guides and policemen. The moral of the story is this: you can ride, but be careful. In which case, immediately boldly declare that you will call the guide now, even if you came here alone. This, oddly enough, works. Just do not think that I dissuade you from the opportunity to do beautiful pictures on a camel. In my opinion, the idea is wonderful, the main thing is to agree on a price in advance 🙂
The Great Pyramids of Giza: the main decoration of the complex.
What kind of pyramids were not built in Ancient Egypt - stepped, broken, pink, huge or very tiny ... The most famous of them - the Great Pyramids - are located in the central part of the Giza complex, where they are located on the same line - from the largest to the smallest. This the pyramids of Cheops (Khufu), Khafre (Khafre) and Menkaure (Menkaure).
!!Fact: As you know, these 3 pharaohs were related. Chephren was the brother or son of Cheops, and Menkaure was the son of Chephren.
Each of the pyramids has its own "satellite pyramids", where members of the families of the pharaohs are buried, and its own mortuary temple (see plan of the complex). Here they are, beauties, towering against the backdrop of Cairo.
From this angle, it seems that the pyramid with the "tip" is the largest in size, but in fact, it is the middle of the three - the Khafre pyramid.
The next photo shows the smallest pyramid of Menkaure with its tiny satellites. Menkaure and Cheops got 3 "satellite pyramids", but Chephren got only one.
Until now, scientists are arguing whether these pyramids were built by people or alien creatures, whether they were intended only for burials or had other secret meanings. To go back to the past for real, to look at least with one eye at the life of Giza several thousand years ago ... Oh, dreams ...
Pyramid of Cheops: along the corridors of one of the Wonders of the World.
Having snapped some “postcards”, I went inside the Cheops pyramid. The only one in our group. What kind of ignorant people are these? So, gentlemen, this is the largest and most famous of the Egyptian pyramids, the only one of the Seven Wonders of the World that has managed to reach our days. Wow, I saw it with my own eyes! Another name for the pyramid of Cheops - great pyramid(Great pyramid). It was intended, in fact, for the burial of Pharaoh Cheops (or Khufu).
Her 3 satellites - standing next to each other are small pyramids - this is the pyramid of Queen Hetepheres (GIa) - the mother of Khufu, the pyramid of Queen Meritit I (GIb) - the 1st wife of Khufu, and the pyramid of Henutsen (GIc) - the 2nd wife of Khufu. One of them is visible in the photo.
!!Fact: Initially, the top of the pyramid of Cheops was gilded.
She probably has the most crowds of people than the other points of the complex combined. Everyone wants to touch it, smell it, lean against it, take a picture ...
Here are the main parameters of the Cheops pyramid:
- The height of the pyramid is 139 meters.
- The 4 sides of its base are 230 meters long each, with a slight difference.
- Materials for construction - limestone, basalt, granite.
- The total weight of the pyramid is more than 6 million tons. It consists of about 2.5 million stone blocks. The average size of each block is 1 m³, the average weight is 2.5 tons. The heaviest of them weighs as much as 35 tons.
You can climb on the blocks, which I did. The truth is not high, otherwise the guards will start to swear. A great chance to “touch the antiquity” by yourself.
As for the entrance, there are as many as 2 of them. Previously, they penetrated inside through the old entrance. The current one is located a little lower, and tourists pass through it today. It was once broken through the wall of the pyramid, hoping to find treasures there. Not found.
So, we go inside, passing through the open gate in the background. Unfortunately, this photo was the only "legal" inside the Cheops pyramid: for some reason, shooting is prohibited here. You have to leave the camera at the entrance at your own peril and risk. I resisted for a long time, it was elementary scary for the fate of my camera. True, in the end he was returned safe and sound. Further photos will be taken using the phone, which I carefully hid so that it would not fall into the hands of the guards 🙂
The first impression of the pyramid is subdued light and silence inside, long and very narrow corridors. Inside there are no statues or wall paintings, which are found, for example, in later tombs in. It has its own special atmosphere.
But, what was my disappointment when I found that you can only go through a few corridors and go into only a few rooms. I compared what is open to tourists with what is present on the plan of the pyramid, and realized that only a third is open for inspection. As a result, the whole trip down to the end point and back, if you do not consider every corner, took only a few minutes. That's the whole Great Pyramid. I read the comments on the Internet, and came to the conclusion that either I somehow missed the passages to the top, or at that time they were simply closed. I will explain what is at stake. Look at Cheops pyramid plan.
As we can see, there are 3 burial chambers inside it, one of which, for some reason, was not completed. Also, in the pyramid there is a system of corridors with a large gallery. This is what I expected to see in theory. In fact, what I managed to get through - this is the path from the entrance (2) along the descending corridor (4) to the unfinished underground chamber (5). All, comrades! It's annoying.
Descending corridor (4).
The length of the corridor is 105 m. The descent takes place at a steep slope. If for some reason you want to stop in the middle, then this is unlikely to succeed if you do not want to delay the others: the passage is really narrow and does not even fit two people wide. Next comes short tunnel, leading to an unfinished underground chamber (5). I saw another passage closed with bars. Apparently, the missing part on the pyramid plan is hidden behind it.
Camera (5) It is a small nondescript room. That, in fact, is all. Maybe I didn't look there?
Finally, one more fact. In the 20th century, a large wooden boat was found in one of the rooms, disassembled into parts. Now it is in the Solar Boat Museum, located next to the pyramid. Unfortunately, I did not have enough time to visit the museum.
Let's move on to another one of the most beloved points of the Giza complex by tourists - the statue of the Great Sphinx, the oldest surviving monumental statue in the world. Let me remind you that in ancient Egypt, the sphinx is a stone figure of a lion with a human head. For several millennia, he has been basking under the Egyptian sun, carefully guarding the plateau and its buildings.
The height of the Sphinx is 20 m, its width is 73 m. For its age, the statue has been perfectly preserved to this day, however, having lost its nose in the fight against sandy winds. The face of the mythical animal is turned towards the Nile, from where the sun rises. Scientists believe that it has a portrait resemblance to Pharaoh Mikerin - the "master" of one of the three Great Pyramids.
What kind of photos with the Sphinx are not taken by travelers coming here .. Some jump on its background, others try to hug it, and still others give it a kiss as hot as the Libyan desert. I was no exception. The Sphinx impressed me almost more than the pyramids themselves, and I think he deserved this kiss.
An annex is located next to the statue - sphinx temple. Together they form a single complex. Separate tickets for visiting the temple are not needed, as one of the barkers did not try to convince me of the opposite. As an usher, he, of course, tried to speak himself.
On this romantic frame with a kiss, I finish my story. Until we meet again with hot Egypt!
Why did the ancient Egyptians build pyramids, how were these grandiose and mysterious creations created? human hands. Many mysteries have not yet been revealed, and there are more questions than answers. Perhaps the rulers of those times wanted to emphasize the majesty of the era, to confirm the constancy of their power, to show proximity to the gods.
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First buildings
From the end of the 4th millennium BC. pharaohs were buried in truncated structures - medium-sized stone buildings (mastabs), for fastening which a solution of clay was used. Today, such structures look like shapeless piles of stones that do not carry any architectural value.
The history of the pyramids - the most unusual buildings of ancient Egypt - began in 2780-2760 BC, during the reign of Pharaoh Djoser, who completely changed the architectural style of the tombs. His new tomb consisted of as many as 6 mastabas erected on top of each other. The narrowest was at the top, the widest at the bottom. Such a building was a stepped building. Its height was just over 60 meters, and the perimeter was 115 by 125 meters.
The construction of the pyramids ancient egypt conducted in a special architectural style who reigned for two hundred years. Its developer and designer was the famous vizier Imhotep. They built pyramids in a different form. For example, the period of the reign of Pharaoh Snefru was marked by the creation of two unique pyramids of ancient Egypt - broken and pink:
- At the first, the angle of inclination of the walls from the base of the building to its middle is 54° 31', and then it changes to 43° 21'. There are many versions explaining such a strange form of construction. The main one is that the death of the pharaoh was sudden, so the workers made the slope steeper to speed up the construction process. There are other opinions on this matter. For example, that it was a trial version created for the sake of "experiment".
- The second got its name due to the color of the blocks that were used for construction. The stone was a pale pink hue, and at sunset it turned bright pink. Initially, the outer cladding was white, but over time, the coating gradually peeled off, and pink limestone, the material from which the structure was laid out, came out.
But still, the most famous are those structures that proudly rise on the Giza plateau. These three majestic pyramids of impressive size are famous all over the world.
The largest pyramid
Its other name is the Pyramid of Khufu. This is one of the most famous and largest buildings in the world. Let's make it short description. When was the pyramid of Cheops built? It was erected near the city of Giza (on this moment- a suburb of Cairo). The largest pyramid began to be built on August 23, 2480 BC. For its construction, the forces of 100 thousand people were used. The first 10 years were required in order to build a road along which giant blocks of stones were delivered. It took another 20 years to build the structure itself.
Attention! The Pyramid of Cheops is striking in its scale. Today, its height is 137 meters, but this was not always the case, because over time the cladding was worn out and part of the base was covered with sand. Initially, it was 10 meters higher.
147 meters is the length of the side of the base, made in the form of a square. According to studies, more than 2 million limestone blocks were used for construction, the average weight of one of them is 2.5 tons. Each block fits perfectly to the next one and is raised to a certain height. The entrance can be found on the north side of the building, at a height of just over 15 meters. Stone slabs resembling an arch are laid out around.
It is still unknown how exactly the Egyptians managed to cope not only with the lifting of the blocks, but also with their perfect fit to each other. There are no gaps between blocks. Some are sure that they were not engaged in raising the blocks - they just crushed the limestone, brought it to a powdery state, and then removed the moisture, and so it turned into cement, which was poured into pre-created formwork. After that, water, crushed stone and stone were added - in this way monolithic blocks arose.
The stepped structure served several purposes: it was used as sundial, seasonal calendar and reference point for geodetic measurements.
Little is known about who built the largest Egyptian pyramid. The architect was the vizier of the pharaoh named Cheops Hemiun. He was engaged in design, was the head of the work, but he did not have time to see his offspring, as he died shortly before the completion of construction.
Attention! Today there is no exact information that the tomb of Cheops is located inside. However, it is believed that such buildings were part of ritual burial complexes.
Chamber inside Khufu's pyramid
Inside there are three chambers: the upper one is the royal burial chamber and is lined with granite blocks, each one weighs 60 tons. This chamber is located at a height of 43 meters from the base. There is also an ascending corridor and the queen's chambers. In the burial pit at the beginning of the 20th century, two engineers dug a well, where, in their opinion, a hidden burial chamber should have been located.
However, their efforts were in vain: it later turned out that the construction of the chamber was not completed. Instead, the burial chambers were arranged in the center, they are located one above the other.
More recently, using muon radiography technology, it was possible to find a room that was not known before.. It was calculated that its length is 30 meters, and its width is 2 meters, it is located right in the center of the building. Scientists are trying to drill a small 3-centimeter hole in order to launch a mini-robot inside and explore the room they found, since it is still unknown what is in it and for what purposes it serves.
Today, there is almost nothing left of the cladding - the inhabitants of Cairo decided that it would be “more necessary” for the construction of their houses, and they took it to their homes. However, there are remains of white limestone on the nearby Pyramid of Khafre, which is somewhat smaller.
Second largest building
Its height is 143.5 meters. If you believe the legends, then it was crowned with a granite pyramidion, decorated with gold. There is no data on why what is no longer there, and where it is now. Khafre spent 40 years building a tomb for himself. It was built using the same technology as the previous one, but it is located on a higher hill, and its slope is steeper, which makes the structure impregnable and difficult even for professional climbers. At the moment, climbing to the top is prohibited in order to preserve the remains of the old cladding.
The protective material granite was used inside and outside the pyramid, but it was not used in the burial chamber. At the moment, the condition of the building is assessed as good, despite the fact that its size has slightly decreased. The blocks, made of limestone and weighing a couple of tons each, are attached to each other so tightly that not a piece of paper or even a hair can be inserted between them.
The youngest of the three, the height is 62 meters. At the same time, in some pictures, tourists manage to choose the angle so that it looks the highest. The ancient building has been preserved in good condition and is open to the public. Starting from this building, large tombs were no longer erected. Scientists believe that by that time the decline of the era of great buildings began.
Attention! An interesting feature of the pyramid of Menkaure is that the largest stone block it weighs at least 200 tons.
Other architectural elements
Later, the pharaohs stopped creating grandiose structures. Thus, Pharaoh Userkaf ordered the construction of a building in Saqqara, the height of which is 44.5 meters. At the moment, it looks like a pile of stones that has nothing to do with an architectural structure. The same goes for the rest of the buildings. In total, about 100 pyramids were erected in Egypt. Their appearance is the same - only the height and volume change.
Great Sphinx
A monolithic limestone rock was used to make this famous sculpture. The Great Sphinx is considered one of the elements of the architectural complex in Giza. The length of the sphinx is 73 meters, and it “stretched” up to 20 meters in height. For all the time of its existence, the sculpture turned out to be almost completely covered with sand. It was cleared only in 1925 - then they learned about the actual dimensions of the architectural object.
Conclusion
Some believe that the multi-stage pyramids in ancient Egypt were born as a result of the actions of a mysterious and powerful civilization or alien beings. Different concepts of how the ancient Egyptians built their structures are attractive and more than once formed the basis of works of literature and cinema.
Continuing the series of stories about the wonders of antiquity on LifeGlobe, I will tell you about the largest of the Egyptian pyramids - the Pyramid of Cheops, located in Giza. It is also called the Pyramid of Khufu, or simply the Great Pyramid.
This is the oldest of the seven wonders of the world, moreover, perfectly preserved to our times, unlike the Colossus of Rhodes or the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Egyptologists believe that the pyramid was built as a tomb for the Fourth Dynasty. Egyptian pharaoh Cheops. The construction of the pyramid lasted about 20 years and was completed in 2560 BC. The giant pyramid, 146.5 meters high, was the largest structure in the world for more than 4 millennia, which is an absolute record that is unlikely to ever be broken. Initially, it was completely covered with smooth stone, which crumbled over time. There are many scientific and alternative theories about the methods of building a large pyramid, from alien intervention to generally accepted ones, based on the fact that huge blocks of stone were moved from quarries by special mechanisms. 
Inside the pyramid of Cheops there are three chambers - tombs. The lowest one is carved into the base of the rock on which the pyramid is built. For unknown reasons, its construction was not completed. Above it are the chamber of the Queen and the chamber of the Pharaoh. The Great Pyramid is the only one in Egypt where there are both ascending and descending corridors. She is the central key element of the Giza complex, around which several more pyramids were built for the wives of the pharaoh, as well as other temples and tombs. 
The Great Pyramid consists of approximately 2.3 million stone blocks. The largest stones were found in the pharaoh's chamber, and weigh 25-80 tons each. These granite blocks were delivered from a quarry at a distance of almost 1000 kilometers. According to general estimates, 5.5 million tons of limestone and 8,000 tons of granite were spent on the construction of the pyramid.
Let us turn to the theories of pyramid construction, many of which often contradict each other. Scientists can never agree on whether the blocks were dragged, or rolled, or carried at all. The Greeks believed that the slave labor of millions of Egyptians was used, while modern research has proven that several tens of thousands of skilled workers worked on the construction, divided into teams according to their qualifications and skills. 
Initially, the entrance to the pyramid was at a height of 15.63 meters (# 1 in the diagram below), on the north side, assembled from stone slabs in the form of arches. Later, it was closed up with granite blocks, making a new passage 17 meters high (#2 on the diagram). This passage was carved in 820 by Caliph Abu Ja'far, in an attempt to plunder the pyramid (it is worth noting that he never found any treasures). Currently, it is through it that tourists get inside the pyramid.
Below is a sectional diagram of the pyramid, where all corridors and chambers are marked: 
Immediately after entering the inside of the pyramid, a descending corridor 105 meters long (No. 4 on the diagram above) begins, flowing into a small horizontal corridor leading to the lower chamber (No. 5 on the map). A narrow hole leads from the chamber, ending in a dead end. as well as a small well 3 meters deep. As mentioned above, for some reason this chamber was left unfinished, and the main chambers were later built higher, in the very center of the pyramid. 
An ascending passage goes up from the descending corridor, at the same angle of 26.5 °. Its length is 40 meters and it leads to the Great Gallery (No. 9 on the diagram), from where there are passages to the pharaoh's chamber (No. 10) and the queen's chamber (No. 7).
At the very beginning of the large gallery, a narrow, almost vertical chamber was hollowed out, with a small extension in the middle, which is called the Grotto (No. 12). Presumably, the grotto already existed before the construction of the pyramid, as a separate structure. 
From the Chamber of the Pharaoh and the Chamber of the Queen, ventilation ducts 20 centimeters wide diverge evenly, in the direction to the north and south. The purpose of these channels is unknown - either they were used specifically for ventilation, or the traditional ideas of the Egyptians about the afterlife are associated with them. 
There is an opinion that the ancient Egyptians were fluent in geometry, and knew about the "number of Pi" and the "Golden Section", which was reflected in the proportions of the Cheops pyramid and the angle of inclination. The same angle of inclination was used for the pyramid at Meidum. But it is possible that this is a mere accident, since such an angle was not repeated anywhere else, all subsequent pyramids had other angles of inclination. Particularly fanatical supporters of mystical theories suggest that it was this pyramid that was built by representatives of alien civilizations, and the rest were really built by the Egyptians trying to copy it 
According to some astronomers, the Great Pyramid is astronomical observatory ancient Egyptians, as the corridors and ventilation ducts accurately point to the stars Tuban, Sirius and Alnitak. Opponents of this theory argue that this is a mere coincidence. During excavations near the pyramid, pits were found with ancient Egyptian boats made of cedar without the use of nails and fasteners. This boat was dismantled into 1224 parts, which were assembled by the restorer Ahmed Youssouf Mustafa, which took him 14 years. Currently, a museum has been opened on the south side of the pyramid, where you can see this boat (the museum building itself in the photo below looks quite original, it is worth noting), as well as buy a lot of souvenirs 
It is currently the most visited tourist attraction in Egypt. You can read more about other ancient wonders in the article "Seven Ancient Wonders of the World" 
