Great Pyramid of Egypt
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza Necropolis bordering what is now Cairo, Egypt, and is the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World that survives substantially intact. It is believed the pyramid was built as a tomb for the fourth Egyptian dynasty, King Khufu and constructed over a 20 year period concluding around 2560 BC.
Originally the Great Pyramid was covered by casing stones that formed a smooth outer surface, and what is seen today is the underlying core structure. Some of the casing stones that once covered the structure can still be seen around the base. There have been varying scientific and alternative theories regarding the Great Pyramid’s construction techniques. Most accepted construction theories are based on the idea that it was built by moving huge stones from a quarry and dragging and lifting them into place.
PYRAMID COMPLEX
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the main part of a complex setting of buildings that included two mortuary temples in honor of Khufu, one close to the pyramid and one near the Nile, three smaller pyramids for Khufu’s wives, an even smaller “satellite” pyramid, a raised causeway connecting the two temples, and small mastaba tombs surrounding the pyramid for nobles.
One of the small pyramids contains the tomb of queen Hetepheres (discovered in 1925), sister and wife of Sneferu, and the mother of Khufu.
A few hundred meters south-west of the Great Pyramid lies the slightly smaller Pyramid of Khafre, one of Khufu’s successors who is also commonly considered the builder of the Great Sphinx, and a few hundred meters further south-west is the Pyramid of Menkaure, Khafre’s successor, which is about half as tall. In May 1954, 41 blocking stones were uncovered close to the south side of the Great Pyramid.
They covered a 30.8 meter long rock-cut pit that contained the remains of a 43 meter long ship of cedar wood. In antiquity, it had been dismantled into 650 parts comprising 1224 pieces. This funeral boat of Khufu has been reconstructed and is now housed in a museum on the site of its discovery. A second boat pit was later discovered nearby.
INTERIOR
The Great Pyramid is the only pyramid known to contain both ascending and descending passages. There are three known chambers inside the Great Pyramid. These are arranged centrally, on the vertical axis of the pyramid. From the entrance, an 18 meter corridor leads down and splits in two directions. One way leads to the lowest and unfinished chamber. This chamber is cut into the bedrock upon which the pyramid was built. It is the largest of the three, but totally unfinished, only rough-cut into the rock.
The other passage leads to the Grand Gallery (49 m x 3 m x 11 m), where it splits again. One tunnel leads to the Queen’s Chamber, a misnomer, while the other winds to intersect with the descending corridor. The Grand Gallery itself features a corbel haloed design and several cut “sockets” spaced at regular intervals along the length of each side of its raised base with a “trench” running along its center length at floor level. What purpose these sockets served is unknown. An antechamber leads from the Grand Gallery to the King’s Chamber.
Entrance
Today, tourists enter the Great Pyramid via a forced tunnel dug by the Caliph Al-Ma’mum and his men around 820 AD. The tunnel continues for approximately 30 meters and eventually meets up with the Descending Passage which at the time was found to have been blocked by a series of massive granite plugs. Unable to remove the blocks, the workmen tunneled around the plugs discovering the Ascending Passage which leads to the Grand Gallery and interior chambers only to find them empty.
The original entrance, which was apparently unknown at the time, can be seen today several meters directly above the forced entry and would have also been blocked by the granite plugs.
King’s Chamber
At the end of the lengthy series of entrance ways leading into the interior is the structure’s main chamber, the King’s Chamber. This granite room was originally 10 × 20 × 11.4 cubits, or about 5.235 m × 10.47 m × 5.974 m, comprising a double 10 × 10 cubit square floor, and a height equal to half the double square’s diagonal. A study confirmed that the King’s Chamber was a triumph of Egyptian geometry, the exterior of the pyramid had been built to the same proportions.
The sarcophagus of the King’s Chamber was hollowed out of a single piece of Red Aswan granite and has been found to be too large to fit through the passageway leading to the chamber. Whether the sarcophagus was ever intended to house a body is unknown. It is too short to accommodate a medium height individual without the bending of the knees, a technique not practiced in Egyptian burial, and no lid has ever been found.
The King’s Chamber contains two small shafts that ascend out of the pyramid. Despite being originally discovered closed off at both ends, these shafts were once thought by Egyptologists to have been used as ventilation shafts, but this idea was eventually abandoned, leaving them to conclude they were instead used for ceremonial purposes. It is now thought that they were to allow the Pharaoh’s spirit to rise up and out to heaven.
The King’s Chamber is lined with red granite brought from Aswan 935 km (580 miles) to the south. There are 5 relieving chambers above the kings chamber. The first one is reached through a breach in the wall at the upper end of the Grand Gallery. The kings chamber and the first 4 relieving chambers have roofs made out granite. Each roof includes 8 or 9 granite slabs weighing 25 to 80 tonnes each. The fifth chamber has a pented roof made of large limestone slabs. Egyptologists believe they were transported on barges down the Nile river.
Queen’s Chamber
The Queen’s Chamber is the middle and the smallest, measuring approximately 5.74 by 5.23 meters, and 4.57 meters in height. The chamber is lined with fine limestone blocks and the pented roof is made of large limestone slabs. Its eastern wall has a large angular doorway or niche.
Egyptologist believes that the Queen’s chamber was intended as a serdab, a structure found in several other Egyptian pyramids, and that the niche would have contained a statue of the interred. The Ancient Egyptians believed that the statue would serve as a “back up” vessel for the Ka of the Pharaoh, should the original mummified body be destroyed. The true purpose of the chamber, however, remains uncertain.
The Queens Chamber has a pair of shafts similar to those in the King’s Chamber, blocked by limestone “doors” with two eroded copper handles. The northern passage, which was harder to navigate due to twists and turns, was also found to be blocked by a door.
Unfinished Chamber
The “unfinished chamber” lies 27.5 meters below ground level and is rough-hewn, lacking the precision of the other chambers. Egyptologists suggest the chamber was intended to be the original burial chamber, but that King Khufu later changed his mind and wanted it to be higher up in the pyramid.
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