The pyramid is part of the ritual and burial complex of the earthly ruler: the pharaoh. Therefore, with all the differences, in addition to the general form, all the pyramids also have a common internal structure, which is due to the obligatory presence of the hall in which the pharaoh's sarcophagus was installed and the passages leading to it. Let's see how they are arranged egyptian pyramids inside on the example of the tomb of Cheops - the highest stone structure in the world.

The only entrance, which was provided by the ancient builders, is located on the northern side of the pyramid structure at a height of 12 meters from the ground. Once this entrance was hidden by cladding slabs, but already at the end of the 18th century, the first European scientists who explored this wonder of the world - the French, saw it open, because by that time people and time had already deprived the ancient building of facing slabs.

Inside the pyramid of Cheops there is a passage-corridor, which has an almost square section. The angle of inclination of the corridor, apparently, was not chosen arbitrarily - it coincides with the angle at which the ancient Egyptians could observe the North Star. Therefore, the first researchers had to face certain difficulties - then there were no railings, which are now made for the convenience of tourists, and the feet slid along the polished stone floor slabs. Yes, and with ventilation then it was incomparably worse than today (although even now it is far from ideal). The corridor sometimes narrowed to such an extent that they had to crawl on their haunches. Now, again, for the benefit of tourists, everything has been “corrected”.

Pyramid of Cheops inside

Unlike most other similar structures in Egypt, which have one burial chamber, the most famous pyramidal collos has three of them. One of them - underground - is located below the base of the structure, cut directly into the natural foundation. However, this chamber was not completely finished. Apparently, the plans of the builders have changed, and the other two chambers are already located directly in the above-ground stone body of the giant structure. For a long time, scholars explained this by the fact that the pharaoh wanted the tomb to be ready for a possible funeral ceremony at any stage of construction. And when the builders started building the next chamber, located above, the need for an underground chamber disappeared.

This theory does not explain why all other similar structures have a burial chamber below the base line. Only the pyramids of the pharaohs Snefru and Cheops have burial chambers inside above the base in the thickness of the masonry. A significant number of modern Egyptologists believe that such an arrangement of chambers in the tomb of Cheops was associated with certain religious views of the ancient inhabitants of Egypt. Briefly, this theory is as follows. There are facts that allow us to conclude that Cheops began to be revered as the god Ra during his lifetime.

The pyramid of this pharaoh is called the "Horizon of Khufu", which meant that he, like the god Ra himself, rises every day to the horizon. The sons and successors of Cheops, Djedefra and Chefren, became the first pharaohs whose titles contain the epithet - "son of Ra". That is, Khufu was identified with Ra, so his burial chamber should be located above the ground and closer to the sky - where the real sun is visible. True, it should be noted that in relation to Pharaoh Sneferu, no facts have yet been found that would make it possible to interpret the location of his burial chamber in this way.

But back to what is Cheops pyramid inside. From the corridor leading down to the underground chamber, at approximately ground level, an upward passage begins. From it you can get into a small gallery, and then into a small chamber, called the queen's chamber. One of the underground "junctions" If you don’t turn towards the queen’s room, but go further, then the Great Gallery will begin, having a length of 47 and a height of 8.5 meters. This magnificent gallery is a unique architectural structure. The ancient masters laid the limestone slabs of the false vault in such a way that each subsequent layer overlapped the previous one by 5-6 cm. The limestone slabs framing the walls are polished to a shine and pressed together with amazing accuracy - even the blade of a thin knife could not pass through the joints . Notches are chiselled into the floor, allowing movement without having to hold on to smooth walls.

After the Great Gallery there is a small airlock room leading to a room called the king's chamber. Its dimensions are:

• length - 10.5 m;
• width - 5.2 m;
• height - 5.8 meters.

The lining of the chamber is made of pink granite slabs. Above the ceiling are five unloading chambers, the top of which has a gable roof made of giant granite blocks. They take on the enormous weight of the stone mass, preventing it from crushing the burial chamber of the pharaoh. It should also be noted that the pharaoh's chamber is precisely oriented to the cardinal points.

Near the western wall (the Egyptians' afterlife began in the west) there is a massive sarcophagus carved from a monolithic block of pink granite. The lid of the sarcophagus is missing. Also, no traces of the pharaoh's mummy were found. That is, there is no evidence that the pyramid of Cheops was ever used for an actual funeral. However, no other burial site of Pharaoh Cheops has yet been discovered, just as his mummy has not been found. Nevertheless, Egyptologists have enough reason to say that the pyramids are part of the ritual-burial complex, and not something else.

When the first European explorers discovered the sarcophagus of the pharaoh at the end of the 18th century, they still did not know exactly for whom this, as they thought, tomb was erected, what was the name of the ancient ruler of Egypt. Only later, several hieroglyphs were found above the burial chamber, surrounded by an oval frame. In fairness, it should be noted that some Egyptologists consider this inscription to be a much later forgery, and there are certain grounds for this. The inscription was able to be read thanks to the scientific discoveries of Champollion, who by that time had already deciphered the language of the ancient Egyptians. It turned out that it was the name of the pharaoh, by whose order this main and first wonder of the world was built. The pharaoh's name was Khufu (the Greeks called him Cheops), and he ruled according to modern scientific ideas in the 28th-27th centuries. BC, that is, about 4700 years ago.

Mystery of the channels

Speaking about the structure of the Cheops pyramid, one cannot fail to say that both the queen’s chamber and the king’s chamber are equipped with inclined shafts-channels of a square section, averaging 20x20 cm in size, going up in the north and south direction. Until recently, it was believed that they served as ventilation ducts. However, if two passages extending from the pharaoh's burial chamber pass through the body of the structure and go outside, then two passages from the queen's chamber cannot be ventilation ducts - they end in the masonry itself far from the outer surfaces of the walls (see diagram above).

Since 1993, attempts have been made to understand, using various technical devices, for what purpose they were intended. German engineers have designed a special robot capable of crawling through such narrow shafts. But both in the southern shaft and in the northern one, the robot ran into a barrier, which is a kind of slab with two protrusions (handles?) similar to metal (copper?). An attempt was made to drill through one of the partitions, but the video camera that the robot pushed into the drilled hole showed that the small space behind the slab ended again with a new stone partition.

It was decided to continue the research by preparing new technical equipment, but the events in Egypt that occurred at the beginning of 2011 postpone them indefinitely.

In the light of new data, a scientific hypothesis has spread that these mines performed some ritual tasks related to the religious ideas of the ancients. There is also a simpler hypothesis that initially these were actually ventilation ducts. But as the building rose higher and higher, it was decided to build a third burial chamber - the king's chamber. And the builders blocked the passages leading from the queen's chamber as unnecessary. This hypothesis is indirectly confirmed by the fact that the entrances to the mines from the side of the queen's chamber were walled up and were found only after her thorough examination.

The internal structure of the pyramid of Cheops from an engineering and construction point of view, the most difficult of all such structures of ancient Egypt. All other Egyptian pyramids inside look about the same as the great pyramidal structure of Cheops, but in general, inside the pyramids of other pharaohs, they have a simpler device, with the exception of the tomb of Pharaoh Djoser in Saqqara, which has an extensive system of underground passages and rooms at its base.

It will also be interesting to see.

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 largest 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 of the times of the Old 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, the Sphinx hosts 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 take beautiful photos 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 is 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 Cheops pyramid is the 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!

Daria Nessel | Dec 21, 2016

The Pyramid of Cheops (Pyramid of Khufu) is one of the most famous and the only one that has survived to this day, which everyone who comes to Cairo can see. Its age dates back to about 2500 BC. For about fifty hundred years it has been rising, surprising and striking with its size, in the burning Egyptian desert. This unique complex has been studied for more than one century. More than one generation of Egyptologists and archaeologists “broke many spears” with disputes about its purpose and methods of construction. Thanks to the pyramid of Khufu (whom the Greeks called Cheops), the science of pyramidology appeared. Adherents of non-traditional teachings, magicians of all times also put forward their conjectures describing the genesis of this grandiose creation.

Versions about the methods of building the pyramid of Cheops

The Pyramid of Cheops was built by the architect and chief Hemiun, a cousin or nephew of the supreme ruler himself. The methods used by the Egyptians in its construction were forgotten and lost due to wars, civil strife, adverse weather conditions that hit Ancient Egypt, when there were no memories left of the former wealth and power.

There are many interpretations explaining how the pyramid of Cheops was built. The first was proposed by Herodotus, who visited Egypt in the 5th century BC. and left a detailed description of what he saw. According to him, more than 100,000 slaves were involved in the construction, many of whom died in this hard work. With the help of levers made of wood, they raised huge basalt blanks to the desired level. This option does not stand up to criticism, since it is problematic to imagine such levers that can withstand an almost three-ton stone and lift it to a height of more than 140 meters (the inhabitants of the Nile Valley at that time did not know what a wheel and a block were).

Another version is the use of an embankment built around the building as it grows. If we adhere to this point of view, then the amount of excavation work performed will also require a huge amount of labor.

Meanwhile, the most recent archaeological finds indicate that there was a settlement near the construction site, where about 4,500 people lived permanently, constantly employed in the construction of the tomb. These people were not slaves, they ate well and had good dwellings. It is assumed that up to 20,000 Egyptians were involved in temporary work after the completion of agricultural work.

The third is the use of a spiral outer ramp around the entire perimeter. But its use did not explain how the inner chamber was made, where the pharaoh's sarcophagus is located, located 50 m above the base, and where one relatively narrow corridor leads.

Pyramid of Khufu - the sparkling crystal of Egypt

The Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt is a geometric body with a square base with a perimeter of 922 m, with a height from the base of 146 m (original, now - 138 m). The angle of inclination of its geometrically ideal faces was 51 degrees. It is lined with limestone blocks of 2.5 tons.

In the center there are three rooms made of five-ton polished granite blocks, one of which contains the pharaoh's sarcophagus. The purpose of the two smaller chambers located above it is unknown. According to the latest assumptions, they serve as a shock absorber that does not allow crushing the “king's chambers”. Everything in the cavity of the building, except for the tunnel leading to the rooms and down below the base, as well as two ventilation shafts, is completely filled with monoliths.

Until 1168, the tomb of Khufu was lined with polished elements of soft material, which made it look like a crystal sparkling under the rays of the sun. Later, the lining was used by the Cairo to restore their city after the invasion of the Arabs. The total weight of the monument resting on a cut rock foundation is over 5 million tons. Even with today's cutting-edge technology and technique, it's hard to imagine a way to solidly construct this marvel of architecture.

Theories for the creation of the pyramid of Cheops

French architect Jean Pierre Ruden became interested in Khufu's pyramid in 1999 and devoted 10 years of his hard work to it. As a professional designer, he wanted to understand what techniques were used by people almost 5,000 years ago when building it. The result of his examination was the conclusion: the ancient Egyptians used an internal ramp during construction, which grew along with the pyramid and repeated its perimeter, with an inclination angle of not more than 7 degrees (a steeper rise makes it impossible to move stone parallelepipeds on wooden rolls and skids).

Jean Pierre explained the impeccable execution of geometric proportions by the fact that at first they laid the front polished blocks along the marked lines, then two more inner rows of already unpolished, but correctly marked slabs were leveled along them, and then the empty space was filled with roughly sawn limestone. His theory explained how the granite parallelepipeds of the pharaoh's burial chamber were raised and installed at a height of 50 meters.

This theory would be recognized as reliable and final if there were voids in the thickness of the Cheops pyramid that remained after the cessation of construction and testified to the presence of internal ramps. But so far there is no such confirmation.

All experts agree that some parts of the pyramid of Khufu are made at a high technological level, unrealizable 4000 years ago. So, for example, the granite pieces of the structure are cut out of the rock with such precision that even a knife blade cannot be pushed into the gap between them.

The very fact of Khufu's burial raises many questions: the granite sarcophagus for his mummy was not completed, made without proper care, and no traces of the burial were found. The presence of 15 and 35 tons of granite stones in the masonry also cannot be explained. Such inconsistencies have given rise to theories about the divine origin of the pyramid at Giza. Since the end of the 19th century, the pyramid of Cheops has become a place of pilgrimage for followers of various esoteric movements and those who are fond of magic, proclaiming it to be the habitat of spirits and demons.

Edgar Cayce, the most famous of all occultists (1877-1945), proclaimed that it was created by the Atlanteans 10,000 BC to escape the global flood, and that the lost wisdom of a highly developed civilization is contained there.

The beginning of the space age gave birth to a fabrication about the involvement of aliens in its construction. The most popular author of one of these conclusions, Swiss Erich von Daniken, hypothesized that the Cheops pyramid was designed by aliens to store the bodies of representatives of foreign civilizations who died on Earth; and the god Ra, who was worshiped by the local population, is an alien, and all the myths and religion of this period are just a distorted reflection of reality. Careful geometric and astronomical research has led to unexpected discoveries that can be attributed either to random coincidences or patterns:

• the base to height ratio is approximately 3.14 (pi);
• the direction of the corridor and ventilation shafts coincides with the location in the sky of the Polar Star, the stars Sirius and Alnitak.

The latter led to the theory that the pyramid of Cheops was nothing more than an astronomical observatory.

In the 60s and 70s of the 20th century. a new surge of interest in this object occurred due to the experiment of the Czech Karel Dribal, who placed a blunt razor inside a cardboard copy (15 cm) of the pyramid, and after a few days the initial sharpness returned to it.

When they removed fragments of stones near the pyramid of Khufu, they noticed a closed triangular chamber, consisting of heavy limestone slabs. It was in 1955. Lifting the plate with the image of Jephedra, they found a huge boat, consisting of 1224 parts. It was a large boat made of Lebanese cedar. She consisted of 2 cabins, could float on water with 10 oars. Fragments of acacia needed repair. The rook was assembled for 10 years. In 1971, it was exhibited at the Solar Boat Museum.

There was also a second chamber, which was not opened for a long time. But in 1987 another smaller boat was found by radar. She is poorly preserved. In 2008, they allocated money for excavations, in 2011 its details were raised up.

How much our civilization goes around and around the Egyptian pyramids, and if the number of mysteries decreases, then very slowly. Somehow we even argued with you, and not, then we tried to find out and in general

And right these days in Egypt, a large-scale project is underway to study the pyramids. An international group of scientists managed to make a discovery that puts an end to the dispute over the construction methods of the Cheops pyramid.

The history of the study of the Great Pyramid of Giza, or the Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu) began in the 18th century, when Napoleon brought archaeologists, surveyors and other scientists here. Research continues to this day, but this monument of architectural art of Ancient Egypt has not yet revealed all its secrets. In particular, it is not known exactly when its construction began: the radiocarbon method gives a range from 2680 BC to 2680 BC. e. until 2850 BC e. Another mystery was the methods of transporting the heaviest blocks over long distances.

Different construction techniques were used for different Egyptian pyramids. Earlier, in one of the necropolises, a fresco from the XII dynasty was discovered, which depicts 172 people pulling an alabaster statue of Jehutihotep II on drag sledges. The worker pours water on the sand along the route, which makes sliding easier.

Some pyramids were built by rolling blocks using a cradle mechanism: similar devices have been found during excavations of various New Kingdom sanctuaries. In addition, the so-called "square wheel technology" was used in some places: a block of square section rolls along a road created from platforms.

In 1997, archaeologist Mark Lehner conducted an experimental construction of a small pyramid with a base about nine meters wide and 6.1 meters high. Blocks weighing about two tons were moved by 12-20 people, provided that wooden skids were used, sliding on a wooden deck.

But all the experiments and hypotheses did not answer the question of the delivery of 2.5-ton blocks of limestone and granite to the site where the Cheops pyramid was being built. The answer was found only in 2017: an international team of archaeologists led by Lehner discovered a papyrus in which an overseer of 40 workers describes this method.

The decoding of the text gave the following knowledge: first, the Egyptians diverted water from the Nile and laid artificial channels through the Giza plateau. Then the builders connected the wooden boats with ropes, and with their help they transported the blocks almost to the very foot of the pyramid.

But another mystery was revealed at the pyramid of Cheops. Infrared thermography showed the presence of inexplicable voids at the base of the Great Pyramid.

Scientists at different times of the day measured the temperature of the stones from which the pyramid was built. The stones warmed up and cooled down at different rates, which indicates the presence of third-party factors. In general, the temperature difference between neighboring stones did not exceed 0.1–0.5°C, but in some areas this parameter reached 6°C. The most noticeable temperature anomaly was found on the eastern side of the Cheops pyramid, at ground level.

It can be assumed that there is an underground passage or other empty space. It is also possible that this part of the pyramid was built from a different material. The eastern location of the voids may be associated with the cult of Ra, the sun god. Meanwhile, areas with different temperatures were also found in the upper part of the pyramid - where there can be no talk of dungeons. Representatives of the Ministry of Antiquities refused to voice any hypotheses until more material was collected.

sources

) is truly a wonder of the world. From the foot to the top, it reaches 137.3 meters, and before it lost the top, its height was 146.7 meters. A century and a half ago, it was the tallest building in the world, only in 1880 it was exceeded by two built-on towers of the Cologne Cathedral (by 20 meters), and in 1889 by the Eiffel Tower. The sides of its base are 230.4 meters, the area is 5.4 hectares. Its initial volume was 2,520,000 cubic meters; now it is about 170,000 cubic meters smaller, because for centuries the pyramid was used as a quarry. About 2,250,000 stone blocks were used for its construction, each with a volume of more than a cubic meter; this material would be enough to build a city with a hundred thousand inhabitants. Its weight is 6.5-7 million tons. If it were hollow, it would include a launcher for space rockets. According to experts, even the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima would not have destroyed it.

It was built, according to the most common dating, in 2560-2540. BC BC, although some scientists give dates about 150 years earlier. Inside the pyramid are three chambers corresponding to the three stages of its construction. The first chamber is carved into the rock at a depth of about 30 meters below the base of the pyramid and not exactly in the middle of it; its area - 8 x 14 meters, height - 3.5 meters. It remained unfinished, as well as the second, which is located in the core of the pyramid, exactly under the top, at a height of about 20 meters above the base; its area is 5.7 x 5.2 meters, the vaulted ceiling reaches a height of 6.7 meters; once it was called the "tomb of the queen." The third chamber is the tomb of the king; unlike the other two, it is finished; in it was found the sarcophagus of Cheops. It was built at a height of 42.3 meters above the base and slightly south of the axis of the pyramid; its dimensions are 10.4 x 5.2 meters; height - 5.8 meters. It is lined with immaculately polished and carefully fitted granite slabs; above the ceiling there are five unloading chambers, the total height of which is 17 meters. They take on the weight of about a million tons of stone mass so that it does not press directly on the burial chamber.

The pharaoh's sarcophagus is wider than the entrance to the chamber. It was carved from a single piece of brownish-gray granite, without a date or an inscription, and rather badly damaged. It stands in the western corner of the tomb, right on the floor. It was placed here during construction, and, apparently, no one has moved since then. This sarcophagus looks like it was cast from metal. But the body of Cheops himself is not in it.

All three cells have "antechambers" and are all connected by corridors or shafts. Some mines end in a dead end. Two shafts lead from the royal tomb to the surface of the pyramid, going out approximately in the middle of the northern and southern walls. One of their purposes is to provide ventilation; perhaps there were others.

Discovery: Exploding history. Secrets of the Great Pyramid

The original entrance to the pyramid is located on the north side, 25 meters above the base. Now another entrance leads to the pyramid, punched in 820 by the caliph Mamun, who hoped to discover the pharaoh's untold treasures, but found nothing. This entrance is located about 15 meters lower than the previous one, almost in the very center of the north side.

The Great Pyramid was surrounded by no less labor-intensive and expensive buildings. Herodotus, who saw the road leading from the upper (mortuary) temple to the lower, which was lined with polished slabs and had a width of 18 meters, called its construction a work "almost as huge as the construction of the pyramid itself." Now some 80 meters of it have survived - the road disappeared at the end of the 19th century during the construction of the village of Nazlat es-Simman, now, like Giza, which has become part of Cairo. Somewhere in its place stood a lower temple, 30 meters high, but it probably fell victim to people looking for building material in ancient times.

Of the buildings surrounding the Great Pyramid, only the ruins of the upper (mortuary) temple and three satellite pyramids have survived. Traces of the temple were discovered in 1939 by the Egyptian archaeologist Abu Seif. As usual, it was located to the east of the pyramid, and its pediment had a length of 100 Egyptian cubits (52.5 meters); it was built of Turkish limestone, had a courtyard with 38 square granite pillars, 12 of the same pillars stood in the vestibule in front of a small sanctuary. On both sides of it, about 10 meters away, during the excavations, two “docks” hollowed out in a limestone plateau were found, where “solar boats” were probably kept, the third such “dock” was found to the left of the road to the lower temple. Unfortunately, the "docks" were empty, but archaeologists were rewarded by the chance discovery of two more such "docks" in 1954. In one of them rested a perfectly preserved boat - the most ancient ship in the world. Its length is 36 meters, and it is made of cedar.

The satellite pyramids also stand to the east of the Great Pyramid, although they were usually built to the south. The pyramids are located from north to south "by height", the side of the square base of the first pyramid is 49.5 meters, the second - 49, the third - 46.9. Each of them had a stone fence, a mortuary chapel and a burial chamber, into which a sheer shaft led; in addition, next to the first was a "dock" for the "solar boat". Most scholars believe that these pyramids belonged to the wives of Khufu, of whom the first (main), according to ancient custom, was probably his sister. The names of the first two are unknown to us, the third was called Henutsen.

All three satellite pyramids are quite well preserved, only they are devoid of external cladding.

Apparently, to the east of the first one, it was supposed to build another one, of a larger size, but construction was stopped. According to one hypothesis, it was intended for Queen Hetepheres, the wife of the pharaoh Sneferu and Khufu's mother. In the end, Khufu decided to build for her a secret tomb in the rock a little to the north. This tomb was actually hidden ... until January 1925, when the photographer Reisner's tripod fell into the gap between the camouflage blocks. Then the members of the Harvard-Boston Expedition carried out treasures for three months: thousands of small gold plaques, pieces of furniture and household utensils; gold and silver bracelets, cosmetic boxes with "shadows" for eyeliner, manicure knives, jewelry boxes with the name of the queen. Canopies with its insides and an alabaster sarcophagus were found, which, however, turned out to be empty. This is the first intact tomb of a member of the royal family of the era of the Old Kingdom.

The Great Pyramid was surrounded by a ten-meter stone wall. The ruins of the wall show that it was 3 meters thick and separated from the pyramid by 10.5 meters. Near it, in the distance, there were mastabas (tombs) of dignitaries: almost a hundred of them survived on the north side, more than ten on the south, about forty on the east.