Tell me honestly, where do you go without fail if you get (at work or just as a tourist) to Egypt? Of course to Giza! The huge pyramids are ideally correct, mysterious and mystical, where majestically towering above the sands, hiding the remains of a great ancient civilization, are fortunate enough that Giza is located right on the outskirts of the capital of Egypt - Cairo, so it’s easy to get there. Are you aware that the 3 largest Egyptian pyramids (Cheops, Chefren and Mykerin) are the only of the seven ancient wonders of the world that have survived to this day?
Once upon a time there were no gardens of Semiramis on the planet, nor the Alexandria lighthouse, nor the Colossus of Rhodes, the temple of Artemis at Ephesus and the tomb of Tsar Mausoleum in Halicarnassus were destroyed, the golden statue of Olympian Zeus sank for centuries, and the pyramids in Giza are the oldest of all wonders of the world - they still cast huge shadows on the desert, and will stand in the same place for many, many centuries.
By the way, the pyramids in Egypt, of course, are not 3 at all, there are about 140 of them, in addition to Giza, they are also located in Saqqara, Dahur, Medum and Abusir, all on the west bank of the Nile, where the sun sets and where, according to the ancient the Egyptians, therefore, is the kingdom of the dead. How did the Egyptians manage to build these impressive structures, if even with our modern technology this is not so easy to do? What was such a huge effort for? What practical significance do these many-toned, respectful and even reverent, geometrically verified masterpieces have? Until now, scientists have not found unambiguous answers to these questions.
We offer you 10 of the most interesting facts about the Egyptian pyramids and the secrets associated with them.
10. Where are the crypts of the Egyptian pharaohs actually located
For a long time it was considered the axiom that the pyramids are the monumental tombs of the Egyptian pharaohs, who were to become their “home" after death (or a kind of "launching pad" for moving to another world, there was a version of what exactly they did inside the pyramids vertical shafts). In fact, after opening a fairly large number of pyramids (including the Cheops pyramid), neither the bodies (mummies) of the pharaohs, nor household items and expensive things that should have been used by them in the afterlife were found in them. Most of the pyramids were empty.
Of course, some scientists immediately offered a completely logical explanation for this - they simply robbed the pyramids a long time ago (in ancient times). (But then the question arises - how did this happen? After all, the entrance to some of them was hardly found only recently, and only with the help of special modern equipment). But a huge number of crypts of the pharaohs and their relatives (with completely preserved mummies) were found by archaeologists in the Valley of the Kings, located near the ancient city of Thebes (now - Luxor). By the way, one of the most famous burials discovered here was the tomb of the young pharaoh Tutankhamun. And then what are the pyramids for? ..
9. The largest pyramid
The Cheops Pyramid (Khufu), built around 2600 BC, is also called the Great Pyramid of Giza. Initially, its height reached 146.6 meters, but due to the destruction of the lining of the peak, it decreased to 138.8 meters (in any case, it is about 50 floors of our modern buildings, which is very impressive). For almost 4 millennia (until the Cathedral of the Virgin Mary in Lincoln was built in England in 1311), the Cheops pyramid was considered the tallest building in the world. The area of its foundation occupies about 5 hectares, with an approximate weight of more than 6 million tons.
During the construction of the pyramid, an even foundation was made so that its faces differ from each other by a maximum of 5 cm (each with a length of 250 meters!). The 2.3 million stone blocks that make up the pyramid, weighing from 2 to 30 (and sometimes up to 50) tons, are ideally fitted to each other.
The faces of the pyramid are oriented strictly on four cardinal points (the front side "looks" to the north with a very slight error, due to the fact that for more than 4.5 thousand years, the North Pole of the Earth has shifted slightly). The crypt of the Cheops pyramid can easily accommodate two middle one-bedroom apartments.
8. The first Egyptian pyramid
The most ancient Egyptian pyramid is considered to be the pyramid of the pharaoh Djoser, built around 2700 BC. Unlike the Great Pyramid, it has a slightly different shape - 6 trapezoids, gradually decreasing in size, set one on top of the other (with a total height of 62 meters). Djoser's pyramid is located in Saqqara (and it has been preserved much worse than the Giza pyramids).
The architect of this first pyramid is Imhotep, an ancient Egyptian scientist, engineer and doctor. It is believed that it was he who invented such a form for the tombs of the pharaohs, as well as the method of laying from hewn stones, which was used to build all the other pyramids.
7. Features of masonry blocks and other architectural techniques
For many scientists, the most important mystery of the Egyptian pyramids is the method of their construction (taking into account the fact that this happened in those distant times when they did not even know the iron tools). Huge stone blocks were supposedly cut out in quarries with copper chisels (there was a version that they were broken off with wooden stakes swollen from watering, but they refuted it).
How these bulky blocks were then transported to the construction site is still not completely understood (version: they rolled along wooden skating rinks, and then they drove along the Nile on barges). Their processing and grinding was carried out already at the “construction site” itself. How then the blocks were dragged into the ever-increasing height of the pyramid is also a huge mystery (versions: they poured a long earthen “ramp” and dragged stone “bricks” up on it, or this “ramp” was spiral - around the already built tiers of the pyramid).
Another point: how did the blocks be held during transportation if they did not show any signs of fastenings or technical holes? And all this despite the fact that, in the end, they were fitted to each other with perfect accuracy, without the slightest gaps (and no mortar was used to fasten them together). HOW could all this be done with the help of primitive tools of labor alone ?!
6. Theories of the appearance of the pyramids and their age
Striking the imagination with its grandeur and seeming incredibility that people in such ancient times could build SUCH structures, the pyramids from the middle of the 19th century caused the appearance of ever new theories of their appearance (of varying degrees of adequacy). So, some "pyramidologists" quite seriously argue that this is not the work of human hands. There are several basic theories:
- the pyramids were built by aliens (most likely, aliens from the constellation Orion or from Sirius);
- this is the work of the ancient Gods, who then still lived among people;
- they were created by the Atlanteans (inhabitants of the legendary Atlantis);
- nevertheless, people built the pyramids, but they owned a magic crystal obtained from ... - further options (see previous theories), etc.
Yeah ... It’s easier to believe in highly developed and technologically advanced aliens than in the fact that these gigantic pieces were built by half-naked ancient people ... As for the age of the pyramids, there are still disputes about this. Officially, they are 4.5 - 5 thousand years old. But some scholars claim that there are traces of rain erosion on the pyramids, and there were no heavy rains in Egypt for about 10 (or even 12) thousand years. So you can come to the conclusion that the pyramids were built during the time of the mammoths!
5. The energy essence of the pyramids
Again, some "pyramidologists" claim that the pyramids were built to receive and transform some cosmic energy (which, possibly, can be transformed into universal Knowledge). Like, here the ancient Egyptian priests owned this Knowledge.
Other variations of this theory say that it is the pyramidal shape of these structures (a kind of large copy of the crystal) that allows them to accumulate powerful positive energy in themselves that can affect the human mind and biological processes that occur in his body (literally at the cellular level!).
Therefore, the pyramids are not tombs, in them the pharaohs (quite the opposite!) Recovered, received fresh vitality, so to speak, conducted energy therapy sessions (and even cured the cancer!).
4. The builders of the pyramids knew astronomy very well
In the 1980s, the Belgian engineer and amateur Egyptologist Robert Boval decided that, supposedly, the three largest pyramids of Giza are located exactly in accordance with the three bright stars in the "belt" of the constellation Orion (and even the sizes of the pyramids coincide in proportion to the sizes of these stars ) And it is quite possible that somewhere under the sands other pyramids “hide”, which are the rest of the stars of Orion on the earth's projection (most likely, severely destroyed). Why Orion Because it was there, according to the ideas of the ancient Egyptians, that the souls of the dead pharaohs were sent.
Other scientists (in fact, pseudo-scientists) argue that the builders of the pyramids also had precise knowledge about the structure of our planet - for example, about the length of its equator, about approximate weight, about the length of the Earth’s orbit and about its speed of rotation (and even about the speed Sveta!). Allegedly, all these figures are in the proportions of the pyramids. Are you serious guys? ..
3. Pyramid builders used the "principle of leverage" and the number "Pi"
According to one of the quite common "sensational" theories, the ancient pyramid builders possessed our modern mathematical knowledge - they skillfully applied the "principle of leverage" and calculated the number "Pi" with an accuracy of one hundred thousandth. Allegedly, they were not only aware that the use of the lever allows several times to reduce the effort applied to lift and move weights, but also the ratio of the height and perimeter of the base of each pyramid is exactly equal to the ratio of the diameter of the circle described around the pyramid to its the same length (and all because the walls of the pyramids rise at an angle exactly 52 degrees).
Hmm ... Actually, in any Soviet school, children knew that if you measure with a thread the circumference of a spherical object, as well as its diameter, then the ratio will turn out to be just a little over 3 (that is, the most notorious number "Pi"). Just as the number "Pi" gives the perimeter of the base, divided by twice the height of any object in the form of a pyramid. Well, where is the sensation?
2. Pyramids were not built by slaves
For a long time, it was believed that the pyramids were built by hundreds of thousands of slaves, who were almost not fed, beaten with lashes and, of course, were buried in huge quantities somewhere nearby. But mass graves have not yet been discovered. But archaeologists have found several villages of builders, where there were dormitories, canteens, bakeries, and even a brewery.
The conclusion suggests itself - the pyramids were built by free people who, perhaps, even received payment for this (maybe in the form of products). According to one theory, because of the climate of Egypt, where you can farm for only a few months (after the flood of the Nile), the rest of the time the country's population found it difficult to feed.
Therefore, in order to occupy the population (first of all, the male population), to give it money and to prevent possible riots by the pharaohs and attracted him to the construction of the pyramids. But during periods of agricultural work, construction workers may have driven slaves.
1. Legends of the curse of the pyramids
Many terrible legends are associated with the Egyptian pyramids, the main essence of which is that anyone who encroaches on the treasures of the pharaohs will die in terrible agony. The most terrible curse is attributed to the tomb of an innocent young Tutankhamun: supposedly, after it was opened in 1922 by the team of Lord George Carnarvon, for 8 years all its main members (as well as many of those who touched the mummy of the pharaoh or objects from his tomb) died under various mysterious circumstances.
But if you take a closer look at the facts, you won’t get a sensation: firstly, the age of many “suddenly dead” people was, at that time, quite solid; secondly, the climate of Egypt is not very favorable for the inhabitants of Europe; political events that then took place in North Africa did not contribute too much to longevity.
For that matter, Egypt should have been depopulated a long time ago, since the ancient tomb and sanctuaries here have not been plundered from ancient times only by the lazy. In fact, a good half of Cairo is built of stone mined from the very pyramids.