The Construction of the Pyramids
The s of the ancient Egyptians have long been some of the most impressive structures on earth. But they have continued to confound and befuddle experts and enthusiasts ever since their inception, thousands of years ago. So who made these monstrous mausoleums, and how were they built in such relatively primitive times? And were they a result of precise mathematics, or trial and error?
How many Egyptians Does it Take to Build a ?
One question which has puzzled historians for centuries is how on earth the Egyptian monarchy could assemble the manpower to complete such gargantuan structures in their lifetimes. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus speculated that over 100,000 men worked to complete the Great of Khufu during his reign. However, during Khufu’s 20-odd year sovereignty, between around 2589 and 2566 BC, the largest city in the world is estimated to have been either Uruk, Mesopotamia, or the Egyptian city of Memphis, with a total population of around 40,000. Thus such a huge labour force is unlikely.
Modern historians have slapped a figure of around 20,000 workers on the Giza necropolis, though some archaeologists, such as Mark Lehner, an archaeologist at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, and Harvard Semitic Museum, have even whittled this number down to between 5,000 and 10,000 by replicating ancient techniques themselves, and extrapolating to ten hour days, all year round. However Director General of Giza Zahi Hawass believes the number to be more in the range of 36,000 men.
Slave Labour?
Another popular misconception, made widespread by a great number of badly-researched Hollywood movies, is that the s were built with slave labour. This, Lehner claims, is almost certainly untrue. He points to graffiti scrawled on many of the blocks at Menkaure’s , which seem to denote certain ‘phyles’, or gangs (the Egyptian is ‘za’). These gangs, or tribes, seem to have taken the name of a king; therefore Lehner has found the inscriptions of such groups as the Drunks of Menkaure, and the Friends of Khufu, scrawled on the blocks of several prominent s. He speculates these were young men who came from all over the country – yet not from further afar – to lend their hand to some of the most mesmerising and socialising structures ever created. Indeed, Lehner believes the s to have been created along the lines of Mesopotamian city walls; whereby every clan or tribe would add their own piece to the puzzle: “You know, it's almost like an Amish barn-raising. But, you know, the Great of Khufu is one hell of a barn.”
Popular theories have claimed the s were constructed by Jews or other assimilated civilizations. Some have even suggested an extraterrestrial element to their construction – much to Hawass’ chagrin: “There is support (that) the builders of the s were Egyptians. They are not the Jews, as has been said; they are not people from a lost civilization. They are not out of space. They are Egyptian and their skeletons are here, and were examined by scholars, doctors and the race of all the people we found are completely supporting that they are Egyptians.” Hawass points to an excavation of 600 skeletons near the Giza necropolis, all of which have been certified as Egyptian.
Great Craftsmen
So if the s were built by gangs of Egyptians all eager to please their beloved ruler, how were they built? Archaeological evidence suggests that the granite was quarried with pounding stones of dolerite and carried onsite via wooden sleds pulled by beasts of burden. Starry-eyed screen visions, of fearsome slave-drivers and their petrified victims, are all but mythical. The Egyptians only knew two alloys; copper and gold. Therefore primitive copper chisels and saws were used to perfect these monumental rocks – sometimes as heavy as 16 tonnes – into shape. The fact a knife cannot fit between many of the bricks is testament to the incredible craftsmanship of the men who carved the stones meticulously. Lehner belives that aside from casual labourers, the men who carved the stones would have been experienced stone masons who worked onsite all year round. Most labour, he feels, would have been seasonal.
However the next part of the construction, the taking of the stones to their respective positions, remains in contention – and various methods appear to have been used. Some structures, such as those of Amenemhat I and Senwosret, made use of brick ramps, laden with timbers. However, earthen equivalents certainly seem to underpin most s; at least in the early stages.
Ramping Up
The question which still resonates with archaeologists is of which shape these ramps acquired. Some adhere to the idea that the ramp would have wrapped around the in a spiral shape, while others point to straight ramps, which had to be increased in height and width as the took shape, so as not to crumble under the heavy weights they incurred. The latter approach is the only one to have been archaeologically proven, yet its inefficiency, not in keeping with other features of the s’ construction, has led many to question their efficacy and popularity.
Nevertheless, straight ramps would have worked well with the early step design, which faded in popularity after the Third Dynasty. Indeed, the only step ever to be completed in Egypt is that of King Netjerykhet Djoser at Saqqara. Its ‘true’ sister – the classic structure so revered today, sprung up around the Fourth Dynasty, and kept going strong for hundred of years afterwards. Later incarnations of the true used inferior materials to the great early granite structures, and were smaller in stature. This could well have been because of a lack of readily available material rather than poor workmanship. Thus the mud-bricked interiors and weaker outer casings of these later works means most are currently in a sad state of disrepair. Like your grandfather always says, they didn’t make ‘em like they used to.
To Pi or Not to Pi?
Another question plaguing the construction of the s is their apparent link to Pi. This has obviously spawned a huge number of theories involving time-travellers and aliens, all of which have been strenuously rebuked by the archaeological fraternity. However it is true that the Egyptians did not possess the mathematical clout to create structures to such precise measurements, and most experts agree that they could well have stumbled upon the phenomenon accidentally through, for example, the rotation of a drum. As Jim Loy points out, “Knowledge of Pi is not very exciting. And the more or less accidental use of Pi, measuring distances with a wheel perhaps, is also possible. After all you don't need to know the value of Pi to use a circle.”
Images by Arvin Rao.
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Comments
Wow, didn't realize that pyramid builders weren't slaves. Seems like a hard life though. Appreciate the info! And I am off to Cairo soon!
Hello:
My name is Carlos Eduardo Rodriguez Varona. I am graduated at Education, in the specialty Physics and Electronics. I work as Computer systems analyzer in my natal city, Camagüey, in Cuba. I belong to the Group for study and promotion of the Egyptology in Cuba, named PA-JU-WER (The Big Island, in ancient egyptian hieroglyphic) located in Havana city, Cuba.
I am the owner of the new theory of Giza's pyramids building, the "Hypothesis of construction of the pyramids of the valley of Giza", and I have it shared over all the world. You can know about it searching in any place, asking just by my name in some search engine of Internet.
I have made some expositions such like in the XIV International Congress of Engineering and Architecture, celebrated in Havana city, on last December. Another exposition I have made was in the Colloquium "50 Anniversary of Conde de Lagunillas Collection", celebrated in the MNBA in Havana city, in 2006 year.
It is now about two years ago since I published it for the first time on Internet. Until now there's nobody capable to refuse me it in categorical way, therefore I consider it's a good average to credit it and also to credit the possibilities that ancient Egyptians had to made something like this marvels.
There are many places all over Internet, both in English and Spanish, where my hypothesis have been qualified as the most right concerning about ramps. The opinion comes from any kind of persons: from several egyptologists to non-egyptologists but well-known researchers of this theme. All this things are on Internet.
I am interested to know what all of you think about the technique I exposed in. Also I will be glad if you wish to publish my work in your site.
I wish to express I want to donate my rights in Arabic language to the people of Egypt. I consider it is the less thing I can do in gratitude to them and to recognize also the greatness of their constructions.
You can write me at:
crvcrv21@yahoo.com
crvcrv21@gmail.com
With my best wishes to all of you,
Carlos.
In 2006 I was doing research for a university study in Australia concerning the construction of the Pyramids at Giza. Working with real excavated artefacts and ancient documents I was able to discover an ancient type of pulley that is unknown in the modern world until now. I am a mechanical fitter and people consider that my knowledge of mechanics at a practical level assisted me with this discovery.
This ancient pulley walks up (or down) steps in a similar way to a three wheel step-trolley and I firmly believe that this is how the ancient Egyptians built their Pyramids. The Giza Pyramids have steps of course, which I have termed "racks" and of course there are four "racks" in a square based Pyramid. The wooden ancient Egyptian Pinion-Pulleys made positive engagements with the Pyramid's stone "racks" carrying a stone block each, rotating as they were being hoisted with ropes. No ramps were required as the Pyramid itself was used.
This ancient pulley has a mechanical advantage of 2.8, thus is a simple machine and proves the Greek historian, Herodotus to be absolutely correct as he recorded wooden machines made of short wooden planks were used to raise the blocks of stone.
These planks only needed to be the side length of a Pyramid block which is about one metre and were easily carried also, as Herodotus also records. Well, Herodotus was only writing what Egyptian Priests told him and Egyptian Priests recorded history as part of their duties.
A working model has been made and a book about all of this has been published and I wish the World's people to know of this. This book is dedicated to the Egyptian people to promote "new awareness of their intelligent and innovative glorious historical past".
RAISING STONE 1 - Paul Hai's racks & pinions theory. (121 pages) ISBN 9780646476797
www.haitheory.com
Study the MEDIA page at the website for ease of understanding this ancient method.
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Captain Matthew Flinders (1774 – 1814), navigated and charted Australia’s coastline.
Flinders had suggested the name AUSTRALIA and this was adopted in 1824.
His grandson became a leading excavator and curator of Egyptian artifacts known to everyone as “Petrie” who became Professor Sir Matthew Flinders Petrie (1853 – 1942).
Amelia Ann Blandford Edwards toured Egypt during 1873-74 with friends and saw Egyptian artifacts needed to be preserved. In London, Amelia and Reginald Stuart Poole founded the Egypt Exploration Fund, now Society.
Petrie was paid £250 per month from the Fund to excavate in Egypt. In 1895 Petrie was excavating at Deir El-Bahari and excavated wooden items that have become known as “Petrie rockers”. Petrie suspected these items were used for the construction of the Pyramids and his assumption has been proven correct.
Petrie had excavated wooden pinion-pulley lobe quadrants which are components of an ancient pulley hitherto unknown in the modern world. This pulley surrounds its load, which is a Pyramid block, and then as it is hoisted the pulley step walks the Pyramid’s stepped layers with a mechanical advantage of 2.8 (MA=2.8).
Petrie died in Jerusalem unknowing that “Petrie rockers” are components of an ancient pulley and the most important discovery he ever made.
The book “Raising Stone 1” is in the Egypt Exploration Society Library in London and explains the operation of the ancient Egyptian four-lobe pinion-pulley with relevant and specific background material.
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