© Richard Randall

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Sundries

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The pyramids of Egypt, some of which are among the largest man-made constructions ever conceived , constitute one of the most potent and enduring symbols of Ancient Egyptian civilization. Although no ancient Egyptian rulers have been found buried in an Egyptian pyramid, it is generally accepted by most archaeologists that they were constructed as burial monuments associated with royal solar and stellar cults, and most were built during the Old and Middle Kingdom periods. Egyptian homes were built on the east bank of the river, the land where the Sun rises. Egyptians built the pyramids on the west bank of the River Nile. They believed this was the land of the dead, because the Sun sets there.

By the time of the early Dynastic period of Egyptian history, those with sufficient means were buried in visually unremarkable bench-like structures[3] known as mastabas.[4] The first historically documented Egyptian pyramid is attributed to the architect Imhotep[5], who in constructing what Egyptologists believe to be a tomb for the pharaoh Djozer, it is theorised first conceived the notion of stacking a number of mastabas on top of each other — thereby creating an edifice comprised of a number of steps that decreased in size towards its apex. The result was the Step Pyramid of Djozer — which was designed to serve as a gigantic stairway by which the soul of the deceased pharaoh could ascend to the heavens. Such was the importance of Imhotep's achievement that he was deified by later Egyptians.[6].

Each of the pyramids had its own name, such as the Pyramid of Teti was known as Teti's cult places are enduring, later the pyramid complexes surrounding the main structures had separate names. Most pyramids have since been given Arabic names by the locals, which usually reflect their appearance.

The most prolific pyramid-building phase coincided with the greatest degree of absolutist pharaonic rule, during the early part of the Old Kingdom. Over time, as the exercise of pharaonic authority became less centralised and more bureaucratised, the ability and willingness to harness the resources required for construction on a massive scale was reduced, and later pyramids were smaller, less well built and often hastily constructed.

Long after the end of Egypt's own pyramid-building period, a burst of pyramid-building occurred in what is present-day Sudan, after much of Egypt came under the rule of the Kings of Napata. Whilst Napatan rule was brief and ceased in 661 BCE, the Egyptian influence made an indelible impression, and during the later Sudanese Kingdom of Meroe (approximately in the period between 300 BCE–CE 300) this flowered into a full-blown pyramid-building revival, which saw more than two hundred uniquely indigenous, but strongly Egyptian-inspired royal pyramid tombs constructed in the vicinity of the Meroitic capital city.

Construction

The techniques used to construct Egypt's pyramids are thought to have initially been developed by trial and error[7], and then further evolved based on local economics, resources, and other considerations, over the thousand year pyramid-building phase of Egyptian civilization.

Recently-discovered worker's tombs have shown how pyramids were made and how important workers were: the pyramid workers were paid craftsmen, not slaves, and they had their own city at Giza.

During the earliest period, in the Third and Fourth Dynasties, pyramids were constructed wholly of stone. In the Fifth Dynasty the physical scale of pyramids was much reduced, and poor quality limestone replaced granite as the chief building material. In–filling with loose rubble was also used for the first time. This enabled pyramids to be built with fewer resources over much shorter periods.

During the Middle Kingdom pyramid construction techniques changed again. Most pyramids built at this time were little more than mountains of mud brick encased in a veneer of polished limestone. In several cases, later pyramids were built on top of natural hills to further reduce the volume of material needed in their construction.

Paradoxically, the materials and methods of construction used in the earliest pyramids have ensured their survival in a generally much better state of preservation than is the case with the pyramid monuments of later pharaohs.

Pyramid symbolism

The shape of Egyptian pyramids is thought to represent the primordial mound from which the Egyptians believed the earth was created. The shape is also thought to be representative of the descending rays of the sun, and most pyramids were faced with polished, highly reflective white limestone, in order to give them a brilliant appearance when viewed from a distance. Pyramids were often also named in ways that made reference to solar luminescence. For example, the formal name of the Bent Pyramid at Dahshur was The Southern Shining Pyramid, and that of Senwosret at el-Lahun was Senwosret is Shining.

While it is generally agreed that pyramids were burial monuments, there is continued disagreement on the particular theological principles that might have given rise to them. One theory that has gained a degree of acceptance is that they were designed as a type of "resurrection machine";[8] the Egyptians believed the dark area of the night sky around which the stars appear to revolve was the physical gateway into the heavens, and co-incidentally, one of the narrow shafts that extends from the main burial chamber through the entire body of the Great Pyramid points directly towards the centre of this part of the sky. This suggests the pyramid may have been designed to serve as a means to magically launch the deceased pharaoh's soul directly into the abode of the gods.

All Egyptian pyramids were built, without exception, on the west bank [9] of the Nile, which as the site of the setting sun was associated with the realm of the dead in Egyptian mythology.

Pyramid sites

Abu Rawash

Abu Rawash is the site of Egypt's most northerly pyramid[10] other than the ruins of Lepsius pyramid number one[11]— the mostly ruined Pyramid of Djedefre, the son and successor of Khufu. Originally it was thought that this pyramid had never been completed, but the current archaeological consensus is that not only was it completed, but that it was originally about the same size as the Pyramid of Menkaure — the third largest of the Giza pyramids. On this basis Djedefre's edifice would have claimed the title of the fourth or fifth largest pyramid in Egypt.

Unfortunately its location adjacent to a major crossroads made it an easy source of stone, and quarrying — which began in Roman times — continued until as recently as the early 20th century. Today little remains apart from a few courses of stone superimposed upon the natural hillock that formed part of the pyramid's core — although a small adjacent satellite pyramid is in a better state of preservation.

Giza

Giza, on the southern outskirts of Cairo is the location of the Pyramid of Khufu (also known as the "Great Pyramid" and the "Pyramid of Cheops"), the somewhat smaller Pyramid of Khafre (or Kephren), and the relatively modest-sized Pyramid of Menkaure (or Mykerinus), along with a number of smaller satellite edifices, known as "queens" pyramids, and the Great Sphinx.

Of the three, only Khafre's pyramid retains part of its original polished limestone casing, towards its apex. Interestingly this pyramid appears larger than the adjacent Khufu pyramid by virtue of its more elevated location, and the steeper angle of inclination of its construction — it is, in fact, smaller in both height and volume.

The Giza Necropolis has arguably been the world's most popular tourist destination since antiquity, and was popularised in Hellenistic times when the Great Pyramid was listed by Antipater of Sidon as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Today it is the only one of the ancient Wonders still in existence.

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