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Interesting Facts

20 Egyptian Pyramids Facts You Will Enjoy Reading

The Egyptian pyramids represent ancient pyramid-shaped structures located in Egypt. There are pyramids structures in other countries as well. However, the Ancient Egyptian pyramids are the most well-known pyramid structures in the world.  The pyramids in Egypt have always been the center of attraction for mystery lovers. Many secrets have been revealed about ancient Egypt in the past. Do you want to know more about the Egyptian pyramids? Read below Egyptian pyramids facts to increase your knowledge.

What are some fascinating facts about The Egyptian Pyramids?

1.  As of today, about 138 pyramids have been discovered in Egypt. The three large pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex are the most notable Egyptian pyramids.

2. The Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as Pyramid of Khufu or Pyramid of Cheops), is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient world, and the only ancient wonder which is still existing in modern times.

3.  Most Ancient Egyptian pyramids were built as tombs for Pharaohs (a ruler in ancient Egypt) and their families. The great pyramid of Giza was built for the fourth dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu.

4. The oldest Egyptian pyramid is believed to be the Pyramid of Djoser, it was constructed in Saqqara during 2630 BC–2611BC. This means The First pyramid was built around 4648 years ago during the third dynasty. Saqqara is a vast ancient burial ground which served as the necropolis for the Ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis.

Egyptian pyramids facts
Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara

5.  At a completion height of 146.7 meters (481 ft), the Great Pyramid of Giza was the tallest man-made structure in the world for over 3800 years. The incredible record was broken only when Lincoln Cathedral was built in England in 1311 AD. The Great Pyramid of Giza has lost around 10m (33 feet) of height over the years. The current height is 138.68 meters (455 ft).

Egyptian pyramids facts
A very old picture of Giza pyramids

6. The great pyramids of Giza located in middle Egypt can be seen from Space. The below image was taken from the International space station in 2003. Can you locate the pyramids in the image, just look at the center of the image and try to find?

Egyptian pyramids facts
The Great Pyramids of Giza from International Space Station, Credit: NASA

7.  The Giza pyramids are guarded by the Great Sphinx of Giza, one of the world’s largest and oldest statues. The face of the Sphinx is popularly believed to represent the face of the Pharaoh Khafre.

Egyptian pyramids facts
The Great Sphinx in Giza

8.  Mostly all Egyptian Pyramids were built on the west bank of the Nile. The west side which is also the site of the sunset was typically associated with the realm of the dead in Egyptian mythology.

9.  The Ancient Egyptians buried the ruler and their families in the pyramids with burial goods that ranged from everyday objects to the most precious items like jewelry. The ancient Egyptians followed the set of funerary practices to ensure the immortality of the dead. These rituals and practices included mummifying the body, casting magic spells, and burial with specific grave goods. They believed the dead would use the goods in the afterlife.

10.  The first known pyramid architect was Imhotep who was an Ancient Egyptian polymath, engineer, physician and Egyptian chancellor to the pharaoh Djoser. He is considered the designer and principal architect of the first major pyramid – the Pyramid of Djoser and its surrounding complexes.

Egyptian pyramids facts
Imhotep – The designer and builder of First Pyramid of Djoser

11.  The Great Pyramid consists of an estimated 2.3 million blocks which most believe to have been transported from nearby quarries. The largest granite stones, weighing 25 to 80 tonnes were used in the King’s chamber. It is estimated that 5.5 million tonnes of limestone, 8,000 tonnes of granite, and 500,000 tonnes of mortar were used in the construction of the Great Pyramid.  The Granite stones were transported from Aswan, a place more than 800 km (500 mi) away.

12. While most people think about Egypt only when talking about Pyramids, Sudan has more than double the number of pyramids in Egypt. So far more than 350 pyramids grouped in five sites have been discovered in Sudan.

Egyptian pyramids facts
Nubian pyramids in Sudan

13.  The Pyramid of Ahmose is traditionally considered as the last Egyptian pyramid built. It was built during the 18th dynasty. However, the pyramid was not built as a tomb, but a cenotaph for pharaoh Ahmose I. The pyramid was constructed from sand and rubble and only the usual limestone casing kept the structure in shape. Only a pile of rubble can be found today, rising a height of about 10 meters.

Egyptian pyramids facts
Pyramid of Ahmose, Abydos

14.  Al-Aziz, a Kurdish ruler and the second Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt, tried to destroy the Giza pyramids in Giza pyramids in the 12th century. However, he was not successful and his man had to give up it because it was a difficult task to demolish pyramids. They could only damage the Menkaure’s Pyramid by leaving a large vertical cut in its north face.

Egyptian pyramids facts
Pyramid of Menkaure in Giza

15.  It is believed the location of the three largest pyramids of the Giza pyramid complex is aligned with Orion’s Belt of the constellation. The stars of Orion were associated with Osiris, the god of rebirth and afterlife in ancient Egyptian mythology. Thus, This correlation was intended by the master builders of the Giza pyramid complex.

Egyptian pyramids facts
Giza pyramids, Egypt at Night

16. The Great Pyramid is 230.34 meters (756 feet) long on each side and consists of 2.3 million stones weighing average 3 tons each. The total weight of the Great Giza pyramid is estimated to be about 6.5 million tons.

17. The initial pyramids were covered with casing stones made of polished white limestone. These stones reflected the sun’s light which made the pyramids shine like a jewel.

18. The pyramids were built in such a way so that the interior temperature of the pyramids is constant at 20 degrees Celsius (68°F) despite outside heat. The average temperature of Giza is about 86°F (30°C).

19. The Pyramid of Khufu was built to face true north. It is the most accurately aligned structure to face north. Despite being made centuries ago, the pyramid still faces that north direction with just a minimal error (only 3/60th of a degree).

Egyptian pyramids facts
Great Pyramid of Giza

20.  The Great Pyramid is estimated to be completed from start to finish in approximately 10 years with more than 10k workers being employed. It is a widespread belief that the pyramids were built by slave workers. However many theories have suggested that they were built by regular paid workers.

Did you know any such facts about Egyptian pyramids, please let us know in the comments section.

Reference

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6 comments

Nina August 5, 2018 at 11:24 pm

I’ve always been infatuated with Egyptian Culture, thanks for sharing!

Reply
Vaibhav August 6, 2018 at 4:20 am

Thanks Nina, Glad that you liked it.

Reply
Evelyn Hernandez August 6, 2018 at 6:39 am

Pyramids are so fascinating, we would love to visit Egypt.

Reply
Summer Mitch Ryan August 6, 2018 at 8:24 am

Pyramids are one of the amazing and so intriguing architecture on earth to date. It’s great to know that Sudan also has so many pyramids.

Reply
TheDailySunlight August 10, 2018 at 10:20 pm

This is amazing. I learned so much in just a post! 😀 Thanks for sharing.

Reply
Vaibhav August 10, 2018 at 10:23 pm

Thank you. Happy that you learned so much.

Reply

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