Pyramid

History A tomb fit for a king

Egyptian kings, called pharaohs, were buried with everything they would need in the next life. The first pyramid, the Step Pyramid of King Djoser at Saqqara, was built around 2650 BC as a stack of six ever-smaller platforms. Within about fifty years, builders had learned to make the smooth-sided shape we picture today: the Red Pyramid of King Sneferu at Dahshur, built around 2600 BC, was the first true pyramid.

The Great Pyramid at Giza was built for King Khufu around 2560 BC. When new it was about 146 meters tall and covered in polished white limestone that shone in the sun. Most of that outer casing was later taken away for other buildings, so today it is about 138 meters tall.

History Who built it

The pyramids were not built by slaves, as people once thought. Archaeologists have found a town beside the Giza pyramids where thousands of workers lived, with bakeries, breweries and cemeteries for workers who died. Crews of skilled builders worked all year, and farmers joined them in the flood season, when their fields were under water.

In 2013 archaeologists found the oldest papyrus with writing ever found in Egypt: the diary of an official named Merer. It records his team ferrying blocks of fine white limestone across the Nile to Giza for Khufu's pyramid.

• Most stone was cut from quarries right next to the site.
• Fine white limestone for the casing came by boat from Tura, across the river.
• Granite for the burial chamber came from Aswan, more than 800 kilometers to the south.
• Blocks were dragged on wooden sledges and up ramps of mud brick and rubble.

Think about it

1. Why might a king want such an enormous tomb?
2. How would you organize thousands of workers on one project?
3. The Great Pyramid is about 4,500 years old. What would you build to last that long?

Key words

Pharaoh

A king of ancient Egypt.

Casing

The smooth outer layer of stone on a pyramid.

Quarry

A place where stone is cut from the ground.