Giza Necropolis

part of the archaeological site on the Giza plateau, near Cairo, Egypt, including the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Pyramid of Khafre, and the Pyramid of Menkaure, along with their associated pyramid complexes and the Great Sphinx of Giza
(Redirected from Giza pyramid complex)

Giza Necropolis (also called the Giza pyramid complex) is a necropolis on the Giza Plateau near the city of Cairo, Egypt. It is about 8 kilometres (5 mi) inland into the desert from the ancient town of Giza on the Nile, and about 25 kilometres (15 mi) southwest of Cairo city centre. The Great Pyramid is the only remaining monument of the Seven Wonders of the World. Construction is thought to have taken 20,000 workers and 20 years.

All of the six pyramids of the Giza Necropolis

Major parts of the complex

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Construction of the Great Pyramid

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There have been many theories to explain how the pyramids were built. These theories include:

  • the use of external or outside ramps
  • the use of cranes
  • the use of an internal or inside ramp. This idea was developed by Jean-Pierre Houdin, a French architect. He has also made detailed computer models of the Great Pyramid. Houdin says that the ramp spirals upward. There is evidence in the notched corners of the pyramid. Not only was the spiraling internal ramp used, but an external ramp was probably used to move the bigger blocks. These are in the lower half of the pyramid and probably used simple cranes to lift them.

More reading

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  • Lehner, Mark 1997. The Complete Pyramids. Thames & Hudson, 1997. ISBN 0-500-05084-8
  • Manley, Bill (ed) The Seventy Great Mysteries of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05123-2
  • Mysteries of Egypt National Geographic Society, 1999. ISBN 0-7922-9752-0.
  • Rhys-Davies, John 1995. Riddles of the monument builders: Who built the Sphinx? Time-Life Video, 1995.
  • Hai, Paul 2007. Raising Stone 1: Paul Hai's racks & pinions theory. ISBN 978-0-646-47679-7.
  • Wirsching, Armin 2009. Die Pyramiden von Giza - Mathematik in Stein gebaut, 2nd ed. ISBN 978-3-8370-2355-8

Other websites

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