Pyramids
By Emelia Suljic
The Pyramid Age
The Pyramid Age lasted from about 2630 BC to 1514 BC (about 1,100 years). This period in history is the only time the Egyptian people built pyramids. A pyramid was where they buried the pharaoh; it was his tomb. It is a gargantuan three-dimensional triangular structure. They realized at the end of this period that even though pyramids were strong and sturdy, they were easy to spot. Because of that, they were easy to rob. After they recognized this fact, they started burying the kings in hidden tombs in the cliffs, mountains, and in the desert.
During the Pyramid Age, the first thing a new pharaoh did was plan his pyramid. He started this process so quickly because it takes about 20 years to build a pyramid. The first type of Pyramid, the step pyramid, was believed to be a staircase to heaven. They built this type of pyramid in 2700 BC, about 5000 years ago. It dates back to the third dynasty. It consists of several steps, usually about five. Only one step pyramid has been completed.
They switched to the pyramid that people are familiar with today, the “true” pyramid, because they thought it looked like a sunbeam made of stone. The pharaoh would walk up the sunbeam (a side of the pyramid) to join the sun god, Re. They also thought it was more pleasing to the eye. The step and true pyramids may appear very different, but construction-wise, they are very similar.
To build these colossal structures, they needed many people (about 100,000), many materials and resources and time. Some pharaohs went bankrupt while building their pyramids. Since it took so many workers, cities were built around the pyramid so you would not have to travel back and forth. In return for their hard work, the pharaoh paid them with food, water, goods, clothing, supplies and homes in the pyramid cities. It was not necessary, but it was helpful to have farms or fields nearby to grow food for the workers. Even after the pyramids were finished, the cities would remain.
Here are some of the people who helped build the pyramids and what their responsibilities were:
The Pharaoh: commanded the pyramid to be built.
Chief Minister/architect/engineers: designed the pyramid.
Mathematicians: They used geometry to make sure all the little things like the slightest angle, area, and volume were exact.
High Priest/astronomer: chose where it would be built. He had to pick a very large, flat, open space. He needed to place the pyramid so each side faced North, South, East, and West.
Record Keepers: Kept track of expenses, like work crews, time spent, materials, and supplies.
Quarry master: leader of the group that dug up the limestone.
They needed a quarry to dig out the huge stones. Since the stones were so huge, some weighed as much as 15 tons and they needed roughly 2.5 million, they needed to be close to the quarry. They needed a nearby harbor for ships that brought in supplies from other parts of Egypt. They also had to dig out canals to connect the harbor with the Nile.
To haul up the heavy stones to their place on the pyramid, they built a ramp, one from the quarry to the pyramid and as many as four ramps from the base of the pyramid to the tip. As the workers got higher, they extended the ramp along the way. They used wooden sledges for dragging the giant stones and a very strong rope to pull the sledge and rock. Finally they needed many, many, many buckets of water to slosh under the sledges for them to slide more easily.
Foreman of the Gangs: Tunneled underground to carve out the burial chamber.
Labors: Pulled the 30,000 pound stones and put them in place.
Water Carrier: Brought water to the tired labors from the Nile River.
Stones Mason: Connected and smoothed the beautiful stone so you could not fit a hair in between.
The Sculptor/artists: Carved and decorated the cap stone with gold.
The New Pharaoh: Commanded his father’s burial.
They all contributed to the building of the pyramid. If one did not do his job, it would not ever be completed.
Now, to take a closer look at the inside of the pyramid; There were three burial chamber plans. There was a very long corridor called a causeway. The causeway lead up to the mortuary temple, which is built on the east side of the pyramid. Everyday, food and drinks were offered there to the king’s soul.
The entrance to the pyramid was always on the north side. A passage lead from there down and then up again to the burial chamber. The burial chamber was at the center of the base of the pyramid. There were three huge rooms in the whole pyramid, besides the tunnels leading to them. Sometimes one of the three rooms was the queen’s burial chamber, it was much smaller than the king’s. The rest of the pyramid was solid. They had staircases, corridors and enormous rooms that were carefully carved out and decorated with scenes showing the Egyptian’s religion. The tombs reflected the society of the Ancient Egyptians.
The Pyramid Age lasted from about 2630 BC to 1514 BC (about 1,100 years). This period in history is the only time the Egyptian people built pyramids. A pyramid was where they buried the pharaoh; it was his tomb. It is a gargantuan three-dimensional triangular structure. They realized at the end of this period that even though pyramids were strong and sturdy, they were easy to spot. Because of that, they were easy to rob. After they recognized this fact, they started burying the kings in hidden tombs in the cliffs, mountains, and in the desert.
During the Pyramid Age, the first thing a new pharaoh did was plan his pyramid. He started this process so quickly because it takes about 20 years to build a pyramid. The first type of Pyramid, the step pyramid, was believed to be a staircase to heaven. They built this type of pyramid in 2700 BC, about 5000 years ago. It dates back to the third dynasty. It consists of several steps, usually about five. Only one step pyramid has been completed.
They switched to the pyramid that people are familiar with today, the “true” pyramid, because they thought it looked like a sunbeam made of stone. The pharaoh would walk up the sunbeam (a side of the pyramid) to join the sun god, Re. They also thought it was more pleasing to the eye. The step and true pyramids may appear very different, but construction-wise, they are very similar.
To build these colossal structures, they needed many people (about 100,000), many materials and resources and time. Some pharaohs went bankrupt while building their pyramids. Since it took so many workers, cities were built around the pyramid so you would not have to travel back and forth. In return for their hard work, the pharaoh paid them with food, water, goods, clothing, supplies and homes in the pyramid cities. It was not necessary, but it was helpful to have farms or fields nearby to grow food for the workers. Even after the pyramids were finished, the cities would remain.
Here are some of the people who helped build the pyramids and what their responsibilities were:
The Pharaoh: commanded the pyramid to be built.
Chief Minister/architect/engineers: designed the pyramid.
Mathematicians: They used geometry to make sure all the little things like the slightest angle, area, and volume were exact.
High Priest/astronomer: chose where it would be built. He had to pick a very large, flat, open space. He needed to place the pyramid so each side faced North, South, East, and West.
Record Keepers: Kept track of expenses, like work crews, time spent, materials, and supplies.
Quarry master: leader of the group that dug up the limestone.
They needed a quarry to dig out the huge stones. Since the stones were so huge, some weighed as much as 15 tons and they needed roughly 2.5 million, they needed to be close to the quarry. They needed a nearby harbor for ships that brought in supplies from other parts of Egypt. They also had to dig out canals to connect the harbor with the Nile.
To haul up the heavy stones to their place on the pyramid, they built a ramp, one from the quarry to the pyramid and as many as four ramps from the base of the pyramid to the tip. As the workers got higher, they extended the ramp along the way. They used wooden sledges for dragging the giant stones and a very strong rope to pull the sledge and rock. Finally they needed many, many, many buckets of water to slosh under the sledges for them to slide more easily.
Foreman of the Gangs: Tunneled underground to carve out the burial chamber.
Labors: Pulled the 30,000 pound stones and put them in place.
Water Carrier: Brought water to the tired labors from the Nile River.
Stones Mason: Connected and smoothed the beautiful stone so you could not fit a hair in between.
The Sculptor/artists: Carved and decorated the cap stone with gold.
The New Pharaoh: Commanded his father’s burial.
They all contributed to the building of the pyramid. If one did not do his job, it would not ever be completed.
Now, to take a closer look at the inside of the pyramid; There were three burial chamber plans. There was a very long corridor called a causeway. The causeway lead up to the mortuary temple, which is built on the east side of the pyramid. Everyday, food and drinks were offered there to the king’s soul.
The entrance to the pyramid was always on the north side. A passage lead from there down and then up again to the burial chamber. The burial chamber was at the center of the base of the pyramid. There were three huge rooms in the whole pyramid, besides the tunnels leading to them. Sometimes one of the three rooms was the queen’s burial chamber, it was much smaller than the king’s. The rest of the pyramid was solid. They had staircases, corridors and enormous rooms that were carefully carved out and decorated with scenes showing the Egyptian’s religion. The tombs reflected the society of the Ancient Egyptians.
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