Interesting Facts on the Great Pyramids of Giza and Sphinx

The most famous monument in the whole world, a landmark of Egypt and its ancient civilization, and an architectural achievement that still amazes scientists and engineers until today, the Pyramids of Giza is surely one of the historical monuments tourists visiting Egypt should never miss.

Established as the royal necropolis of the kings of the Old Kingdom of the history of ancient Egyptians, the Giza pyramids were the result of many steps and evolutions in the process of building the pyramids. Starting with Abu Sir, Saqqara, and Dahshur, the great pyramid of Giza was the most successful attempt one among all of them. Many travelers who spend their vacation in Egypt admire the greatness of the Giza Pyramids.

How to reach the Great Pyramids of Giza

The Giza Great Pyramid is situated at the end of a road that holds the same name in Arabic, El Ahram Street, at the end of the city of Giza. with the huge shape of the pyramids, you can see them from many places in Giza.

Many ancient cities during the ruling period of the Pharaohs were divided as the city of the living, which is located in the East Bank of the Nile, and the city of the dead located at the West Bank of the Nile and this was where the great Pyramid constructed.

The great pyramid of Giza is located near many other magnificent Pharaonic attractions like Saqqara, Memphis, and Dahshur. The pyramids can easily be reached by a taxi from anywhere in Cairo and Giza, or even with public busses. However, travelers who spend their vacation in Egypt, especially for the first time are always encouraged to book a tour to Egypt with one of the accredited travel companies in the land of the Nile river.

The Pyramid complex of Giza

To build this pyramid complex it took about 2.3 million blocks of stone to be able to create the tombs for the 3 kings. in ancient Egypt, kings used the pyramids as tombs to get bury after their death, as they are kings the tomb had to be marvelous to fit the majesty of kings.

The Grand Pyramid of Khufu

One of the great pyramid builders is pharaoh Khufu, the second king of the 4th dynasty of ancient Egypt, who constructed the Grand Pyramid of Giza. It was built on a surface area of more than 13 acres. The pyramid of Khufu originally had a height of 146 meters and it is now 137 meters high. The length of each of its sides is 230 meters.

It is estimated that more than two million stones were used to construct the Great Pyramid of Khufu with the weights of some of them ranging from 3 to 25 tons at the base of the Khufu pyramid. The original layout of the pyramid of Khufu included a valley temple, ascending straits which lead to the mortuary temple from the Valley temple situated to the East of the pyramid, and then the great pyramid.

The entrance to the great pyramid of Khufu is situated in the Northern section 20 meters above the ground. This opening leads to a corridor that takes to an unfinished chamber. Afterward, there is this corridor that is 35 meters in length and it leads to the second chamber of the pyramid.

The second one is made out of limestone and it has a square shape with each side being 5 meters size and it is connected to the burial chamber via a hidden corridor which is about 9 meters in length and 3 meters in height.

The Great Pyramid of Khufu with its gigantic size, accurate calculations, and ingenuity, is considered to be an architectural miracle. built more than 4000 years ago, the pyramid is truly breathtaking.

The Pyramid of Khafre

The Pyramid of Khafre is the second largest pyramid of the 3 Giza pyramids and it belongs to the son of king Khufu. The pyramid still has a part of its outer coat at its top. The pyramid of Khafre is around 144 meters in height. However, it is seen as if it was bigger than the great pyramid of Khufu. This is because it is located on higher ground. Each side of the pyramid of Khafre is 215.5 meters long.

The Pyramid of Menkaure

The Pyramid of Menkaure is the smallest pyramid in Giza. The son of the ancient Egyptian king Khafre, king Menkaure, built this pyramid which is about 66 meters in height. Each side of the pyramid of Menkaure was originally 108 meters long. However, because some of the stones of the pyramid were taken away to be used in other constructions, each one is now around 102 meters long.

The Great Sphinx of Giza

The Great Sphinx of Giza is this famous large rock-cut statue of a lion that has the face of a man. This huge statue guarded the pyramids of Giza since its construction in the 26th century BC most probably king Khafre is the one who built it. This marvelous statue of the Great Sphinx is 20 feet long and 70 meters in height.

The pyramids of Giza are the most popular and famous landmarks of Egypt. A visit to the Giza Pyramids is included in almost all tours to Egypt. Although they were built more than 2500 BC, the pyramids of Giza still present a mystery in their construction and how they fought time in such a way to survive until today.

The History of the Pyramids of Giza

The pyramid complex of Giza was established more than 4000 years ago, exactly between the years 2550 and 2480 BC and the historical site hosts three major pyramids; The Grand Pyramid of Khufu, the Pyramid of Khafre, and the smaller pyramid of Menkaure.

The Pyramids were actually the royal necropolis of kings and each great pyramid of Giza used to have the name of the king buried inside it. The pyramids are actually the last step in a long process of evolution of the tombs for the ancient world.

The great pyramid at the very beginning was only a simple hole in the ground, then a small room under the ground, then a number of rooms, two or three rooms with a layer of stones above it, and then a number of layers built above each other like the Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara.

In fact the first proper pyramid to be built in Egypt was erected by King Senfru, the father of Khufu; the builder of the Grand Pyramid in Giza. After a failed attempt in the Meidum Pyramid near Faiyum, Senfru had two pyramids built in Dahshur, the Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid, the second-largest pyramid in Egypt and the first successful attempt to construct a pyramid in ancient Egypt.

The shape of the pyramids was quite significant in the great old kingdom. According to many religious books and wall carvings. The Pharaohs believed that the pyramids played a role in the cosmogony and that it helped the soul of the deceased to reach the afterworld. This is why the shape of the pyramids can be seen on top of the ancient Egyptian obelisks and even in the Valley temple of the Kings in Luxor. Thank god that the great Pharaohs erected these marvelous monuments that attract travelers all over the world to spend their holidays in Egypt.