The pyramids in Egypt are among the most baffling and to date unsolved mysteries of the world. For centuries now, scientists and researchers have been trying to understand how and exactly when were the pyramids constructed. A lot about the pyramids have come to light, archaeologists make new discoveries almost every day but the fact is that a lot more about these wonders is shrouded in mystery. Here are some unbelievable discoveries that scientists and archeologists have made over the years about the pyramids of Giza.
The Great Pyramid, the credit for construction of which goes to Pharaoh Khufu and which is believed to be built around 2550 BC was for a long time the largest construction in the world. If the history is to be believed then the Egyptians only used equipment made of wood and ropes to construct the pyramids.
But is that even possible? That is the question scientists have been trying to answer over the ages. If we believe that it was all done by manual labor then calculations say that it took 20,000 workers and 2o years to build the Great Pyramid.
Some researchers believe that the granite rocks that the pyramids are built with were carried and dragged for 5,000 miles WITHOUT WHEELS. Blocks came via the Nile and weighed from 2.5 to 15 tons. To give you an idea of how much that is, a normal car weighs about 2 tons. So how did these people drag stones weighing more than a car for 5,000 miles!? By the time Egyptians discovered the presence of the wheel, the pyramids had long been built. Also, they did not use any steel or iron.
You'd be surprised to know that the Great Pyramid did not have the dusty look, as if made of sand of the desert it has now, that is supposed to be the core of the Pyramid.
Back in the day, the outside of the Pyramid was covered in polished, shiny limestone which made it sparkle. This limestone was given cuts to make it appear flat under direct sunlight.
How did it come to be the way it is today? It is said that there was a massive earthquake in 1303 AD which caused some stones on the outside to loosen and crack; these were eventually reused to make fortresses and mosques leaving the sand core of the Pyramid exposed.
From the ground, it seems that the Great Pyramid like every other pyramid has four sides but that is not true. The aerial view of the Great Pyramid of Giza shows that it has 8 sides as can be seen in the picture if observed carefully. Some researchers believe that this was done to keep the stones from shifting.
Then there are others who believe that the eight sides were created due to erosion and that the intended sides were actually 4. It is difficult to believe this theory as the indention on every side is precise, can the wind erode the pyramid with such precision?
In 1877, Dr. Joseph Seiss made a mind-numbing discovery. He made some calculations and according to them, the Great Pyramid of Giza lies where the extended lines of latitude and longitude intersect. In simpler words, it is located at the end center of the Earth.
Did the Egyptians know? But how could they? But could they? This is another unsolved mystery when it comes to the pyramids and Egyptians.
History would have us believe that the Egyptians were a primitive society and the pyramids were constructed to be a burial space for kings and pharaohs. But the conundrum is how a primitive society could have constructed these structures and chambers inside it with simple wooden tools?
So the mind-twisting conclusion is that- maybe the Egyptians were not as primitive as we think. Some scholars have gone as far as to propose that they had electricity, that too wireless! Some ancient carvings show the Egyptians to be holding torches.
Get ready to be amazed by this piece of information- the Great Pyramid of Giza is made of 2.3 million stones each weighing 2.5 to 15 tons! What wood could have withstood that weight and for the workers to have achieved the feat of building the pyramid in 20 years a block should have been laid down in every 2.5 minutes? The calculations show us that the task was pretty unachievable and therefore researchers believe that the pyramids were built by a more advanced society.
Khufu, the person who is given the credit for the construction of the Great Pyramid, has a coffin that raises many questions. The sarcophagus weighs around 3.75 tons which are quite heavy. So heavy that scientists believe that it could not have been carried inside the pyramid after it was built. So they think that it was placed there much earlier.
Then there is the part where it is believed that the sarcophagus is carved completely out of granite which as most of you would know is pretty tough to carve. Drill holes have been discovered on the sarcophagus. The question is, what drill was used at that time to carve granite?
To make things more unbelievable for you here is another creepy fact. The pyramids named Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure are aligned with the stars (Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka) of the Orion belt (a constellation in the night sky). No one knows, to date, how the Egyptians could have achieved this feat of aligning the pyramids with the celestial bodies. Orion was not even named till, 2,000 years after the pyramids were made but it is believed that the constellation was linked with Osiris, God of Rebirth, by the Egyptians.
Under the Pyramid is a different world in itself. There is an intricate tunnel system which is made out of limestone. It is here that mind-boggling discoveries have been made. And not all of those discoveries are public knowledge. There are conspiracy theories that the scientists are hiding what all is underneath these giant structures. In a lot of ancient texts, there is an allusion to things about 55 miles south of Cairo under the city of Hawara.
In the recent past, scientists made another discovery in the Great Pyramid. They found a hidden chamber with the help of a strong X-ray. What this chamber is for, no one has a clue, not yet at least. The first and the most simple theory is that the architects of the Pyramid left a cavity or cavities so as to not have the stones too pressured so as to prevent them from collapsing. But is it the only purpose of these chambers? Well, the possibilities have been entertained.
This is an interesting fact, it might not come as a surprise though. Researchers have figured that the number of stones used to build the pyramids could be used to construct a wall around France. And not like a small wall, but a good 10 feet wall with one-foot thickness. Incredible, is it not?
Modern technology has managed to achieve so much but still, it lags behind the ancient civilization of Egyptians in one way. The pyramids in Egypt point North as many people know. What you might not know is that the precision with which they point North is five-hundredths of a degree to the true magnetic North. And not even the Royal Observatory in Greenwich has managed to have that precision. Amazed much? There is more.
The clock of Royal Observatory in Greenwich is set to GTC (Greenwich Mean Time or Prime Meridian Time) and that is about 13 degrees away from the magnetic true North! This clock came to function in 1675. If this clock could not get the precise angles in the 17th century then how did Egyptians manage to find true North with such precision? Is it possible that they had a clock which much different and better than ours?
Okay so this piece of information might bore some people because let's admit it, not all of us are Math fans. But bear with me, this is really simple and quite amazing. To understand the significance of this part we just need to recall what we already know. The value of the constant Pi which is 3.14 and that of Phi (the Golden number)- 1.618.
Now here is the astonishing part. Subtracting the Great Pyramid’s length at its height we get 314.16 which is 100 times Pi. And adding two of its sides in meters gives 100 times the Golden Number!
It might not seem a big deal to you but mathematicians would know what a mind-blowing thing this is!
Archaeologists have been using the satellites to look for the hidden structures in Egypt. Whether it be on Earth or under it. This effort has not gone in vain because till now 17 pyramids, which are buried around Giza have been discovered. The infrared rays have also found over 1,000 different burial sites around the area.
“I couldn’t believe we could locate so many sites. To excavate a pyramid is the dream of every archaeologist,” said the NASA funded archaeologist Sarah Parcak. The ground research to find those 17 pyramids is being conducted and 2 have already been found. Though new pyramids are seeing the light of the day almost every day- the Pyramid of Djoser is still considered to be the oldest.
This pyramid is according to the scientists, the oldest. Believed to be built around the 27th century BC, the pyramid has a courtyard in its vicinity. Originally the Pyramid Of Djoser stood at a height of 203 ft. The weather wore it down over the ages. The pyramid has steps and inside are complex chambers and structures.
The insides of the pyramid have been ravaged, there is absolutely nothing inside, which is attributed to the fact that it has been looted over the years.
The Great Pyramid of Giza was the tallest human-made structure for almost 4,000 years! Then the Lincoln Cathedral was built in 1311. This Cathedral took 200 years to be built.
The Cathedral central structure collapsed in 1549 which means it was the world's tallest building for 238 years. Compare that to 3800 of the Pyramid!
Just like the current 7 Wonders of the World, there were 7 Ancient Wonders of the World of which the Great Pyramid at Giza is the only one standing. For thousands of years, the Pyramid has remained intact in the face of natural destruction or even human intervention.
The six other wonders could not stand the test of time. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Statue of Zeus both were destroyed by earthquakes. The Temple of Artemis was torn down by a mob. As far as the Colossus of Rhodes is concerned the legends say that it was bought and melted down by a merchant in 654 CE.
Scientists have not been able to explain EXACTLY how the Egyptians made the pyramids with just wood and rope? According to the Egyptians did not have the tools to create something like the pyramids which has led to the theory that maybe the pyramids were not actually built by the Egyptians.
Pyramids are thought to have more to them than what meets the eye and what has been discovered by them till now. Do pyramids hold some higher energy? After finding this hidden chamber the scientists conducted a study. Not so surprisingly, they found that the electromagnetic energy of the Great Pyramid was concentrated in its internal rooms.
Higher energy is found in the chambers where there are the remains of Khufu and his wife and the hidden chamber.
Just last week, on August 1st, a statement was issued by the Supreme Council of Antiquities in Egypt that a new discovery has been made in the pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara. A team stumbled upon a priceless statue of one significant Egyptian Gods — Osiris.
The discovery is baffling as the researchers cannot figure out who placed such a precious statue of a valuable figure inside the pyramid and why. The speculation by the head is that “the statue was probably concealed in this area by a priest of Saqqara in antiquity.”
Brien Foerster, an archeologist found 20 boxes weighing 100 tons each cut out from Aswan granite. Initially, it was thought that these were a burial place for bulls but no evidence of bulls' remains was found.
Recently, archaeologist Brien Foerster discovered 20 boxes that were precisely cut from Aswan granite. These boxes weighed a whopping 100 tons each (again, far greater than what a wood implement could have carried). The boxes were originally thought to be a burial pace for prized bulls, except no evidence of bulls was actually found.
So here is the thing- no solid proof has been found on when and how these mysterious structures were made. Then it found that the Great Pyramid has some hidden chambers from which heat/energy is emitted. What is happening?
A thermal scan performed on the Great Pyramid in 2015 revealed that there were three specific areas in it which were generating heat. Some 'mysterious technology' is ascribed the reason for this heat production. Some heat areas in the upper half of the Pyramid have led to the speculations that there are more chambers hidden inside.
The Great Pyramid is the only pyramid that has air shafts. Here is something to boggle your mind- these shafts are angled in correspondence with the celestial bodies (yes, we kid you not). How did they do it? And WHY did they do it.
Hyperbolic theories have been made regarding this discovery. Involvement of aliens in the building of the pyramids has not been completely ruled out by some scholars. So they believe that the alignment of the air shaft in accordance with the celestial bodies somewhere reflects the hand of some powers greater than human.
You would think it is hard to push a 20-ton door, and obviously, it is. But the architects of the pyramids of Giza were smart and if by any chance anyone is stuck inside, they made sure that they could easily push these heavy doors which are not visible from the outside.
The fact that Egyptians made such precise calculations for the doors to slide easily from the inside, is remarkable.
The recently discovered chamber has been named the 'big void' as it is literally so. The chamber is not connected to absolutely any other passage inside the pyramid. The Grand Gallery is open to the visitors, which they can visit by hunching down and walking through a tunnel. This Gallery is a connection between the Queen's and the King's chamber.
Currently, the pyramids of Giza rest with pride in the desert with nothing else around but it is believed that a long time ago they were encircled by tombs called Necropolis also known as the City of the Dead.
There were religious establishments too. These vanished over the years but one thing did not- The Great Sphinx of Giza.
The deserts of Egypt are full of mystery. Construction of The Great Sphinx is in itself a mystery, some would say a bigger one than the pyramids. When it comes to the Sphinx there is a division in the archeologist community itself. Some credit it's construction to Khafre, the one who commissioned the building of the second largest Pyramid. It is believed that some of Sphinx's feature match his, so it could have been made in his likeness.
On the other hand, there are some who believe that the Sphinx was built before Khafre and was built by his father Khufu. Then there are those who believe that the Sphinx was built much before the time of Khufu too as the face of the Sphynx shows damage, possibly caused by water. It is thought that Egypt was not always a desert and received good rain around 6000 BCE.
Egyptians were a firm believer of life after death. They were so sure of it that when they buried themselves they buried along objects the dead might need. These objects ranged from jewelry to those of daily need. The most basic necessity was buried with every ruler- food. Apart from this, one other object that was discovered in every ruler's tomb was a small statue. The Egyptians believed that this statue came to life in the afterlife of course and served the pharaoh. In one uncovered tomb, 400 such statues were discovered.
According to history, Al- Aziz, a Kurdish ruler and the second Sultan of Egypt, for some reason wanted to destroy the pyramids. He even tried, but failed- the task was not easy.
The proof of this destruction project can be seen on the Menkaure's Pyramid- a sizable chunk has been slashed from it. But this was the maximum Al-Aziz's plan could do.
The Great Pyramid is literally a jewel. According to the scientists, if the Pyramid is covered in reflective limestone it can be seen from the moon.
The Egyptians have called the Great Pyramid, Ikhet. In English, this translates to- 'glorious light'.
You'd think that in the scourging heat of the desert the pyramids too would be boiling. But surprisingly, the inside of the pyramids are cool. The temperature inside the pyramids is maintained at about 68 degrees Fahrenheit.
The air shafts inside the pyramids help to maintain coolness inside.
Some history books would have you believe that slaves were tortured and forced to build the pyramids. That is not true. The workers were paid for the number of hours they spent to construct these pyramids.
Pyramids can be boasted as amongst the most stable structures in the world. Scientists have failed to comprehend how the Egyptians achieved that feat. Needless to mention that the adhesive holding the pyramid together is quite strong. They have been trying to understand the composition of this glue, but have not progressed a lot.
Yup, not all pyramids are pointed- some of them have been found to have flat tops. Pyramid of Djoser, the oldest pyramid in the world is an example of this. The hidden chamber found inside the pyramids are called Mastabas. And what is their purpose?
Mastabas are flat-topped tombs. Underneath them are hidden chambers believed to be dear to the Pharaoh. Yes, rulers had special tombs constructed to bury their favorite subjects. The idea was that after death, these subjects would serve them even in the afterlife.
The architect of the Pyramid of Djoser is Imhotep. He is the master architect and was so respected in the court of Djoser that he had a statue in his name. The reason for Imhotep's fame was not just the pyramid- he also had expertise in the field of medicine and so was worshipped as the God of Medicine.
We have figured out by now that the purpose of the pyramids, for the Egyptians was to provide a way for the souls to be guided into the afterlife. What their conception of the afterlife was, there is still no clarity on that.
The largely held belief is that they thought that the afterlife was like a mirror of the living world without the pain and sorrow. So something like the concept of Heaven later constructed in Christian mythology.So many questions and almost no answers. Egypt is really a land of mysteries, and no matter how much the modern civilization and technology tries to solve those- the fact is, secrets are what makes the place more exotic.