Pyramid Of Giza Research Paper

788 Words2 Pages

The Pyramid of Giza is the last remaining ancient wonder of the world. The Pyramid is located in Cairo, Egypt and was built somewhere around 2551-2472 BCE. Today, the architectural wonder brings in millions of tourists a year to see what remains of the old world power. However even today there still remains some mystery to how the ancients were able to create this towering structure. Theories range from scientific and archeological studies to aliens. The structure itself takes up approximately “13 acres at its base” (Art History, pg. 225). Its top reaches a height of 481 feet. Its base rock was quarried nearby with blocks that weighed about 2.5 tons on average, with nearly 2 million in the entire creation. It had a finish of polished limestone. Shaw wrote an article for BBC history discussing the different theories on the creation of the Pyramid. He strengthens the point that we know little about the engineering methods of the Egyptians. This has caused so much confusion when it comes to understanding the process of the Egyptians. How were they able to get these massive rocks moved to the exact position? How were they able to align the entire building perfectly to the north? The article attempts to reconcile some of these questions. When it came to the aligning of the building the Egyptian architect and surveyors may have been using the stars for exactly this. “It is clear that the Egyptians were using their knowledge of the stars to assist them in their architectural projects from the beginning of the pharaonic period.” (BBC History) One Egyptian ceremony that used constellations would result in “less than ½ a degree of error”. (BBC History) The actual engineering method for the angles is still a mystery although but there is a strong case for this theory. Two stars rotate around the North Star it is estimated that around 2467 BCE the stars would have been in perfect alignment. This was supported by the slightly off center pyramids that were made before and after the Pyramid of Giza due to the shifting

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