Pyramids

The Egyptian Pyramids When most people think of Ancient Egypt they think of Pyramids. To construct such great monuments required a mastery of architecture, social organization, and art that few cultures of that period could achieve. The oldest pyramid, the Step-Pyramids, grow out of the abilities of two men, King Djoser and Imhotep. Djoser, the second king of 3rd dynasty, was the first king to have hired an architect, Imhotep, to design a tomb (Time-Life Books, 74). Imhotep was known as the father of mathematics, medicine, architecture, and as the inventor of the calendar (White, 40).

The finest example such mechanics is shown in the construction of the revered pyramid. These three factors, all belonging to the religious architecture of ancient Egypt, do nothing else but prove its greatness. Egypt's grand architectural design was a result of the religious values and beliefs that were in place at the time. Thousands of years ago, 'Ancient Egypt accepted the challenge of reeds and swamps, hot sands and floods, and build the 'first' nation' (Romer:75, 1982). There were few things to impress themselves upon the Egyptian mind; their psychological impact however was immense.

Stone was, therefore, the material from which temples and tombs were built, the finest and most graters examples are the construction of the pyramid. These two factors, belong to the religious and architecture of ancient Egypt, do nothing else but prove its greatness of what we have this days. "...the Egyptians made their complex hierarchy of Gods, and their strange religion. In the service of that religion they made their architecture" (Romer: 75, 1982). These pyramids were built to protect the bodies Of Egyptian kings and other royalty but before the pyramids became the standard for burials, tombs were used for Egypt's early rulers, nobles, and other high

Snefru was a major pharaoh that constructed the process of building his pyramid known as the Bent pyramid. This pyramid, which was previously stated, had a case design instead of a step pyramid (Hill, 2008). This pyramid reflected how much work and craft went into the pyramid because of how much the Egyptians looked up to the pharaoh/king and gods. Khufu was a king that ruled over the Egyptians from 2551 to 2528 BC and his pyramid was most commonly known as Pyramid Giza (Smith 2004, 86). Since his pyramid was the biggest pyramid ever built, with an area of 53,000 square meters and 146.6 meters high, he must have been a major king who did a lot while he reigned over Egyptian society (Smith 2004, 86).

Egyptian Architecture Egyptian Architecture is the building blocks of our civilisation. It is widely known by historians and Egyptologists that the Egyptians were one of the first builders ever known to man. They taught humanity how to design and erect buildings; thus laying grounds for human civilization. The Egyptians were the ones that figured all of the math and dimensions. The Egyptians were the ones that made the technology that pulled the huge stones up to the right places.

Their belief was that the top point of the pyramid was the gate for the soul to travel to the afterlife and return to earth if chosen. These tombs were built which line up with planets and certain stars. One of the greatest cultural successes of Ancient Egypt was certainly in their architecture related with religion. Fumeaux mention, "Temples, tombs and pyramids - all have witnessed this earth for thousands of years. What better than to say that these architectural achievements show us that Egypt's greatest virtue lay in its architecture"[1] "The Egyptian sun god Ra, considered the father of all pharaohs, was said to have created himself from a pyramid-shaped mound of earth before creating all other gods.

The first know pyramid is the Step Pyramid. A step pyramid has very large edges that look like giant steps(Ancient). Archeologist say that the steps were used by pharaohs to climb to the sun god.The first pyramid was made by the pharaoh Djoser in 2630 B.C.(Logan). Many ask why the pyramids were built and there are many different ways to explain, but the best way is simply that they were stone tombs in which the body of the pharaoh(ruler of Egypt) could live in the afterlife(Sen)(Barrow). The pyramids have changed since the first step-pyramid was built.

Eventually, during the period of the New Kingdom (2628-1638 BC), Pharaohs were buried in tombs in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes, Egypt. In the Old and Middle Kingdoms Pharaohs were buried in pyramids. As of now, there are about fifty royal pyramids that have survived from thieves. In these royal pyramids, the tomb walls were completely filled with paintings that illustrated scenes of the deceased personal life. Pyramids of ancient Egypt are the most famous tombs up to this day.

Pyramids are one of the Ancient Architectural structures known to man. They were built as tombs for pharaohs and queens. To a layman, when a pyramid is being made mention of, one automatically assume the Egyptians. Although one of the trademarks of the Egyptians was the pyramid, the Mesopotamians were the first to construct a step-like pyramid structure. These platform-raised buildings were known as Ziggurats.

Works Cited Edwards, I.E.S. The Pyramids of Egypt. Middlesex, England: Viking Books, 1985. Fakhry, Ahmed. The Pyramids.