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Great Pyramid of Giza

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Great Pyramid of Giza
General information
LocationGiza, Egypt
Height
Roof138.8 m, 455.2 ft
(Originally: 146.6 m, 480.9 ft)

Template:Seven wonders The Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and the largest of the three pyramids in the Giza Necropolis bordering what is now Cairo, Egypt in Africa (29°58′45.25″N 31°08′03.75″E / 29.9792361°N 31.1343750°E / 29.9792361; 31.1343750). The oldest and only remaining member of the Seven Wonders of the World, it is believed to have been constructed over a 20 year period concluding around 2560 BC. The Great Pyramid was built as a tomb for Fourth dynasty Egyptian pharaoh Khufu (hellenized as Χεωψ, Cheops), and is sometimes called Khufu's Pyramid or the Pyramid of Khufu.


bore tour


Dating evidence

Traditionally, the evidence for dating the Great Pyramid by Egyptologists has been based primarily on fragmented summaries of early Christian writings gleaned from the work of the Hellinistic Period Egyptian priest Manethô who compiled the now lost revisionist Egyptian history Aegyptika. These works, and to a lesser degree earlier Egyptian sources, mainly the "Turin Canon" and "Table of Abydos" among others, combine to form the main body of historical reference for Egyptologists giving a timeline by popular consensus of rulers known as the "King's List", found in the reference archive; the Cambridge Ancient History. As a result, being Egyptologists have ascribed the pyramid to Khufu, establishing the time he reigned by default subsequently dates the monument as well as the confines for its completion of construction.

The Edgar Cayce Foundation, researching claims that the pyramids were at least 10,000 years old, funded the "David H. Koch Pyramids Radiocarbon Project" in 1984. The project took samples of organic material (such as ash and charcoal deposits) from several locations within the Great Pyramid, and other pyramids and monuments from the Old Kingdom period (ca. 3rd millennium BC). These samples were subjected to radiocarbon dating to produce calibrated date-equivalent estimates of their age. This yielded results averaging 374 years earlier than the estimated historical date accepted by Egyptologists (2589 – 2504 BC) but still more recent than 10,000 years ago. An astronomical study by Kate Spence suggests the pyramid dates to 2467 BC.

A second dating in 1995 with new but similar material obtained dates ranging between 100-400 years earlier than those indicated by the historic record. This raised questions concerning the origin and date of the wood. Massive quantities of wood were used and burned, so to reconcile the earlier dates the authors of the study theorized that possibly "old wood" was used, assuming that wood was harvested from any source available, including old construction material from all over Egypt. It is also known, given the poor quality and relative scarcity of native Egyptian woods, that King Sneferu (and later Egyptian pharohs) imported fine woods from Lebanon and other countries such as Nubia for the creation of decorative furniture, royal boats (as found buried around the Giza Plateau), or other luxuries generally reserved for royalty. But as Mark Lehner points out such efforts were not without "great cost". It is unknown, given the expense, effort, and value of such woods, if they were ever imported as an expendable source of industrial fuel, especially on such a large scale.

Project scientists based their conclusions on the evidence that some of the material in the 3rd Dynasty pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser and other monuments had been recycled, concluding that the construction of the pyramids marked a major depletion of Egypt's exploitable wood. Dating of more short-lived material around the pyramid (cloth, small fires, etc) yielded dates nearer to those indicated by historical records. As of yet the full data of the study has yet to be released in which the authors insist more evidence is needed to settle this issue. In the absence of the "old wood" theory, the study admits "The 1984 results left us with too little data to conclude that the historical chronology of the Old Kingdom was in error by nearly 400 years, but we considered this at least a possibility."

In his book Voyages of the Pyramid Builders, Boston University geology professor Robert Schoch details key anomalies in both radiocarbon studies; most notably that samples taken in 1984 from the upper courses of the Great Pyramid gave upper dates of 3809 B.C. (± 160yrs), nearly 1400yrs before the time of Khufu, while the lower courses provided dates ranging from 3090-2723 B.C (± 100-400yrs) which correspond much more closely to the time Khufu is believed to have reigned. Given that the data imply the pyramid was built (impossibly) from the top down, Dr. Schoch argues that if the information provided by the study is correct, it makes sense if it is assumed the pyramid was built and rebuilt in several stages suggesting later Pharaohs such as Khufu were only inheritors of an existing monument, not the original builders, and merely rebuilt or repaired previously constructed sections.

Alternative theories

In common with many other monumental structures from antiquity, the Great Pyramid has over time been the subject of a great number of speculative or alternative theories, which put forward a variety of explanations about its origins, dating, construction and purpose. In support of these claims such accounts either rely upon novel reinterpretations of the available data from fields such as archaeology, history and astronomy, or appeal to biblical, mythological, mystical, numerological, astrological and other esoteric sources of knowledge, or some combination of these.

Such ideas have been part of popular culture since at least the turn of the 20th century and can be traced back among others to such figures as the early-twentieth century American psychic Edgar Cayce, whose 'psychic channeling' of 'Ra Ta' purports to have conveyed that the pyramids were built by refugees from Atlantis, and even to his predecessor Ignatius L. Donnelly. In recent years, some of the more widely-publicized writers of alternative theories include Graham Hancock, Robert Bauval, John Anthony West, and Boston University geology professor Robert M. Schoch. These have written extensive alternative theories about the age and origin of the Giza pyramids and the Sphinx. While many Egyptologists and field scientists tend to dismiss such accounts out of hand as being a form of pseudoarchaeology, other specialists such as astronomy professor Ed Krupp who have been involved in the debate have put forward astronomical refutations based on the presented evidence for several of their claims. The proponents have in their turn presented their counter-rebuttals.

A theme found in some of the alternative theories put forward concerning the Giza pyramids and many other megalithic sites around the world, is the suggestion that these are not the products of the civilizations and cultures known to conventional history, but are instead the much older remnants of some hitherto unknown advanced ancient culture. This progenitor civilization is supposed to have been destroyed in antiquity by some devastating catastrophe brought about by the end of the last ice age, according to most of these accounts sometime around 10,000 BC. For the Great Pyramid of Giza in particular, it is maintained (depending on the theorist) that either it was ordained and built by this now-vanished civilization, or else that its construction was somehow influenced by knowledge (now lost) acquired from this civilization. The latter point of view is more common among recent theorists such as Hancock and Bauval, who believe that the Great Pyramid incorporates star shafts 'locked in' to Orion's Belt and Sirius at around 2450 BC, though they argue the Giza ground-plan was laid out in 10,450 BC.

The a priori existence of such a civilization is postulated by such theorists who believe this is the only reasonable explanation for how the most advanced of ancient cultures, such as Egypt and Sumer, were able to reach such high levels of unequaled technological advancement with what they claim is little or no precedent. This precedent they argue exists in the form of megalithic ruins found all over the globe discovered at the beginnings of history but too complex, they argue, to have been constructed by the cultures they are ascribed to by the mainstream. As another of these theorists John Anthony West writes in reference to Egypt in particular: "How does a complex civilization spring full blown into being? Look at a 1905 automobile and compare it to a modern one. There is no mistaking the process of 'development'. But in Egypt there are no parallels. Everything is right there from the start."

Another alternative theory, put forward by a group who often refer to themselves as 'pyramidologists', is that the Pyramid is a divine revelation, planned by prophets who influenced pharaoh Khufu. The founder of this group, Adam Rutherford, author of the four-volume set Pyramidology, drew from two primal texts bringing attention to the Great Pyramid in the West, Oxford astronomy professor John Greaves 1646 book Pyramidography, and John Taylor's The Great Pyramid: Why Was It Built and Who Built It? (1859). Rutherford, Dr. Gene Scott, Larry Pahl, and others in this group claim that the Pyramid passage systems, when measured with the 'Pyramid inch', contain a prophetic timeline which reveals the date of creation, the building of the Pyramid, the exodus from Egypt, and the birth and crucifixion of Christ.

As Sir Flinders Petrie summed up in regards to pyramidologists; "It is useless to state the real truth of the matter, as it has no effect on those who are subject to this type of hallucination. They can but be left with the flat earth believers and other such people to whom a theory is dearer than a fact.".

See also

General
Archaeology, List of Egypt-related topics, World's tallest free standing structure on land, The Upuaut Project
Measurements
Measures and Mathematics, Pyramid inch

References

  1. Ashmawy, Alaa (January 21, 2004). "The Great Pyramid of Giza". The Seven Wonders. Retrieved 2007-04-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press, New York, 2001. Edited by Dana M Collins. Volume 2, Page 234.
  3. "http://www.phouka.com/pharaoh/egypt/history/00kinglists.html"
  4. "http://www.friesian.com/notes/oldking.htm"
  5. ^ (September/October 1999) (2006) Archeology Dating the Pyramids Volume 52 Number 5 by members of the David H. Koch Pyramids Radiocarbon Project
  6. Cite error: The named reference katespence was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/1915mpyramid.html
  8. ^ Schoch, Robert M. (2003). Voyages of the Pyramid Builders. Penguin Books. pp. 14–18. ISBN 1585422037. Cite error: The named reference "Schoch2003" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  9. Krupp, Ed (2001). "The Sphinx Blinks". Sky & Telescope. 101 (3): pp.86–88. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  10. Correspondence between Hancock, Bauval and Krupp concerning Giza-Orion Correlation and Kate Spence's Nature article
  11. The Orion Correlation Theory and Ed Krupp
  12. Conman, Joanne (2002). "Blinking Back". The Secret Chambers of the Sanctuary of Thoth. Retrieved 2007-04-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  13. (2006) Graham Hancock. Like a Thief in the Night
  14. (1979)(2006). Serpent in the Sky.
  15. Baskette, John (1994). "Answers In Action FAQ file on the Great Pyramid". answers.org. Retrieved 2007-04-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

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Archaeology

Exploration

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Coordinates: 29°58′44.68″N 31°08′02.58″E / 29.9790778°N 31.1340500°E / 29.9790778; 31.1340500

Template:Link FA

  1. Dunn, Christopher (31 Oct 1998). "The Giza Power Plant". Bear & Company. ISBN 1879181509.
  2. Farrell, Joseph (Dec 2001). "The Giza Death Star: The Paleophysics of the Great Pyramid". Adventures Unlimited Press. ISBN 0932813380.
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