The Creation of Egypt's Pyramids Essay

Introduction

The Egyptian pyramids were created when the country had powerful and rich civilizations globally. The pyramids are a reflection of what pharaoh who was the leader at that time played in Egypt. The building of the pyramids started at the beginning of the Old Kingdom. The major part of the pyramid building took place during the last dynasty and continued until the sixth dynasty. The pyramids have been in existence for over 4,000 years and still relevant in understanding the history of Egypt. The Giza pyramids, for example, are great structures which were well created hence the reason why they remain strong. The pyramids designed before 2630 B.C were from mud, but later they became more modified and were made of layered stones.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Egypt was stable and prospered economically during the third and fourth dynasties (Editors). A King had a unique position in society and was believed to have been chosen by gods to mediate between them and human beings. Even after death, a king would retain his majesty as people believed he became the god of the dead and Pharaoh became the falcon god. The King's corpse was mummified and buried with everything that he would need in the next life. The pyramids served as a cult for the departed King and were beneficial to the priests and officials buried him as well as the relatives.

King Djoser’s Step Pyramid

The Royal tombs were designed from rocks and were covered with "mastabas" which was a flat-roofed structure and of rectangular (Rose, and Iorwerth). The first stone pyramid in Egypt was designed for Djoser at Saqqara in 2630 B.C. It was referred to as Step pyramid which was just a basic traditional mastaba but later developed in a magnificent structure. The pyramid was created by Imhotep who was a priest ad a healer and after 1400 years became a physician and Scribes Saint. Earlier tombs were pits dug in bedrock and covered with stones. After this, they developed into bricks made from mud and stone. Additionally, the tombs had rooms where people could access to pay respect to the dead.

Imhotep who was the architect of the mastaba was Djoser's prime minister and was the inventor of the stone building (Rose, and Iorwerth). He had many talents, and his contribution to the history of Egypt is acknowledged up to date. "He was deified as the god of wisdom and medicine. " The Step Pyramid" consists of six layers and has a height of 60 meters. The pyramid's uniqueness is through white limestone of white which have an appearance of sunrays. There are also chapels at the base, and a wall surrounds the entire structure. The beauty of the walls is enhanced by pictures of hunters, farmers, herders, fish, birds, and insects.

Pyramids of Giza

Sneferu's Pyramids

These pyramids belonged to King Sneferu who reigned 2686-2667 BC. It is during this reign that the smooth-faced true pyramids were created (Rose, and Iorwerth). The pyramids were three but two were not successful. The first was created in Medum and was first designed as a step pyramid but later developed into a true pyramid. The pyramid was unstable; thus the blocks used that were made of limestone started slipping. The architects abandoned its construction and Sneferu started building another pyramid known as "Bent pyramid" at Dahshur. The reason why it was given this name was that the upper part is shallowly inclined than the lower side. The reason for this characteristic is because it was built on a ground that was not stable.

Additionally, the walls which were to serve as the burial chambers cracked and projected inwards. Although alterations were made to decrease the height of the pyramid to reduce the pressure on the lower half of the pyramid, this pyramid was not used, so Sneferu proceeded to create the third pyramid referred to them as a red pyramid because it was constructed using red limestone blocks. The standard for true pyramid construction was set based on the red pyramid. The pyramid consists of burial chambers, a way to a temple on the valley and a mortuary temple.

Khufu Pyramid

The model was incorporated by Khufu who was Sneferu's son to build the pyramid which is the first and largest pyramid in Giza (Rose, and Iorwerth). This pyramid took 20 years to construct for three months each year. It is believed that one hundred thousand workers built the pyramid. The pyramid was created using 2,300,000 blocks of limestone blocks with each weighing approximately 2.5 tons. His son Khafre also contributed to creating these structures.

His pyramid is built on higher ground so it may seem taller than the great pyramid, but it is not (Rose, and Iorwerth). The Great Sphinx contains the portrait of Khafre and has a symbol of the sun god. Its magnificent appearance does not exist anymore although it was renovated. It was also partly destroyed in 1798 by Napoleon soldiers who were practicing on targeting an enemy.

The pyramids reflect the engineering prowess of the Egyptian people from ancient time. Engineering an empire is a documentary that looks at the architecture and labor that was put in the pyramids (Editors). It reflects the engineering arts that were used in the building of tombs in Egypt. Through this, various style such as Etruscan sculpture that was used in constructions of building in Egypt is highlighted in the documentary. This can impact comparison between architectural work in Egypt and Rome.

The Etruscan sculpture was different from Greek sculpture in that, in Etruscan, the sculpture had a human body which is unusual in its result compared to Greek sculpture. It has a connection to the Etruscan urbanism which makes it influence the roman urbanization. It affects the construction of different buildings in other countries (Rose). For instance, the Roman aqueducts had a siphon that allowed water to travel through it. It was made of clay reinforced with stone blocks and a force of gravity to drive water. This is important as some Roman aqueducts are still in use till today: such include, the Trevi-fountain which is still fed by water from the aqueduct. As a result, many cities have grown as a result of the supply of water from the aqueduct.

Trajan forum's construction requires excavator, and it consisted of the portico lined piazza. The basilica design was used to build various temples in Egypt which are borrowed even in the designs of the different building in the country. Most of the countries that borrowed basilica design are from European nations which have used it in the design of various churches and other structures.

In Egypt, engineering the empire is a documentary that shows how Egypt building design borrowed much from the Etruscan sculpture (Editors). This design is used till today in the design of various buildings and churches in most parts of the world. As a result, the multiple designs depicted in the documentary have help in the growth of multiple sites.

The pyramids were built in different stages; hence each stage required different expertise and techniques in building the pyramid. Geometry was used in the development of the pyramid, and there were people whose main work was to ensure that the design of the pyramid was perfectly followed throughout the development of the pyramid (Rose). The pyramids were built at different times; hence different skills were used in the construction. That the reason why the pyramids have a difference in design and shape. The development of each pyramid was informed by the architectural skills and designs of the community that we're building the pyramid, and different kingdoms had the different architectural design of the kingdom.

Scientists face challenges explaining how the ancient people were able to build the pyramids without using modern technologies that could help in the building of the pyramids (Editors). The stones used in building the pyramids are more than that the company can be able to hold and carry the stones to the point of construction. The construction scientist fails to understand how the constructors of the pyramids were able to build the pyramids perfectly overcoming all the challenges that come up.

Theorists believe that the constructors of the pyramids used to roll the blocks used in building the pyramids from one location to the other. The blocks are huge and heavy for one to carry the blocks from one place to the other (Editors). The theories argue that there were tools that allowed for the blocks to be rolled to the destinations where the pyramids were being built. A lot of building techniques and technologies were being used in the development of the technologies. The blocks used in building the pyramids were carved from the quarries; hence the challenge is how the people were able to cut the stones. The challenging area is whether the people at the time had the technologies of curving the stone blocks in one standard form.

The challenge comes in determining the number of people who were involved in the construction of the pyramids in providing the labor (Editors). It's believed that slaves were used in building the pyramids by providing the labor of transporting the blocks from the quarries and carving them in the quarries. The Egyptian people civilized thousands of years ago; hence they wanted to create a landmark that could be remembered for many centuries.

The other challenge encountered in the building the pyramid include raising the building blocks and pilling them up to form the pyramids. The builders faced challenges in raising the blocks, and it's believed that the builders used lopes to pull the blocks to other upper levels when building the pyramids (Editors). Other people believe that pulleys were used to lift the building blocks. The pulleys facilitated the raising of the blocks and finally building the pyramids. Also, geometry was used in determining the position in which the blocks could be placed in the pyramid. Geometry was also used in carving the stones from the quarries.

Works Cited

Rose, John Cruikshank, and Iorwerth Eiddon Stephen Edwards. Pyramids of Egypt. In the Hands of a Child, 2016.

Editors, History.com. "Egyptian Pyramids." HISTORY, 2018, https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/the-egyptian-pyramids.