Egyptian architecture in the era of the IV dynasty of the Old Kingdom. Necropolis of Giza

Giza is a small plateau adjacent to the city of the same name, which, in turn, is part of the modern metropolis of Cairo. It is on this plateau that the great pyramids are located - the only surviving wonder of the world!
Giza is the necropolis of the Old Kingdom, when the capital of Egypt was nearby Memphis (yesterday I was just talking about Saqqara, which is located right next to Memphis, of which almost nothing remains). Of course, this monument of ancient culture is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. In total, there are 10 pyramids on the plateau and a huge number of tombs of the nobility, writes cheger
The largest pyramid here, and in the whole world, is the Pyramid of Cheops. Its height during construction was 147 meters, but after several earthquakes, the upper stones fell and now its height is 138 meters, and the base of the square is 230 meters.

The plateau offers a view of Giza and all of Cairo, but we got there early in the morning and there was a rather dense fog. There were almost no tourists, and coupled with the fog, this place made a much greater impression on me than the last time (I was already here in 2008)

From the west and east of the pyramid there are 2 cemeteries - respectively Western and Eastern. Since we spent almost the whole day at the pyramids, we climbed everything there. We started from the Eastern Cemetery and gradually walked around the perimeter of the pyramid. This cemetery contains the tombs of the nobility, as well as some other burials.

At the foot of the great pyramid there are also several small pyramids - apparently these are the pyramids of queens

The whole cemetery is dotted with the deepest mines

Basically, only such heaps of stones remained from the cemetery

Pyramid Research Center

Near the pyramids there are a huge number of camels who get to the point of insanity! If they offer you to ride a camel for free, keep in mind that nothing happens for free here: he will give you a ride for free, but he will ask for money to get off this high horse.

The original entrance to the pyramid is located on the north face at the level of the 13th row, but it is not used now.

To visit the interior of the pyramid, another entrance is used, made at the end of the 9th century by Caliph Maamun to get to the treasures of the pyramid, it is located on the 6th level. After about 40 meters, the horizontal passage of Maamun joins the original sloping passage.

Not far from the pyramids, workers are restoring the complex in the same ancient way.

Well, not without ancient Egyptian cars

Gradually we came to the Western Cemetery, which has more interesting tombs, but in general it is also quite badly destroyed.

It was in such coffins that the mummies of the nobility of some pharaohs were placed

I really wanted to climb there, but my companion did not allow me to do this.

There are a large number of well-preserved tombs of the nobility

Well, everything is screwed up here in a portable and

In the direct sense...

View of the Pyramid of Cheops in the Western Cemetery

Then we went to the second largest pyramid - Khafre - the son of Cheops. It still seems to me that this pyramid is higher, but the facts say that its height is 136 meters, and it is located in a higher place, which creates the illusion that Khafre offended his dad and built a higher pyramid

There are 2 burial rooms in this pyramid, apparently the pharaoh also made changes to the original layout of his burial

This pyramid has a lining at the very top, and it is also famous for being depicted on dollars.

The last of the great pyramids is the Pyramid of Menkaure. Near it there are also three more small pyramids - these are the pyramids of queens

The height of the pyramid is only 66 meters, the side of the base is 108

From the pyramid opens a view of the greatest desert - the Sahara

Limestone is not the most durable material ...

Initially, the lower part of the pyramid was lined with red granite, which you can now see the base. The Egyptians intend to restore this lining

The royal necropolis of the 4th dynasty, located on the west bank of the Nile, southwest of modern Cairo, in the White Wall nome.
The plateau, on which the Giza necropolis is located, stretches 1500 m from east to west and 1200 m from north to south. The eastern and northern sides of the plateau are sheer. Giza is one of the rare exceptions among the archaeological ensembles of Egypt, since from a historical point of view it has a homogeneous character: the local buildings, most of which have survived to this day, were erected by the rulers of the 4th dynasty. From more ancient times, fragments of burials have been preserved, two of which are dated to the period of the I and II dynasties: the ruins of one of the mastabas belong to the wife of Waji; in another, seals were found on vases with the name of King Ninecher. After the 4th dynasty, tombs were built here nobility of the V and VI dynasties, as well as burials of a later time, which include the burials of the Persian era and the mastaba of one of the commanders of the XXX dynasty. These constructions do not affect the homogeneous character of the 4th dynasty necropolis. A small sanctuary of the "keeper of the pyramid" Isis, built by order of Psusennes I (XXI dynasty) to the east of Great Pyramid, is too modest an architectonic element to influence the character of the ensemble consisting of the pyramids of Cheops, Khafre and Mykerin, the statue of the Sphinx and the temples combined with the pyramids and vast fields of noble mastabas located in the east and west of the plateau.
Pliny in book XXXVI natural history” lists 12 ancient authors who mentioned the pyramids of Giza. The most significant among them are Herodotus (II, 129), the author of the description of the necropolis and the history of the construction of the Great Pyramid, Diodorus Siculus (I, 63) and Strabo (XVII).
From the descriptions of ancient authors, it follows that in their time the pyramids still remained intact and retained their lining, and the gallery leading inside the pyramid of Cheops was open. Arab authors often mention pyramids with fantastic stories about their construction. However, they prove that the looting of the pyramids began long before the arrival of the Arabs in Egypt, who were very actively involved in this process. Caliph Mamun reached the two upper chambers of the Cheops pyramid in search of treasures hidden there. Abd el-Latif writes that during the time of Saladin (1169-1193) many satellite pyramids were destroyed, which served as a source of building material. Saladin's son El Malek El Aziz tried to destroy the third pyramid to find the treasure. To do this, he ordered a giant well to be drilled in it, the remains of which are still visible on the western facade. Establishing the date of the destruction of the lining of the three pyramids is not easy. Archaeological sources say that already in the time of the Ayyubids, the pyramids served as quarries, in which materials were mined for the construction of Cairo. This is contradicted by the testimony of Wilhelm von Boldinsel, who in 1336 did not notice the absence of facing of the pyramids.
In the XVIII century. the Giza necropolis was visited by many travelers, whose descriptions became a source of valuable information about the appearance of the pyramids. The memoirs of scientists who accompanied Napoleon's Egyptian expedition were also useful. Denon, Kutel and Jomar, and in 1801, after the surrender of the French army, Hamilton, studied the structures of the necropolis and made sketches.
The first excavations on this territory were undertaken in 1815. Since that time, the study of the great royal necropolis can be divided into three periods. The first includes work on clearing the statue of the Sphinx, the pyramids and their entrances. At the end of this period, excavations of mastabas of noble persons and mortuary temples at the pyramids begin. First of all, it is necessary to name the works of T. B. Caviglia in 1815–1818, Belzoni in 1818, Wise and Perring in 1837–1838, the Lepsius expedition in 1842–1843. and excavations of Marietta from 1850 to 1880. It should be remembered that by the time work began on the territory of Giza, the monuments had already been documented.
The second period includes work on the measurement of monuments and research, the purpose of which was the scientific synthesis of theories describing the process of building these magnificent structures. In 1864–1865 Piazzi Smith published his three-volume work (Life and Work at the Great Pyramid), which gave rise to a whole series of mystical-esoteric concepts that explain the mysteries of these tombs. Sir Flinders Petrie in 1880–1882 made accurate measurements and studied the design of the pyramids. His observations still underlie all scientific interpretations (W. M. F. Petrie. The pyramids and temples of Gizeh. London, 1883).
Since the beginning of the painstaking research of the necropolis, many scholars have published the results of their detailed searches and concepts regarding the specific nature of the construction of the pyramids. First of all, it is necessary to quote L. Borchardt, who from 1894 to 1932. published many works on this subject (L. Borchardt. Einiges zur dritten Bauperiode der grossen Pyramide bei Gise, 1932). Numerous scientific studies have been published on the question of the construction of the pyramids. I consider it necessary to mention the work of Engelbach and Clark (Ancient Egyptian masonry), Lauer's research (J.-Ph. Lauer. Le probleme des pyramides d "Egypte, Cairo, 1948; Russian translation - J. F. Lauer. Mysteries of the Egyptian pyramids. M., 1966), Grinsell (L. S. Grinsell, Egyptian Pyramids. Gloucester, 1947), Edwards (I. E. S. Edwards. The Pyramids of Egypt. London, 1947) and Fakhry (A. Fakhry. The Pyramids. Chicago, 1961).
The third period of work on the territory of the Giza necropolis began in 1902, when the Egyptian Antiquities Service entrusted the work in the necropolis to three expeditions: the American, led by Reisner, the German, led by G. Steindorf, and then L. Borchardt and G. Juncker; and Italian, led by Schiaparelli. The latter two years later transferred its concession to the American expedition.
The concession was divided among the three parties involved in the excavation into sectors. Part of the sector, which was at the disposal of the American side, in 1906-1907. was given to Flinders Petrie. After the First World War, part of the German concession, partly developed by the Vienna Academy of Sciences since 1911, went to Cairo University, which entrusted the work to Selim Hassan. In 1949, part of the American concession was divided between the University of Alexandria and an expedition led by Abd el Moneim Abu Bakr.
It is also necessary to mention the work on clearing the statue of the Sphinx, begun by Caviglia and continued with the active participation of Marietta and Maspero until 1888. In 1935, at the request of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, E. Barez began research on the Sphinx, subsequently continued by Selim Hassan in 1936-1937 . The research results of these expeditions were published in various series according to the sectors in which the work was carried out (G. Reisner, Mycerinus, 1931; id., A history of the Giza necropolis, 1942; id., The development of the Egyptian tomb down to the accession of Cheops, 1936; H. Junker, Giza I-XII. Wien, 1929-1955; V. Holscher, Das Grabdenkmal des Konigs Chefren, 1912; Selim Hassan, Excavations at Giza I-X, 1932-1960; A. Bakr and Giza, 1953).
The first monumental structure of Giza was the pyramid erected by Cheops. It was located on a site best viewed from the plateau, near the steep eastern slope. The name of the pyramid means "Horizon of Cheops". According to the above story of Herodotus, 100 thousand workers built it for 30 years, changing every 3 months. Precise information about this and two other pyramids is contained in the works mentioned above, which describe the history of their creation. Here it is enough to confine ourselves to the most necessary information. The Great Pyramid, like the other pyramids of Giza, is precisely oriented to the cardinal points. The deviation of 3" 6"" is a consequence of the change in the position of the globe due to the phenomenon of precession.
In terms of the pyramid is a square with a side of 230 m, i.e. 440 cubits. Its height was 146 m (280 cubits), but at the moment it does not exceed 137 m. A small platform is now located on the site of the destroyed top. The angle of inclination of the faces is 51° 50".
The core of the pyramid consists of blocks of local limestone, carefully fitted to each other and laid on a rocky base. It has been estimated that approximately 2,300,000 blocks are needed to build the central part of the pyramid. L. Greensell (Egyptian Pyramids, p. 103) claims that on some core stones, which can be seen in layers 5 and 6 from the southern, western and eastern sides, traces of inscriptions in red and black ink have been preserved, in which the name of Cheops is repeated twice and the name of the construction team. In addition, there are features and triangles that served as designations for quarries. These inscriptions have not been published, but the signs of the quarries have been unmistakably identified. In the last unloading chamber, located above the room intended for the royal sarcophagus, which Perring and Wiese managed to reach in 1837, inscriptions were also found containing the name of Cheops and the date indicating the 17th year of his reign. These inscriptions, placed on hastily processed blocks (these rooms were considered inaccessible in ancient times), allow us to judge at what stage the construction work was at that moment. The cladding was made of limestone quarried in Tours. Now it is completely torn off, with the exception of several fragments in the lower part of the northern and, partially, southern facades of the structure. The cladding blocks, which weighed about 15 tons, were so tightly fitted to each other that the joints between them were almost invisible.
According to popular belief, this is the most thorough connection of blocks known in the world to this day.
The entrance to the pyramid was at the level of the third row of masonry on the north side. It was located above the gallery, pierced in the 9th century. by order of Mamun in the core of the pyramid. The location of the halls and internal galleries makes it possible to judge the three main stages in the construction of the pyramid, each of which was associated with changes in the original plan.
I. The first stage is represented as follows: from the entrance at an angle of 26 ° 31 "23" "a gallery about 77 m long descended, which then became horizontal and led to a rectangular room from which a new 18-meter gallery began. Perhaps it was provided the second chamber, never built, similar to that in the northern pyramid of Dahshur.The chamber, carved into the rock directly on the axis of the pyramid, was not finished and had no interior decoration.The architects of the pyramids, who began work from the beginning of the reign of Cheops, wanted as soon as possible to create a place of eternal rest for the pharaoh.In the course of construction, the initial project changed: it was decided to place the burial chamber on the axis of the pyramid, placing it in the core of the structure.
II. During the second stage of work, at a distance of about 19 m from the entrance, one of the gallery ceiling slabs was placed, which served as the beginning of a corridor ascending 39 m, rising upward at an angle of 26 ° 2 "30". At a height of 36 m it became horizontal and ended in a small room about 120 m above the base of the building. The Arabs mistakenly called this chamber "the tomb of the queen. In fact, this room was intended for the king; it was partially completed and covered with rafters. Its interior lining consisted of slabs that fit neatly to each other. In addition , it provided a niche for the statue of the king. As can be seen in the section, two ventilation shafts should have led to this room. This project was not implemented. In the course of further work, apparently, it became necessary to change the construction plan, shifting the burial room of the pharaoh to the core of the pyramid is even higher.
III. From the place where the gallery leading to the second room straightened out, it was extended another 46 m, turning it into a corridor 8.5 m high. Its walls and ceiling were covered with large slabs of fine limestone mined in the quarries of Mokattam. Thus, one of the most impressive structures in all of Egyptian architecture was created.
The pyramid of Cheops, like all other pyramids, was only one of the elements of the pharaoh's funeral ensemble, which, in addition to it, consisted of two temples, upper and lower, connected by a paved road. The upper temple of the pyramid of Cheops began to be studied long before the location of the lower one, localized only in 1990–1991, was established. It was discovered during the construction of a purification plant in Nazlet el-Samman. The remains of basalt slabs, which laid out its floor, were 4.5 m below the modern soil level. The remains of a paved road over 800 m long were found. This road was visible even in the era of Lepsius; Herodotus admired its design and decoration. Below was a tunnel 1.40 m wide, connecting the northern and southern parts of the civil necropolis, located near the pyramid of Cheops. The temple, built on the axis of the pyramid, was surrounded by a wall that also encircled the pyramid and was located at a distance of 10.50 m from its base. This limestone wall, 2.60 m wide, formed on the east side of the temple something like a rectangular ledge (52.40 m from north to south and approximately 40 m from west to east), delimiting the territory of the temple. On the plan of the temple, one can notice a significant disproportion between the large courtyard with porticos and rectangular granite pillars and the sanctuary itself, formed by three halls, two of which were located in the depths. The space between them was occupied by one row of eight columns and another of four. The plan of the central sanctuary is unclear, as this part of the building is completely destroyed. It could contain steles of false doors or niches. The remains of this temple suggest that the building was of artistic value. The courtyard, paved with black basalt, contrasted with the white limestone temple walls and red granite columns.
On both sides of the temple there were two trenches intended for baroques associated with the solar cult. However, their funerary character seems doubtful, since other barges have been discovered near the pyramid. The third trench for the barge was in front of the temple, to the north of the road. In 1954, two trenches were found on the south side of the pyramid, covered with giant slabs. They carefully stacked hundreds of parts from two large, completely dismantled wooden boats. The ditch on the east side is now open for viewing, and the magnificent 43.4 m long barge that was located there is exhibited in the museum created above the place of its discovery. There is a question about the opening of the second trench, in which, according to the data of the camera-probe of American researchers obtained in 1987, there is a second barge.
To the east of the pyramid and south of the ramp are the ruins of three smaller pyramids known as the "Pyramids of the Queens". Like the Great Pyramid, they were built from limestone blocks and had a facing that had completely disappeared. They had internal burial chambers carved into the rock. At the eastern facade, they also had a mortuary temple, similar to the upper temple of the pyramid of Cheops. Minimal differences in plan are associated with different stages of the construction of the temple. Perhaps these pyramids were later used for the burial of queens. Herodotus (II, 124) said that one of the pharaoh's daughters was buried in the middle pyramid. Located near the southern pyramid, the mortuary temple, which in the era of the XXI dynasty was converted into the chapel of Isis, contained an inscription with the name of Cheops' wife, Henutsen. This inscription is a copy of an older text. On this basis, the southern pyramid is considered the burial place of this queen. The third, northern pyramid was apparently built later than the others: this is evidenced by traces of the initial stage of work on laying an underground corridor in the east. Near its northern entrance was a trench for a solar barge.
It is impossible to establish exactly how the "pyramids of queens" were actually used, especially after an American expedition discovered a well near the northeast corner of the northern pyramid, leading to the chamber of Cheops' mother, Queen Hetepheres, where the burial situation was preserved. Researchers admit that she was originally buried in Dahshur in small pyramid next to the tomb of her husband, Pharaoh Snefru. But her son Cheops, alarmed by the threat of looting of the mother pyramid, ordered to transfer her remains and all the furnishings to a burial place, hidden from prying eyes, not far from her own pyramid. Some scholars believe that it was the new burial of Hetepheres that caused the northern pyramid to shift to the west. This is not very convincing, given the apparent arrangement of three satellite pyramids in one row.
Her mummy was not found in the tomb of Hetepheres, but items of funerary furnishings were found, including a chair of magnificent work, which became one of the pearls in the collection of the Cairo Museum.
When the place was chosen and the construction of the Great Pyramid began, it was undoubtedly supposed to be built next to it. City of dead, in which members of the pharaoh's family and his inner circle would be buried. The nature of the selected site allowed us to group the bulk of the mastabas into two main ensembles in the east and west. The steep cliff of the plateau in the north limited the expansion of the necropolis in this direction. The quarries from which the stone was taken left only a thin strip for development along the pyramid on the south side. However, in this group of buildings there are also buildings of subsequent dynasties.
The most majestic view, due to the accumulation of the largest mastabas, opens on the eastern side of the Cheops necropolis. It was here that members of the royal family and courtiers were buried. The western necropolis, carefully studied by the German, Austrian and, finally, American expeditions, is a network of symmetrical streets, each of which leads to a tomb. During the 5th and 6th dynasties, its clear plan was disrupted by burials squeezed into the remaining free space. It should be added that the walls of some mastabas are covered with beautiful reliefs, which are among the best works of art of the IV dynasty.
Among the sculptures found in this necropolis are a limestone statue of a seated Prince Hemiun (now in the Hildesheim Museum), a painted bust of Prince Ankhhaf (now in Boston) and numerous limestone heads, which are portrait images of the deceased. They are called "reserve": according to the ideas of the ancient Egyptians, they were supposed to replace the real head in case of transformation of facial features during mummification, which in those days was performed in a rather primitive way.
Among the monuments of the IV dynasty, sculptures made of painted limestone depicting ordinary workers were also found. However, most of these finds date back to the 5th dynasty.
When, after the death of his father and the 8-year reign of his brother Djedefre, who was buried in Abu Roash, Khafre came to power, it was not difficult for him to secure a place for his future burial. The construction site was the best suited for this purpose, where the materials for the construction of the Great Pyramid were collected and processed. Creators new pyramid, who remembered the failure that took place during the construction of the pyramid of Cheops, did not dare to place the burial room in its core. They were satisfied with carving a room in the rock, only the upper part of which, together with the vault, was built into the core of the pyramid. The dimensions of the entire structure were smaller than the dimensions of the Cheops pyramid: the side of the base was 215.25 m, the height was 143.5 m; the angle of inclination of the faces, according to some calculations, was 53° 10", according to others - 52° 20". In both cases, we are talking about a pyramid in which the angle of inclination of the faces is greater than in the pyramid of Cheops.
Khafre's pyramid is built from materials similar to those used to build the pyramid of Cheops, but the placement of the core blocks is less careful here. Facing made of limestone slabs brought from the Tura quarries has been preserved on its top to this day. The top itself was probably made from a single block of granite. The construction of this pyramid lasted less than the construction of the Great Pyramid. This is explained not only by the partial preparedness of the building site, but also by the fact that its final decoration was not carried out with the same care as the interior decoration of the Cheops pyramid. Here, apparently, the location of the burial chamber also changed, since two galleries lead deep into the pyramid; one - with north side to the base, the other begins a few meters higher in the wall of the structure. It seems that initially the room intended for the burial of the king was supposed to be located in the rock, at a distance of only 50 m from the lower entrance, where a space was specially prepared for him. But then, when it was decided to place it directly on the axis of the pyramid, the lower chamber was laid with a stone. The gallery leading to it was extended to the horizontal part of the corridor separating the upper chamber from top entry. The lower gallery could later be used by builders who were engaged in the final finishing of the interior of the burial chamber. The walls of the upper gallery were lined with granite slabs, and the chamber itself was lined with limestone. A monolithic granite sarcophagus of the king with a lid broken into two parts was built into the lining of the western wall of the room. When in 1818 Belzoni penetrated deep into the pyramid, he found the sarcophagus empty, a broken lid lay to the side. Thus, there is no doubt that the pyramid of Khafre really served as the place of his burial. Its interior decoration was looted, despite the presence of two portcullises, one of which was in the upper gallery, and the other in the lower one. They were intended to protect the entrance to the burial chamber.
Like the pyramid of Cheops, the structure of Khafre was surrounded by a wall located approximately 13.5 m from its base. To the south of it, the remains of a satellite pyramid are visible, the height of which is approximately 1/10 of the height of the "real" pyramid. It is assumed that it served as the tomb of Khafre's wife, since a fragment of a cork of a vessel with a brand was found here, on which, next to the name of the pharaoh, was the name of the son of the ruler, unknown to us from other sources.
The upper mortuary temple, located to the east of the axis of the pyramid, was an elongated rectangle 112 by 50 m in plan. Its rear wall adjoined the wall surrounding the pyramid. This building is a mature type of mortuary temple of the Old Kingdom era, which consisted of two main parts: one was open to believers, the other, less accessible, was intended for religious ceremonies.
The entrance to the temple leads to a ramp in its southeast corner. There are small halls, four of which, located to the right of the entrance, resemble the teeth of a comb in plan. There is also a ramp leading to the roof of the temple. Further along the axis is the first hall, the pillars of which are similar to the supports of the western part of the temple courtyard of Cheops. From here, through a narrow passage, one can enter the second hall with 10 columns, and then into a wide courtyard, decorated with osirical statues of the pharaoh and statues depicting him sitting on a throne. To the west were five elongated chapels, followed by five smaller chapels, accessible through a narrow corridor leading from the southern part of the courtyard.
The entire structure, which now lies in ruins, was built from blocks of local limestone, lined with granite, while columns were carved from granite. The floor was paved with alabaster slabs. On both sides of the temple, five trenches were found carved into the rock for solar barges. Their inner surface was decorated with reliefs depicting the construction of ships. It is assumed that there was a sixth trench of the same purpose.
The paved road that connected the two temples was over 494 meters long and 4.5 meters wide. The difference between the levels of the temples was more than 45 m. The road was partially carved into the rock, partly finished with limestone from below, and granite from the outside. Initially, it, apparently, was covered, holes were left in the ceiling for its illumination. It is possible that inside it was decorated with reliefs.
One of the most beautiful and best preserved monumental buildings of the Old Kingdom era is the lower temple of Khafre. In plan, it is a square with a side of 45 m, built of granite blocks. In some places, walls made of irregularly shaped limestone blocks are lined with granite, in other places - natural rock ledges. The outer walls reached a height of 12.5-13 m and were slightly inclined in such a way that the temple gave the impression of a monumental mastaba, especially from the facade. In front of it was a pier where boats moored. Two entrances to the temple, according to Hoelscher, were guarded by four granite sphinxes. In the center of it was a naos, in which the statue of the pharaoh was kept. Both entrances led to narrow corridors, from which no less narrow side passages led to a long vestibule. The door, located on the axis of the temple, led to the vestibule of the hypostyle hall, which had the shape of the letter "T" and was composed of 16 monolithic granite pillars. This hall housed 23 statues of a seated pharaoh, made of alabaster, slate and diorite. To the left of the hypostyle hall there were two groups of three modest rooms resembling comb teeth in plan. To the right was a corridor leading to a paved road; from it a ladder led up to the roof of the temple. It should be noted that during the construction of this structure, the ancient Egyptian architects took into account not only the effect of the brilliance of polished granite surfaces, but also made the most of the play of light and shadow: beams of light falling from holes made at the top illuminated the royal statues and reflected from the white alabaster floor.
At a short distance from the temple, to the right of the pavement, in the old quarries, there was a rock 57 m long and 20 m high, resembling the silhouette of a lying lion. The builders of the Khafre burial ensemble gave it the shape of a sphinx. The entire surface of the block was covered with plaster, with the help of which the missing parts of the figure were molded. The sculptors gave the face of the sphinx the features of the deceased pharaoh. This is how the symbolic guardian of the temples arose, the images of which became widespread during the New Kingdom, when the alleys leading to the temples began to be decorated with sphinxes.
A temple was erected in front of the Sphinx, the walls of which were made of huge limestone blocks and, possibly, lined with granite. He probably had central courtyard, characteristic of the temples of the IV dynasty, and side halls, separated by partitions. It is possible that both temples in the time of Khafre formed a single architectural ensemble, crowned with a huge figure of the Sphinx, located exactly along the east-west axis. The mysterious figure of the statue, turned to the east, has given rise to various fantastic interpretations, and after many centuries it still excites restless minds. The Sphinx has become synonymous with mystery and mystery. However, among the innumerable tasks of archeology is the task of reducing beautiful theories to a system that meets the requirements of strict scientific certainty. Therefore, the Sphinx shared the fate of the “mystery of the Great Pyramid”: it became a specific archaeological monument, reflecting a certain stage Egyptian civilization the time of Khafre.
Simultaneously with the ensemble of the Khafre pyramid, a complex of noble tombs grew in the west, which were traditional mastabas.
The third monumental ensemble of Giza is the Menkaure ensemble, which includes the smaller of the three pyramids. In plan, it is also a square with a side of 108.40 m. Its height was originally 66.50 m, the angle of inclination of the faces was 51 °. It is curious that it was during the construction of the smallest of the pyramids that the largest blocks were used. The lower layers of the cladding were granite, but most of the slabs were not polished. The upper layers were made of white Tura limestone. Initially, this pyramid was conceived of a smaller size: the side of its base was supposed to be half the current one. A gallery has already been created leading from the base of the pyramid to the burial chamber, carved into the rock on the axis of the pyramid. But the original project was abandoned, the building took on a larger scale, and new gallery began on the northern facade above the base of the pyramid. Through the passage chamber, decorated in the style of the palace facade, and the spaces reserved for the portcullises, it led to the room envisaged in the first project. However, the plan was changed once again. Above the already existing chamber, a large underground hall was built, connected to it with the help of a ramp lined with granite, like the walls of the lower chamber. Its ceiling, which had the shape of an inverted "V", was then converted into a vault. When Perring and Wise reached this chamber in 1837, they discovered a royal basalt sarcophagus, the outer walls of which were decorated with images of the palace facade. Alas! The sarcophagus sank at sea while being transported to England; only his drawing survived.
The device of the chamber, the decoration of the sarcophagus and, especially, a fragment of a wooden coffin with the inscription of Pharaoh Menkaure (Mykerin), found by Perring and Wise, give reason to believe that the entire ensemble was remade in the Sais era. However, this seems impossible, and rather it should be assumed that all the interior decoration of the pyramid was done during the 4th dynasty. A fragment of a wooden sarcophagus, no doubt belonging to the Sais era, could have been brought there from the outside. Moreover, the Saisi rulers undertook work to preserve the damaged tombs of previous eras on the territory of the Giza necropolis.
To the south of the pyramid, three small satellite pyramids rise, stretched in one line from east to west and surrounded by a common wall. The eastern pyramid has partially preserved granite facing; the other two now look like stepped structures. The size of their bases is 1/3 of the base of the Mycerinus pyramid. Granite sarcophagi have been preserved in the burial chambers of the central and eastern pyramids. It can be assumed that these were the tombs of the royal consorts. At the southern facade of each of the small pyramids was a mortuary temple, built of mud brick over masonry and decorated with wooden columns. The temple of the eastern pyramid is better preserved than the others: two parts are easily distinguished in its plan - open and ceremonial.
There is no doubt that Mikerin did not live to see the completion of the construction of his funerary ensemble. He wanted to build both the upper and lower temples of stone. This is easy to establish when looking at the unfinished lower temple and the ceremonial part of the upper temple, built of limestone. The sanctuary itself, which had the shape of the letter "L", was finished with granite slabs. After the pharaoh's death, his successor, Shepseskaf, completed the construction using lower quality materials. The core of the walls, built of limestone blocks, was lined with bricks covered with white plaster. The lower temple was built according to the old plan of Menkaure, but it was located much to the east. It had a vestibule with 4 columns and 4 halls on each side. Further, the central courtyard opened, from where through the passages one could get into the sanctuary, in front of which there was a colonnade. On the sides of it were pantries. In one of these rooms, during the excavations, four sculptural groups were discovered, called the triads of Menkaure. Three of them are now in Cairo, one - in Boston. Fragments of four smaller alabaster statues depicting the pharaoh on the throne, and one larger statue, now exhibited in the Boston Museum, were also found. This is the most interesting monuments among 52 sculptural fragments found during excavations on the territory of the funerary ensemble of the Mycerin pyramid by an American expedition.
A corridor adjacent to the south side of the part of the temple accessible to visitors led to a paved road that connected the upper temple with the lower one. The narrow pavement was about 250 m long; both of its walls were covered with lime-bleached brick. A roof made of wooden beams rose above its expanding part near the upper temple. There is nothing surprising in the fact that this structure could not exist for a long time. Already during the 6th dynasty, Merenra carried out the first works to strengthen it here, and Pepi II, the last pharaoh of the 6th dynasty, ordered the upper temple to be rebuilt.
All that has been said about the burial ensemble of Mikerin allows us to assume that it does not contain a complex of tombs of the nobility. Some of them were found in a necropolis southeast of the Khafre pyramid.
Finishing the review of the royal necropolises of Giza of the 4th dynasty, whose monumental character is emphasized by three pyramids, the figure of the Sphinx, mortuary temples, paved roads and majestic cities of the dead that grew around the first two pyramids, it is necessary to mention the ruins, which once, perhaps, represented a group of dwellings pyramid builders. Petrie tried to recognize them in the rooms located in a row to the west of the Khafre pyramid. He calculated that 3,000 to 4,000 people could live in them. It is also possible that these ruins are only the remains of warehouses that existed at construction sites. In 1990–1991 The Egyptian Antiquities Service discovered in the same sector, southwest of the Sphinx, other houses intended for the builders of the pyramids, as well as dozens of their graves, the largest of which belonged to overseers and managers.
To the south of the paved road at the Khafre complex, a group of buildings made of mud bricks was discovered, in which the priests of the 4th dynasty cult of the navel lived. In the 30s, Selim Hassan found nearby the burial ensemble of Queen Khentkaus, the wife of Pharaoh Shepseskaf, belonging to the 4th dynasty, whose tomb, known as the mastaba faraun, is located in Saqqara and has the shape of a giant sarcophagus (see Saqqara). His wife's tomb at Giza was a rectangular structure approximately 27.50 by 21 m. Her mortuary chapel was partially carved on the east side in the rock on which the structure itself was located. The chapel had three halls; a well led from the central hall - the sanctuary - to the underground rooms. From the time of the V and VI dynasties, numerous mastabas of the nobility have been preserved in the Giza necropolis.
During the era of the Middle Kingdom, there were no changes to the royal burial complex, but it can be assumed that most of the city of the dead, like the statue of the Sphinx, was buried in the sand.
The pharaohs of the New Kingdom, hunting in these parts, discovered the head of the Sphinx protruding from the sand and dedicated memorial steles to it, as to the deity Harmakhis (Horizon Horus).
In 1816, Captain Caviglia discovered a large granite stele of Thutmose IV, set between the paws of the Sphinx. The king mentioned in it the clearing of this monument. In the 1930s, Selim Hassan found on the north side of the Sphinx temple the remains of a mud-brick temple adjoining the Sphinx temple. The discovered temple may have been built under Amenhotep II, as evidenced by the inscriptions on its limestone portal. In addition to the stele of Amenhotep II, numerous dedicatory sculptures from a later era were found in this temple, and among other things, the stele of Pharaoh Seti I, father of Ramesses II. So, during the New Kingdom, the Sphinx, revered as Harmachis, became a popular place of pilgrimage. This is evidenced by small dedicatory steles found in the temple of Amenhotep II and in neighboring tombs.
Farther to the southeast, the son of Ramesses II, Hemuas, ordered the construction of another mud-brick temple, which may also have been dedicated to Harmachis.
During the 21st Dynasty, the upper chapel in the tomb of Queen Henutsen was rebuilt. It was dedicated to the keeper of the pyramids, Isis. Numerous tombs located to the east of the pyramid of Cheops belong to the Sais era. One of them, found in 1837, is called "Campbell's tomb" in honor of the British consul, who was then in Egypt.
Rare tombs dating back to the time of the Persian conquest of Egypt or the 30th Dynasty prove that even in this late era, some dignitaries still wanted to be buried in the ancient royal necropolis and sometimes usurped the ancient tombs. The upper temple of Menkaure was turned into a cemetery in the Roman era.
During the Ptolemaic and Roman eras, the Sphinx statue survived restoration work, as a result of which its paws, destroyed by erosion, were replaced with limestone blocks, spoiling the overall aesthetic impression. The same fate befell the sides and tail of the statue. Nevertheless, the Sphinx still retained considerable attraction for ancient travelers. To facilitate access to the statue, special stairs were built.
The huge royal necropolis of Giza has resisted sand drifts, erosion and destructive human activity for thousands of years. Until now, it remains one of the most monumental archaeological complexes in Egypt and testifies not only to the power of the pharaohs of the era of the Old Kingdom, but also to the ingenuity of architects, designers and artists of that time, as well as the extraordinary skill of stonemasons and builders.

25 km south of Cairo millennia ago was the capital of the ancient Egyptian state - Memphis. Memphis was founded at the end of the 4th millennium BC. e. and became the first capital of a united Egypt. According to legend, the city, located on the border of Upper and Lower Egypt, was founded by King Meni, the unifier of Egypt.

The Rise and Fall of Memphis

The favorable location in the Nile Delta contributed to the rapid growth of the city. Memphis artists created beautiful monuments that had a huge impact on the formation of Egyptian art. In addition, the city was a center of trade, river port, there were shipyards, artisans were engaged in chasing gold, metal, the production of weapons and ceramics.

After the fall of the Old Kingdom, Memphis was never again the permanent residence of kings, but it was always revered as the "true capital". Wherever the Egyptian rulers lived, the concern for the expansion and decoration of Memphis was considered a matter of prestige for them, and foreign conquerors considered Egypt conquered only after spending the night within the walls of Memphis.

The founding of Alexandria put an end to the further development of Memphis. The final decline of the city was caused by the abolition of the cult of the god Ptah. When the Arabs came here, they found only a huge amount of building material on the site of Memphis, which they had enough for many centuries and which they used to build Cairo.

The ruins of the temple of the god Ptah, the colossal statue of Pharaoh Ramses II, carved from pink granite, and the formidable figure of the sphinx, lying on the ground, are all that remains today from Memphis, which was once one of the largest and most significant cities in the world. But that's not all. Because without Memphis there would not be what today is the glory of Egypt - the famous fields of tombs and pyramids, which were the tombs of the Memphis pharaohs and are included in.

Pyramids, great witnesses of the past

The plain on which the Memphis "city of the dead" is located is almost equal in area to ancient city alive. In ancient times, the necropolis of Memphis was built here, where the god with the body of a man and the head of a falcon guarded the rest of the dead; his name was Sokar. Today central part The ancient cemetery within a radius of about 8 km belongs to the nearby village of Saqqara.

In the Saqqara region, in addition to hundreds of tombs, there are 12 royal pyramids of the pharaohs of the end of the Old Kingdom - Userkaf (V dynasty), Teti (VI dynasty), Unas (VI dynasty), etc.

The era of the Old Kingdom begins with the accession to the throne of the first pharaoh of the III dynasty, Djoser, on whose orders the famous step pyramid was built. Even from a distance, its majestic pyramid silhouette is clearly visible against the blue sky. The top of the pyramid sparkles white, as if powdered with snow. As you approach it, you are struck by the mighty gates of the fence, the grandiose walls, the perfect proportions of the entire structure. The pyramid seems to grow out of the sand, although in fact it rests on a solid limestone rock, drilled through many corridors, the total length of which is more than a kilometer.

The Pyramid of Djoser is the first monumental stone building of Ancient Egypt. Due to its impressive age (4700 years) and place in the history of world architecture, it is called the "mother of the Egyptian pyramids."

Djoser's successors - the pharaohs of the III dynasty (2780-2680 BC) - also built step pyramids. Djoser's son and successor, Sekhemkhet, began building the six-tiered pyramid. The remains of the third pyramid, which had only five steps, can still be seen a few kilometers south of the famous necropolis at Giza. The fourth pyramid, built by Huni, the last pharaoh of the 3rd dynasty, rises in Medum, not far from the Fayum oasis.

Pharaoh Snefru, the founder of the IV dynasty (2680–2565 BC) and the father of the famous Cheops (Khufu), built the first “real” pyramid in Dashur, each side of which reached 185.5 m, and a height of about 100 m. It is called "rhomboid" or "broken" pyramid. By order of Sneferu, a second pyramid was also built to the north of it, the base of which was even larger (218.5 × 221.5 m), but the height remained approximately the same. The Northern Pyramid of Snefru is also called " pink pyramid”, in contrast to the southern one - “White”. The characteristic color is given to it by blocks of pinkish limestone from which the pyramid is built. This is the first Egyptian pyramid, which received the "classical" form. Its base is 218.5 × 221.5 m, and its height is 104.4 m. With a wall slope of 43 ° 36 ′, it seems extremely low, and meanwhile the northern pyramid of Sneferu is the third largest pyramid in Egypt.

A real record for height and size was set by the pyramids at Giza. They were built in the heyday of the Old Kingdom and surpassed everything previously achieved by the Egyptians in this area, not only in size, but also in perfection of execution. Not in vain they were considered in the ancient world one of the wonders of the world.

Pyramids of Cheops, Khafre and Menkaure

The Giza pyramids are most conveniently viewed from the south, from the side of the desert. On a rocky plateau, they stretched out in a chain from west to east. The first is the pyramid of Cheops; it is also called the Great Pyramid. In ancient times, its height from top to bottom was 146 m. ​​However, at present, the upper part of the pyramid is destroyed, and its current height is 137 m.

It is estimated that for the construction Great Pyramid 2.3 million stone blocks went. The average weight of each of them is about 2.5 tons, however, heavier plates were also used in the construction of the inner passages of the pyramid. Nine slabs of the main burial chamber together weigh at least 400 tons; respectively, the weight of each of them is approximately 4.5 tons. During the time of Pharaoh Khufu-Khufu, the sides of the pyramid were lined with polished slabs of fine-grained sandstone mined in the quarries of Tora and Massara on the nearby Mukattam hills.

The pyramid of Cheops is especially beautiful in the oblique rays of the early morning or evening setting sun. Then its edges acquire a deep shade of light ocher, in perfect harmony with the surrounding sandy landscape. The pyramid made an even greater impression during the time of Pharaoh Cheops, when its perfectly polished facing stone, reflecting the sun's rays, cast a luminous reflection on the surrounding granite pedestal.

Part of the original lining was preserved only at the top of the second pyramid, which was built by the son of Cheops - Pharaoh Khafre. The Pyramid of Khafre is half a meter lower than the Great Pyramid. Its height is 136.5 m. However, since it stands on a high place, it seems that it is slightly higher than the pyramid of Cheops. In ancient times, the Khafre pyramid was a single complex with a temple, the ruins of which can be seen near the Great Sphinx. A procession road led from the temple to the pyramid, along which the priests carried the mummified body of the pharaoh on their last journey. Today, little remains of the temple, but the preserved parts of the entrance pylons and the remains of the vestibule amaze the eye with rigor and proportionality of proportions.

The smallest of the pyramids is the pyramid of Pharaoh Mykerin (Menkaur), the grandson of Cheops. Its height is 66 m, and the length of each side of the base is 108 m. The Pyramid of Menkaure has survived worse than the other two pyramids; a considerable part of its stones went to the construction of the Cairo citadel. To the south of it lined up three small dilapidated pyramids. One of them, according to scientists, was built for the wife of Mikerin - Queen Hamerernepti. Along the entire rocky plateau on which the pyramids stand, there are numerous burial places of the guards of the necropolis, nobles and approximate three pharaohs of the IV dynasty - the builders of the pyramids.

Greek historian Herodotus, who visited the pyramids at Giza in the middle of the 5th century BC. BC e., left us evidence of some of the elements of this grandiose complex that have not come down to us. Interestingly, Herodotus does not say a word about one of the most remarkable monuments of the era of the Old Kingdom - the Great Sphinx, which lies near the funerary temple of Khafre, about 350 m east of the pyramid of Cheops. This is at least strange, since most archaeologists consider the Sphinx to be a contemporary of the pharaohs of the 4th dynasty, and at the time of Herodotus, he obviously was in his place.

Listed world heritage UNESCO in 1979. We will describe each of them in turn. Let's start with Giza. Simplicity and clarity of design, perfection of execution and grandiosity - this is what delights people when they see the Great Pyramids of Giza.
"Everything is afraid of time, and time is afraid of the pyramids" - this ancient saying was born when the pyramids of Giza were built. And since then it has not lost relevance.
One of the seven wonders of the world ancient world, which has survived to this day, is the pyramid of Cheops - a grandiose, as it is believed, the tomb of the pharaoh of the IV dynasty of Cheops, as the ancient Greeks called him, and the Egyptians - Khufu. It was she who was called by the Greeks the Great, or Great, Pyramid. And then the concept of "Great Pyramids" arose. This, along with the pyramid of Cheops, the pyramids of Khafre (Khafra) and Menkaure (Menkaur). Chefren was the son of Cheops, and Menkaure was his grandson. At the same time, three structures constitute a harmoniously united funerary ensemble. The time of their construction is the era of the Old Kingdom (2800-2250 BC), although with regard to the more accurate time frame for the construction of each individual pyramid, Egyptologists find ground for discussion in our time. The architectural complex of Giza also includes three so-called small pyramids, two stepped and one with smooth edges. The upper and lower temples, interconnected by a road of basalt slabs, have survived only in ruins. The complex also includes the tombs of the Egyptian nobility, many of which are older than the pyramids themselves, their most common name is mastaba. The main material for the blocks of the pyramids was local durable nummulite limestone, formed from extinct unicellular organisms of nummulites that lived during the Late Cretaceous. The pyramids were faced with polished limestone slabs. Part of the cladding has been preserved only at the top of the Khafre pyramid.
The Giza necropolis includes 5 cemeteries, where about 7 thousand burials have been discovered, including sculptors, artists and workers. Thanks to the uninterrupted since the XIX century. In the work of archaeologists in Giza, a truly treasury was discovered containing objects of the funeral cult, decorations, tools, weapons and household items made with great artistic skill.
The pyramid complex includes another unique, world-famous monument - giant statue Sphinx, a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man. This creation of ancient sculptors is certainly part of the ensemble and at the same time the Great Sphinx, as it is most often called, appears to the human eye to some extent apart from the pyramids. The Sphinx is believed to have been carved out of a monolithic limestone rock in the center of the quarry, from where stone for the pyramids was mined. This is the oldest monumental sculpture and the largest surviving on Earth. monolithic statues. His gaze is directed to the east, to.
According to Herodotus (c. 484-425 BC), who drew information from among the Egyptian priests, Great Pyramid It took 30 years to build, of which 10 years were spent building the road to it, at the same time at least 100 thousand people worked there. It has been established that about 2.5 million stone blocks were used for its construction, the heaviest of which weighed 15 tons, and the total weight of the pyramid was 6.5 million tons. These and other modern calculations, compared with the labor costs required in this case, confirm that Herodotus was basically right, although some modern researchers believe that the number of workers was three times less.
The royal burial rite at Giza, whose order has been reconstructed by scholars, looked impressive. The path of the funeral procession ran from the palace of the pharaoh to the Nile. Through great river the remains of the pharaoh were transported to the west coast on a special boat made of Lebanese cedar, accompanied by a whole flotilla of rowing ships. In the lower temple on the pier, where the procession sailed along the canal, the first part of the funeral ceremony was held. Then the procession moved to the upper temple. And at the end of all the rituals, the body of the deceased was placed in an underground chamber, the entrance to which was walled up. On the four sides of the pyramids, oriented strictly to the north, south, west, east, four boats were placed in the recesses of the rocky base - for the pharaoh's travels in the afterlife along the firmament of heaven together with the sun god Ra. Therefore, the boats are usually called "solar". In 1955, almost by accident, when clearing the territory near the pyramid of Cheops, an underground chamber was discovered, in which there was a royal boat with two cabins. Its length is 43.3 m, width - 5.6 m.
The pyramid complex of Giza has been carefully studied by both archaeologists and historians-Egyptologists, outstanding scientists since the 19th century. Answers have been found to some questions, but in general they do not become less.
There is also a separate direction in the study of pyramids not recognized by academic science - pyramidology, which considers non-traditional theories of the origin and purpose of the pyramids, including hypotheses based on mysticism. Nevertheless, today there is no single answer to the main question that satisfies all branches of science: why were they built, what was primary in their purpose - a necropolis or perpetuating the exact knowledge that the ancient Egyptians possessed? Or maybe it was even more ancient civilization, for some reason not explaining how the pyramids were built? Mathematicians and astronomers regarding the pyramids of Giza have their own theories, which, of course, need to be studied separately - this topic is so extensive. Geophysicists - their own, engineers - their own ...
Free enthusiasts-interpreters of the riddles of the pyramids agree on one thing: the perfect world of numbers and proportions does not at all refute the divine nature of kings in the understanding of the ancient Egyptians. The point is also that no mummies were found in the pyramids of Giza, only sarcophagi. Indirectly, the fact that the burial chambers could have been plundered even in the period of the Old Kingdom is indicated by some historical information, which is extremely scarce; very few papyri belonging to this historical period have survived, probably they were destroyed during unrest, unrest and decline. This was also the First Intermediate Period in the history of Egypt, it came after the collapse of the Old Kingdom as a result of the decline of the VI dynasty (c. 2157-2155 BC). Truth
it is all the more difficult to establish that the mines and corridors inside the pyramids of Giza experienced several episodes when they were filled with fragments of stones. Employees of the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art found in the northern pyramids of El Lishta, erected under the pharaoh of the XII dynasty Amenemhat I (reigned c. 1991-1962 BC), decorative blocks that come from the temples of the Giza necropolis. The cladding and stone blocks of the Great Pyramids were used as building material even for ordinary houses. The revival of a respectful attitude towards the Old Kingdom began only during the XXVI dynasty (664-525 BC). The ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (c. 90-30 BC) wrote that the Egyptians hated the builders of the pyramids, to the point that they were ready to throw the mummies of the kings out of the pyramids. But it is not clear whether the historian had in mind the Egyptians - his contemporaries or their ancestors. Diodorus put forward a version of the construction of the pyramids of Giza with the help of "platforms", that is, embankments. And today this hypothesis is recognized as rational, although it is not confirmed by calculations. But another ancient version - that the Great Sphinx embodies the appearance of Khafre, has been refuted by modern research: the pharaoh looked different.
The history of the study of the pyramids began, perhaps, in the 9th century. Then Caliph Al-Mamun ordered to punch a passage in the northern face of the pyramid of Cheops, and the workers were lucky enough to immediately go into one of the inner galleries, which led them to a granite sarcophagus, opened, it did not even have a lid. A similar picture was seen in the pyramid of Khafre by the Italian archaeologist J. Belzoni, who opened a chamber in the pyramid of Khafre in 1818. In the 1830s British Colonel G. Wise made his way inside the Cheops pyramid with the help of directed explosions. As a result, according to him, he discovered a room under the burial chamber, where the name of the pharaoh was written in red paint. Over time, the reliability of this information was refuted by the Egyptologist S. Birsh, and the specialist in ancient languages ​​3. Sichin came to the conclusion that Wise had cheated, using the anthology of Egyptian hieroglyphs published by that time. But, to Wise's credit, it must be said that his other discovery was genuine. In 1837, he opened the burial chamber in the Mykerin pyramid and found ... again an empty sarcophagus. There is a hypothesis by L. McCarthy from 1907 that these sarcophagi are cenotaphs, symbolic tombs, and the real ones are hidden somewhere in the depths of the pyramids. The first chambers in the thickness of the pyramid of Cheops were discovered in 1986 by the French. A year later, the Japanese, having scanned the interior of the pyramid with instruments, received data on the existence of hidden rooms. Later, these data were partially confirmed. In 1993, the German engineer R. Gentenbrink designed a robot to study the voids in the pyramid, equipped with a video camera and a laser, and proved that these voids exist. This is also confirmed by the archaeologists of the Egyptian Antiquities Service.
... On the face of the Great Sphinx in the royal nemes headdress, an absent-minded smile peeps through - as if a symbol of all those questions that the Giza necropolis asks science. And will ask for a long time.

general information

The burial complex on the western bank of the Nile, in the city of Giza, which in turn is part of the agglomeration of Cairo - the capital of Egypt.

UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979

Construction of the Giza Necropolis: XXVI-XXIII centuries BC e.

Construction of the pyramid of Cheops: 2560-2540 BC e.

Creation of the Great Sphinx: around 2500

Language: Arabic (official).

Height - 138.7 m, original - 146.6 m; the initial length of the side face (according to calculations) - 230.3 m; the length of the sides of the base of the pyramid: south - 230.45 m, north - 230.25 m, west - 230.35 m, east - 230.4 m; base area - 5.3 ha, perimeter - 921.45 m, volume: 2,521,000 m 3.

Pyramid of Khafre

Height - 136.6 m, length of faces - 210.5 m, volume: 2,211,096 m 3.

Pyramid of Menkaure

Height - 62 m, length of faces - 108 m, volume: 260,000 m 3.

Great sphinx

Height - 20.2 m, length - 73.5 m, width - 19.3 m.

Climate and weather

January average temperature: +18°С.

July average temperature: +34°С.
Average annual rainfall: about 26 mm.

Attractions

■ The Pyramid of Cheops.

■ Pyramid of Khafre.

■ Pyramid of Menkaure.

■ Great Sphinx .

■ Three "small" pyramids.

■ Mortuary Temple of Khafre.

■ Temple of Khafre in the valley.

■ Temple of Menkaure in the valley.

■ Tomb of Queen Hetepheres I.

■ Pyramid Khentkaus I.

■ Hemiun's Tomb.

■ Museums: in Giza - Solar boat, Egyptian antiquities (archaeological) in the building former palace viceroy of Egypt; in Cairo - the Egyptian Museum (120 thousand exhibits of all historical periods of Ancient Egypt). In 2015, it is planned to open the Great Egyptian Museum in Giza, equipped with the latest museum technology and interactive technologies.

Curious facts

■ is a Greek word, the ancient Egyptians called this city Inbu-hedj. Mastaba (“bench”) is an Arabic word, and the Arabs appeared on the territory of Egypt only in the 7th century. n. e. The Egyptians called the tombs "per-jet" - "eternal home". Mastaba consists of two parts. A mummy in a sarcophagus was placed in the underground part. In the above-ground part, a sculptural or other image of the deceased was installed, as it was believed, the embodiment of his soul.

■ There is not a single inscription on the Giza sarcophagi indicating who exactly was buried in it.

■ "Golden section", or "divine proportions", is the ratio of two values, equal ratio of their sum to the larger of these values; digitally it is approximately 1.6180339887, briefly - 1.618. In rounded percentage terms, this is a division of the value by 62% and 38%, respectively. The law of the "golden section" was used by the builders not only of Egyptian, but also Mexican pyramids- this is a fact derived after careful mathematical calculations of researchers and those and other pyramids. The ancient Egyptians applied the principle of the "golden section" not only in construction, but all their art is subordinated to it - from monumental structures to small plastics.

■ In 2008, an article by Briton Andrew Collins was published that there was a "system of tunnels and caves" under the pyramids of Giza. Collins is best known as a writer, and the scientific world was skeptical about this claim. However, the largest modern Egyptologist Zahi Hawass (b. in 1947), head of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, supported this version, moreover, he believes that such a study will reveal many secrets of the pyramids.

■ The most common version of the origin of the three small pyramids says that they were built for the three wives of Pharaoh Cheops. According to another, more ancient tradition - for one wife and two daughters. And the Polish archaeologist W. Kozinski suggested that the small pyramids are nothing more than models (on a scale of about 1 to 5) of the Great Pyramid. It is believed that it was conceived on a smaller scale and has gone through several changes. internal structure, which is why layouts were needed.

■ The popular version as to why the Sphinx has no nose points to the soldiers of Napoleon, in 1798-1801. made a military campaign in Egypt. Allegedly, his soldiers, exercising in firing from cannons, fired at the Sphinx as if at a target. But a drawing by the Dane Frederik Norden from 1737 has been preserved, in which the Sphinx is depicted already without a nose. The composition of the Napoleonic army included archaeologists taken to study the history of Ancient Egypt, and it is unlikely that Bonaparte could condone the vandalism of the soldiers. The Arab historian Al-Maqrizi (d. 1436) recounts the following story: a certain Saim-el-Dahr, a Sufi fan, beat off the nose of the Sphinx in order to stop the worship of the pagans to this "idol".

■ The Sphinx also lacks a beard. It was added to his face during the New Kingdom era (1550-1069 BC). The beard was round in shape; such beards, moreover, overhead ones, were worn by the pharaohs of that particular period. And this symbol of royal power could well have fallen off on its own.