The Pyramids of Giza are enigmas that may never be solved.
We've found thousands of hieroglyphs across Egypt - not one mentions how they were built or how the ancients cut stone.
10 facts that will blow your mind (thread) 👇
We've found thousands of hieroglyphs across Egypt - not one mentions how they were built or how the ancients cut stone.
10 facts that will blow your mind (thread) 👇
1. Only a small handful of Ancient Egyptian texts have been found that mention the pyramids at all. The best we have on their construction are these papyrus fragments, discovered in 2013, which mention the delivery of limestone blocks via the Nile River.
2. The pyramids themselves do not contain a single hieroglyph - nor were any paintings, burial treasures or mummies found within. By contrast, the tombs at the Valley of the Kings are decorated with intricate hieroglyphic texts and artworks from floor to ceiling.
3. They are aligned to true north (not magnetic north) with unbelievable accuracy. The Great Pyramid is just 3.4 arcminutes off perfect alignment, or precision of ~1 millimeter per meter of the length of its base. Executing this precision on something with a footprint of over 13 acres is astounding.
4. The Great Pyramid was the tallest building in the world for almost 3,900 years (assuming conventional dating of c.2560 BC), until it was surpassed by Lincoln Cathedral during the 14th century. It was 481 feet tall, but erosion has reduced it slightly over time.
5. They were once covered in gleaming white limestone casing stones. Some researchers also think the capstones were plated with gold and other precious metals. The casing stones are believed to have been plundered and reused by locals following damages caused by an earthquake.
6. ~2.3 million stone blocks make up the Great Pyramid, averaging 2.5 tons in weight. Quarrying these with little else than copper saws, chisels and pounding stones, then transporting and lifting them into place, is the greatest engineering feat ever accomplished.
7. The inner chamber blocks and casing stones of the Great Pyramid were cut and fit together with such high precision that a razor blade cannot fit between them. Astonishing given that some granite blocks of the King's chamber weigh up to 80 tons each.
8. The Great Pyramid is estimated to weigh around 6 million tons in total. Today, the only structures exceeding this are the Great Wall of China and the Three Gorges Dam.
9. When Napoleon visited in the late 18th century, he (correctly) calculated that the Great Pyramid contained enough material for a 10-foot high wall around the entire perimeter of mainland France. It's believed he performed this calculation himself.
10. Cleopatra lived closer in time to today than she did to the construction of the pyramids. There is a famous proverb in Egypt:
“Man fears time; time fears the pyramids.”
“Man fears time; time fears the pyramids.”
If you like threads like this you NEED this weekly newsletter (free) 👇
culturecritic.beehiiv.com/subscribe
culturecritic.beehiiv.com/subscribe
Anything I missed? Hit me with your best theory.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
