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Giza, Egypt: Great Pyramid of Khufu. ...

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Built during a time when Egypt was one of the richest and most powerful civilizations in the world, the pyramids-especially the Great Pyramids of Giza-are some of the most magnificent man-made structures in history. Their massive scale reflects the unique role that the pharaoh, or king, played in ancient Egyptian society. Though pyramids were built from the beginning of the Old Kingdom to the close of the Ptolemaic period in the fourth century A.D., the peak of pyramid building began with the late third dynasty and continued until roughly the sixth (c. 2325 B.C.). More than 4,000 years later, the Egyptian pyramids still retain much of their majesty, providing a glimpse into the country's rich and glorious past.

The Pharaoh in Egyptian Society

During the third and fourth dynasties of the Old Kingdom, Egypt enjoyed tremendous economic prosperity and stability. Kings held a unique position in Egyptian society. Somewhere in between human and divine, they were believed to have been chosen by the gods themselves to serve as their mediators on earth. Because of this, it was in everyone's interest to keep the king's majesty intact even after his death, when he was believed to become Osiris, god of the dead. The new pharaoh, in turn, became Horus, the falcon-god who served as protector of the sun god, Ra.

Did you know? The pyramid's smooth, angled sides symbolized the rays of the sun and were designed to help the king's soul ascend to heaven and join the gods, particularly the sun god Ra.

Ancient Egyptians believed that when the king died, part of his spirit (known as "ka") remained with his body. To properly care for his spirit, the corpse was mummified, and everything the king would need in the afterlife was buried with him, including gold vessels, food, furniture and other offerings. The pyramids became the focus of a cult of the dead king that was supposed to continue well after his death. Their riches would provide not only for him, but also for the relatives, officials and priests who were buried near him.

The Early Pyramids

From the beginning of the Dynastic Era (2950 B.C.), royal tombs were carved into rock and covered with flat-roofed rectangular structures known as "mastabas," which were precursors to the pyramids. The oldest known pyramid in Egypt was built around 2630 B.C. at Saqqara, for the third dynasty's King Djoser. Known as the Step Pyramid, it began as a traditional mastaba but grew into something much more ambitious. As the story goes, the pyramid's architect was Imhotep, a priest and healer who some 1,400 years later would be deified as the patron saint of scribes and physicians. Over the course of Djoser's nearly 20-year reign, pyramid builders assembled six stepped layers of stone (as opposed to mud-brick, like most earlier tombs) that eventually reached a height of 204 feet (62 meters); it was the tallest building of its time. The Step Pyramid was surrounded by a complex of courtyards, temples and shrines where Djoser could enjoy his afterlife.

After Djoser, the stepped pyramid became the norm for royal burials, although none of those planned by his dynastic successors were completed (probably due to their relatively short reigns). The earliest tomb constructed as a "true" (smooth-sided, not stepped) pyramid was the Red Pyramid at Dahshur, one of three burial structures built for the first king of the fourth dynasty, Sneferu (2613-2589 B.C.) It was named for the color of the limestone blocks used to construct the pyramid's core.

The Great Pyramids of Giza

No pyramids are more celebrated than the Great Pyramids of Giza, located on a plateau on the west bank of the Nile River, on the outskirts of modern-day Cairo. The oldest and largest of the three pyramids at Giza, known as the Great Pyramid, is the only surviving structure out of the famed Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was built for Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops, in Greek), Sneferu's successor and the second of the eight kings of the fourth dynasty. Though Khufu reigned for 23 years (2589-2566 B.C.), relatively little is known of his reign beyond the grandeur of his pyramid. The sides of the pyramid's base average 755.75 feet (230 meters), and its original height was 481.4 feet (147 meters), making it the largest pyramid in the world. Three small pyramids built for Khufu's queens are lined up next to the Great Pyramid, and a tomb was found nearby containing the empty sarcophagus of his mother, Queen Hetepheres. Like other pyramids, Khufu's is surrounded by rows of mastabas, where relatives or officials of the king were buried to accompany and support him in the afterlife.

The middle pyramid at Giza was built for Khufu's son Pharaoh Khafre (2558-2532 B.C). The Pyramid of Khafre is the second tallest pyramid at Giza and contains Pharaoh Khafre's tomb. A unique feature built inside Khafre's pyramid complex was the Great Sphinx, a guardian statue carved in limestone with the head of a man and the body of a lion. It was the largest statue in the ancient world, measuring 240 feet long and 66 feet high. In the 18th dynasty (c. 1500 B.C.) the Great Sphinx would come to be worshiped itself, as the image of a local form of the god Horus. The southernmost pyramid at Giza was built for Khafre's son Menkaure (2532-2503 B.C.). It is the shortest of the three pyramids (218 feet) and is a precursor of the smaller pyramids that would be constructed during the fifth and sixth dynasties.

Who Built The Pyramids?

Though some popular versions of history held that the pyramids were built by slaves or foreigners forced into labor, skeletons excavated from the area show that the workers were probably native Egyptian agricultural laborers who worked on the pyramids during the time of year when the Nile River flooded much of the land nearby. Approximately 2.3 million blocks of stone (averaging about 2.5 tons each) had to be cut, transported and assembled to build Khufu's Great Pyramid. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus wrote that it took 20 years to build and required the labor of 100,000 men, but later archaeological evidence suggests that the workforce might actually have been around 20,000.

The End of the Pyramid Era

Pyramids continued to be built throughout the fifth and sixth dynasties, but the general quality and scale of their construction declined over this period, along with the power and wealth of the kings themselves. In the later Old Kingdom pyramids, beginning with that of King Unas (2375-2345 B.C), pyramid builders began to inscribe written accounts of events in the king's reign on the walls of the burial chamber and the rest of the pyramid's interior. Known as pyramid texts, these are the earliest significant religious compositions known from ancient Egypt.

The last of the great pyramid builders was Pepy II (2278-2184 B.C.), the second king of the sixth dynasty, who came to power as a young boy and ruled for 94 years. By the time of his rule, Old Kingdom prosperity was dwindling, and the pharaoh had lost some of his quasi-divine status as the power of non-royal administrative officials grew. Pepy II's pyramid, built at Saqqara and completed some 30 years into his reign, was much shorter (172 feet) than others of the Old Kingdom. With Pepy's death, the kingdom and strong central government virtually collapsed, and Egypt entered a turbulent phase known as the First Intermediate Period. Later kings, of the 12th dynasty, would return to pyramid building during the so-called Middle Kingdom phase, but it was never on the same scale as the Great Pyramids.

The Pyramids Today

Tomb robbers and other vandals in both ancient and modern times removed most of the bodies and funeral goods from Egypt's pyramids and plundered their exteriors as well. Stripped of most of their smooth white limestone coverings, the Great Pyramids no longer reach their original heights; Khufu's, for example, measures only 451 feet high. Nonetheless, millions of people continue to visit the pyramids each year, drawn by their towering grandeur and the enduring allure of Egypt's rich and glorious past.

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Egyptian Pyramids - Facts, Use & Construction

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Built during a time when Egypt was one of the richest and most powerful civilizations in the world, the pyramids-especially the Great Pyramids of Giza-are some of the most magnificent man-made structures in history.

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The remarkable sophistication of the Ancient Egyptian empire is still hard to reconcile with how far back in time it existed. But the stories of the Ancient Egyptian pharaohs undoubtedly bring us closer to a fascinating civilization that spanned over 3,000 years and 170 pharaohs.

The Ancient Egyptian pharaoh's role was both political and religious. Interpretations varied from ruler to ruler, of course, but the pharaohs were generally thought to be imbued with divinity and were effectively regarded as intermediaries between the gods and people.

Yet, despite the spiritual reverence with which they were regarded, the pharaohs were also responsible for the more earthly concerns of leadership, and each Egyptian pharaoh had a unique legacy; some were architectural innovators or revered military leaders while others were brilliant diplomats. Here are 10 of the most famous.

1. Djoser (reign 2686 BC - 2649 BC)

Djoser is perhaps the most famous Third Dynasty Egyptian pharaoh, but little is known about his life. What is known, however, is that he oversaw the construction of the famous step pyramid at Saqqara, a hugely significant milestone in ancient Egyptian architecture. This pyramid, in which Djoser was buried, was the first structure to realise the iconic step design.

2. Khufu (reign 2589 ‒ 2566 BC)

A Fourth Dynasty pharaoh, Khufu's greatest legacy is undoubtedly the Great Pyramid of Giza, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

The monumental structure is a testament to the bewildering sophistication of Egyptian architecture and, remarkably, remained the tallest man-made structure in the world for the best part of 4,000 years. It was conceived by Khufu as his stairway to heaven and the means of its construction remains something of a mystery to this day.

3. Hatshepsut (reign 1478-1458 BC)

Only the second woman to assume the role of pharaoh, Hatshepsut was the wife of Thutmose II and reigned in the Eighteenth Dynasty. Her step-son Thutmose III was just two years old when his father died in 1479 and so Hatshepsut soon took on the role of pharaoh (though Thutmose III also technically ruled as co-regent).

Hatshepsut shored up her legitimacy as pharaoh by claiming that her mother was visited by the deity Amon-Ra while pregnant with her, thus signalling her divinity. She took to the role of pharaoh and proved an accomplished ruler, re-establishing important trade routes and overseeing extended periods of peace.

4. Thutmose III (reign 1458-1425 BC)

Thutmose III dedicated himself to military training while his step-mother was pharaoh, only taking over the role of main ruler when Hatshepsut died in 1458.

The pharaoh's military training paid off and he earned a reputation as something of a military genius; indeed, Egyptologists sometimes refer to him as the Napoleon of Egypt. Thutmose III never lost a battle and his military exploits won him the respect of his subjects and, for many, a status as the greatest ever pharaoh.

5. Amenhotep III (reign 1388-1351 BC)

During Amenhotep III's 38-year reign, he largely presided over a peaceful and prosperous Egypt. Indeed, Amenhotep III's accomplishments as pharaoh were more cultural and diplomatic than military; few Ancient Egyptian pharaohs can match his architectural and artistic legacy.

6. Akhenaten (reign 1351-1334 BC)

The son of Amenhotep III, Akhenaten was named Amenhotep IV at birth but changed his name in accordance with his radical monotheistic beliefs. The meaning of his new name, "He who is of service to the Aten", honoured what he believed to be the one true god: Aten, the Sun God.

Akhenaten's religious conviction was such that he moved the Egyptian capital from Thebes to Amarna and named it Akhetaten, "Horizon of Aten". Amarna wasn't a previously recognised place before the rule of Akhenaten. At the same time he changed his name, he ordered a new capital city to be built. He chose the site as it was uninhabited - it was not the property of anyone else, but Aten's.

Akhenaten's wife, Nefertiti, was a strong presence during his reign and played a significant part in his religious revolution. As well as being the wife of an Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh, Nefertiti was made famous by her limestone bust. It is one of the most copied works of Ancient Egyptian art and can be found in the Neues Museum.

After Akhenaten's death, Egypt rapidly returned to polytheism and the traditional gods he had disavowed.

7. Tutankhamun (reign 1332-1323 BC)

The youngest pharaoh in Egyptian history when he ascended to the throne at just 9 or 10 years old, Tutankhamun became the most famous Egyptian pharaoh of all.

But the young pharaoh's fame isn't the result of extraordinary achievements but instead derives almost entirely from the discovery of his tomb in 1922 - one of the great archaeological finds of the 20th century.

"King Tut", as the pharaoh became known after the discovery of his spectacular burial site, only reigned for 10 years, and died aged just 20. The cause of his death remains a mystery to Egyptologists.

8. Ramses II (reign 1279-1213 BC)

Ramses II 's reign was undoubtedly the greatest of the 19th Dynasty and, even by pharaoh standards, unabashedly ostentatious. The son of Seti I, with whom he had a period of co-regency, Ramses II went on to declare himself a god, while earning a reputation as a great warrior, fathering 96 children and ruling for 67 years.

Make no mistake, Ramses the Great was not a modest pharaoh. The extensive architectural legacy of his reign is testament to this - as is the fact that his excesses are thought to have left the throne close to bankruptcy at the time of his death.

9. Xerxes I (reign 486 - 465 BC)

Xerxes I reigned in the 27 th Dynasty during which time Egypt was part of the Persian Empire, having been conquered in 525 BC. Persian Achaemenid Kings were acknowledged as pharaohs and so Xerxes the Great, as he was known, earns a place on our list by virtue of fame, if not popularity.

He is often portrayed as a tyrant and it's likely that, as a Persian king, his disregard for local traditions did not endear him to the Egyptians. Xerxes I was very much a pharaoh in absentia and his failed attempts to invade Greece ensured that his portrayal by Greek historians (and by extension the film 300) is not kind.

10. Cleopatra VII (reign 51 - 30 BC)

The last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, Cleopatra presided over the dying days of the Egyptian empire, yet her fame has lived on through folklore, Shakespeare and Hollywood. It's hard to disentangle the real Cleopatra from the legend but scholars suggest that her portrayal as a stunningly beautiful seductress undersells her brilliance as a leader.

Cleopatra was an astute, politically savvy ruler who succeeded in bringing peace and relative prosperity to an ailing empire. The story of her love affairs with Julius Caesar and Marc Anthony is well documented but, without space to explore the complexities of a familiar tale, we might at least say that it's tragic conclusion - Cleopatra's suicide on 12 August 30 BC brought an end to the Egyptian empire.

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The remarkable sophistication of the Ancient Egyptian empire is still hard to reconcile with how far back in time it existed. But the stories of the Ancient Egyptian pharaohs undoubtedly bring us closer to a fascinating civilization that spanned over 3,000 years and 170 pharaohs. The Ancient Egyptian pharaoh's role was both political and religious.