The Pyramids of Egypt.

Essay by skiddlesCollege, UndergraduateB+, September 2005

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The ancient Egyptians built more than 90 royal pyramids, from about 2630 BC until about 1530 BC. During that time, the pyramid form evolved from a series of stepped terraces that resembled the layers of a wedding cake to the better-known, sloped pyramidal shape. The first pyramid, the Step Pyramid at aqqrah, was constructed during the reign of King Djoser (2630 BC-2611 BC). The largest pyramid is the one built for King Khufu, at the site of modern Giza. Khufu's pyramid, known as the Great Pyramid, is the only one of the Seven Wonders of the World that still survives.

A pyramid was built as the huge stone tomb of a Pharaoh. The burial chamber in the center was filled with tremendous riches for the Pharaoh to take on into the afterlife.

The riches were a temptation to robbers, so the pyramid builders tried to fool the thieves by making false doors, staircases and corridors.

The burial chamber inside the Great Pyramid is as large as a small modern house. The base of some of the pyramids was equal to seven or eight soccer fields. For religious reasons, the pyramids were built on the west bank of the Nile River because the sun would set there. Building along the Nile also made it easier for the builders to transport the larges stones needed to erect the pyramids.

The Pharaohs were buried with religious writings to help them in the afterlife. The earliest ones were written on the walls of the burial chambers. Later, they were written on the coffins. The last were written on papyrus and rolled up and placed in the dead man's coffin. The writings described different ways to get to the afterworld and are known as the Books of the Dead. The pyramids contained everything...