EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS AND TOMBS CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS Old

EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS AND TOMBS

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � Old Kingdom Egyptians began to build pyramids to house their dead pharaohs � There are still 35 pyramids standing near the Nile, and 138 pyramid sites have been discovered

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � Before pyramids, Egyptians constructed bench-like structures called mastabas to house the bodies of deceased pharaohs

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � The first pyramids to emerge were step pyramids � This design was conceived by the architect Imhotep � Served as a stairway for the deceased pharaoh to climb to the afterlife

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � At the end of the Old Kingdom, around 2600 BCE, smooth pyramids began to appear � The Red Pyramid was the first, and was constructed as a step pyramid then smoothed in

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � The Great Pyramid of Giza is another great example, but was constructed to be smooth under orders of Khufu

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � The Great Pyramid and others at Giza symbolized the absolute authority of the pharaohs because they required a massive labour force and lots of natural resources to be constructed

CHRONOLOGY OF PYRAMIDS � At Giza, smaller pyramids housed the pharaoh’s queen � The Great Sphinx is also at Giza and could have possibly protected the pyramids

WHAT’S WITH THE SHAPE? � The pyramid shape could represent the mound that Amon-Re rose up from in the creation myth � It might also represent the descending rays of the sun

HOW DID THEY BUILD THE PYRAMIDS? � Four stages of construction over about a 20 year period; � Planning stage � Mining stage � Transportation stage � Construction stage

WHY DID EGYPTIANS STOP BUILDING PYRAMIDS? � As time went on, power became more decentralized and pyramids lost their grandeur

WHY DID EGYPTIANS STOP BUILDING PYRAMIDS? � Ancient Egyptians started burying their pharaohs in tombs during the New Kingdom � The Valley of the Kings at Thebes includes 60 burial sites including the tomb of Tutankhamun

WHAT WAS INSIDE A PYRAMID? � Several chambers, a burial tomb, and shafts leading from the tomb to the sky � Chambers housed figures called shabti which were intended to help the deceased in the afterlife

WHAT WAS INSIDE A PYRAMID? � The tomb itself was littered with spells written on papyrus, hieroglyphics to provide instructions to the deceased, statues, and copies of The Book of the Dead specific to the deceased � The Book of the Dead contained magic spells which served to guide the deceased in the afterlife

“The lost gods of the Egyptians”