Description of the painting construction of the pyramid. Start in science

03.08.2020

31-03-2017, 22:01 |

The Pyramid of Cheops is the only one of the seven wonders of the world that has survived to this day. Weight 5 million tons, height 146 meters, age 4500 years. The construction of the Cheops pyramid is still shrouded in great mystery. Many scientists and Egyptologists make a number of assumptions about how it was possible to build such a massive structure at that time.

With the help of modern technology, one of the French architects managed to reproduce a fairly accurate picture. In general, the pyramids are a wonderful and mysterious sight. The massive structures of the pyramid were built without special techniques, only by the hands of the ancient Egyptians. This is very strange and that is why it is so interesting.

Construction of the ancient pyramids of Egypt

To clarify the whole picture, let's return during the construction of the pyramids. it is a manifestation. They became the gateway for all pharaohs from the world of the living to the eternal world of the dead. The most impressive of the pyramids was built by the Egyptians within one century. Initially, they built step pyramids, for example, the pyramid of Djoser in Sakara.

But the first pyramid with smooth edges was built by the pharaoh from the IV dynasty Snephrom. He was the father of Cheops. The special facing of the pyramids made them the earthly embodiment of the sun. Over time, the truth cladding was borrowed from us for the construction of temples and mosques. We can find such a facing only at the base of the Cheops pyramid and at the top of the Khafre pyramid.

The pyramid of Khafre became the last great pyramid in Egyptian history. Then, after a century of grandiose construction, the whole country entered a difficult time for itself. The time of strife, climate change also occurred, and droughts began to occur very often. This led to the fact that in the troubled time of civil strife, the secrets of the construction of the pyramid were lost.

Recently, archaeologists have found a settlement, in their opinion the builders of the pyramid lived there. This led to many discoveries. It became clear to the Egyptologists how it went - they lived quite decently, had good housing and plenty of food, ate meat, bread, drank beer. As it turned out, the builders did not appear. Previously, it was this point of view that prevailed.

Interestingly, the Cheops pyramid was the tallest in the world until the endXIX century. Let's remind that its height was 146 meters. The burial chamber of the pyramid is lined with granite blocks weighing more than 60 tons. This is all very strange and mysterious. How did they build the pyramids? The striking heights and granite blocks inside the Cheops pyramid are two big secrets.

Cheops pyramid viewpoint on construction

Many have tried to uncover the secret of the construction of this one. Herodotus in the 5th century BC the idea of \u200b\u200busing levers made of wood was put forward. Another idea about the existence of embankments up to the top of the pyramid, or about the ramps outside in the form of a spiral. These hypotheses are very common in history lessons. However, not one of them contains a clear evidence base. There are no arguments that would allow to say with 100% probability that this or that hypothesis is correct.

A French archaeologist came up with the idea that the pyramids were built from the inside using a spiral tunnel. Before that, he conducted a series of studies of all hypotheses, reviewed the drawings. Soon he built his own guess about how they built. To begin with, he should have done a technical analysis of his assumption. That is, to develop a theory about how such construction was implemented in practice.

In order to prove this hypothesis, everything had to be calculated. It can be stated with certainty that the Egyptians did not build ring-shaped tunnels. But they knew how to build structures at right angles. So the idea of \u200b\u200bbuilding a ramp inside at an angle of 90 degrees came into development. If such a ramp existed, then it became possible to raise the blocks so high, even by 146 meters.

Construction in detail of the pyramid of Pharaoh Cheops

So, the idea of \u200b\u200binternal ramps. The slope of the ramps should not exceed 7%, otherwise it is simply unrealistic to raise the blocks high. Special open areas were created at turns. They made it possible to turn the blocks in the desired direction and at the same time ventilate the tunnels. The ramp theory was good, but it needed proof.

To verify all calculations, it was required to enlist the support of prominent historians. The French architect began to look for interested Egyptologists. However, it was not possible to find those in France who would pay attention to his large-scale project. But one of the American Egyptologists responded to his proposal. Upon meeting, the American was amazed by this theory.

Scientists go to find proof of their theory. It is worth noting that the Cheops pyramid is an amazing sight. Tourists are allowed inside through a robbery passage. Examining the pyramid from the inside, scientists tried to find at least some hints of the inner ramp. The joints between the blocks are striking, they are just perfect, there are no gaps.

If you move through a narrow passage under the ceiling of the gallery, it will lead to 5 layers of granite blocks. They form discharge lanes above the king's chamber; it relieves the load from the ceiling of the lower chambers. If it were not for this system, the pharaoh's chamber would have collapsed.

In addition, there is a special construction passage to the very top of the pyramid. It was there that scientists at the beginning of the 19th century. found a cartouche of Pharaoh Cheops. This is the main proof that this is the pyramid of the Pharaoh Cheops.

By the way, if you are a tourist and want to get acquainted with the treasures of the pharaohs, then you should go to the Cairo Museum. There are a million exhibits that tell about the ancient civilization of Egypt. But only two exhibits are related to the pyramid of Cheops specifically - a figurine of Cheops made of ivory and a sled made of cedar. A Lebanese cedar sled allows you to understand how the pyramid was built.

Stages of construction of the pyramid

During the reign of Cheops, not a single Egyptian had any idea what a wheel was. Stone blocks were transported on cedar sleds. But, nevertheless, the Egyptians made great strides in terms of technology. The genius of the pyramid builders still amazes Egyptologists.

According to the theory of the French architect, there were two ramps. The first straight line goes from the base of the pyramid to the outside. It allows you to erect the base of the pyramid and even more than half of the building itself, while also building the pharaoh's gallery. Then a second ramp was built, which was already inside the pyramid. According to theory, after the construction of 43 meters of the pyramid, blocks for the king's chamber were raised on its surface. Then the outer ramp was dismantled and a second inner ramp was built from these materials.

To prove this theory, you need to find the remains of a ramp inside. The Temple of the Sun was built not far from Cheops, it was built 100 years later. Interestingly, there is a passage inside, similar to an internal ramp. The temple itself would have been destroyed at the end of the 19th century, but there is a drawing of it. This is direct evidence that the Egyptians knew how to build such passages. Thus, there is a high probability that the same ramp was built in the Cheops pyramid.

Pyramid of Cheops and construction features

In order for the form to be ideal, according to the scientist, external blocks were first laid. Accordingly, the internal blocks were laid later. This sequence made it possible to visually control the surface and the slope angle of the building being built. There is a broken pyramid in Dashur, its facing has been preserved. The thickness of the outer cladding blocks is much greater than that of the indoor blocks. This also speaks in favor of the fact that first they put external polished blocks, and then internal ones.

So, the external polished blocks were laid, then another layer of blocks horizontally, and the rest of the space was filled with rough blocks as filler. With this order of construction, it really could have been erected within 20 years. This date is indicated in the texts of the ancient Egyptians.

On the Cheops pyramid, whitish lines are visible from the outside, it can be assumed that this is the ramp. Their latitude and slope correspond exactly to the numbers in this theory. For accurate data, the pyramid needs to be scanned and if there are fluctuations in density, then this will be the main proof of the existence of the ramp. After research, the same fluctuations were found. The vibrations formed a spiral shape. These results were obtained by microgrammetric research.

According to microgrammetric study, the voids in the density of the pyramids formed a spiral shape. According to the data obtained, voids occupied 15% of the entire density of the Cheops pyramid. There is a notch on the northeastern edge of the pyramid, according to calculations it runs right in the area of \u200b\u200bthe ramp. Maybe there was a construction site where the Egyptians unrolled the blocks. But it is difficult to explore this area, since it is forbidden to climb the pyramid after accidents.

The Pyramid of Cheops

But the authorities went to the meeting, and the Egyptologist, along with an assistant, climbed to look at the notch closer. However, no hint of a ramp was found. But research has proven that there is a spiral cavity inside. Only one more mystery is how the blocks were raised for the king's chamber. After all, only small blocks can be lifted along the inner ramp, but how did they deliver the rest ... This is also a mystery question for now. If you build a pyramid, then the outer ramp will not help deliver the 60 ton block to the top. This requires 600 people to work synchronously. And this is almost impossible.

Thus, the assumption of an internal ramp in the form of a spiral is viable, moreover, this version is more suitable for the construction of pyramids. But there are some nuances that are still difficult to explain. Maybe this will remain a mystery for many years to come.

Cheops pyramid construction video

Several thousand years ago, when the ancient Egyptians built the three pyramids of Giza, for each of the three pharaohs Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure there was no trace of a camera or something like that. And so scientists had to come together to unravel the great mystery of how these huge historical monuments were built.

Over the past two decades, a series of new discoveries and studies have allowed scientists to paint a clearer picture of these exploits.

Pyramids of Giza

The first and largest pyramid at Giza was built by Pharaoh Khufu (his reign began around 2551 BC). Its pyramid is 455 feet (138 meters) high, which is today known as the "Great Pyramid" and is considered one of the wonders of the world.

The Khafre Pyramid (his reign began around 2520 BC) was only slightly smaller than Khufu, but stood on a higher ground. Many scholars believe that the Sphinx monument, located near Khafre's pyramid, was built by Khafre and that the face of the Sphinx was modeled after him.

The third pharaoh to create the pyramid at Giza was Menkaure (whose reign began around 2490 BC), and he built a smaller pyramid 215 feet (65 m) high.

Over the past two decades, researchers have made a number of pyramid-related discoveries, including a city built around the Menkaure pyramid. A study showing how water can facilitate the movement of blocks and papyrus found in the Red Sea. This allowed researchers to better understand how the pyramids of Giza were built. The new findings complement the old knowledge gained over the past two centuries.

Developing Methods for Building a Pyramid

The methods used to create the pyramids of Giza have been developed over several centuries, going through all the problems and setbacks that any modern scientist or engineer might face.

The pyramids arose from simple rectangular tombs that were built in Egypt over 5,000 years ago, and according to finds, they were made by archaeologist Sir Flinders Petrie.

Great progress took place during the reign of Pharaoh Djoser (reign began around 2630 BC). His tomb at Saqqara first looked like a simple rectangular tomb before turning into a six-layer stepped pyramid with underground tunnels and chambers.

Another leap forward in pyramid building technology occurred during the reign of Pharaoh Shefru (his reign began around 2575 BC), who built at least three pyramids. The Shefru architects, instead of building stepped pyramids, devised methods to design smooth, real pyramids.

It looks like the Shefru architects are in trouble. One of the pyramids they built on the site of Dakhshur is today known as the "curved pyramid" because the angle of the pyramid changes slightly, giving the structure a curved appearance.

Scientists usually view a bent angle as the result of a structural defect.

Shefru Architects would correct the flaw; the second pyramid at Dahshur, known today as the "red pyramid", named for the color of its stones, has the correct angle making it a true pyramid.

Snefru's son, Khufu, took lessons from his father and previous predecessors to build the Great Pyramid, the largest pyramid in the world.

Pyramid building

The pharaohs appointed high-ranking officials to oversee the construction of the pyramids.

In 2010, a group of archaeologists discovered papyri relating to the reign of Khufu at the site of Wadi al-Jarf on the Red Sea coast.

The text of the papyrus said that in the 27th year of Khufu's reign, his half-brother Anhaf was the vizier (the highest official, the Pharaoh's advisor) and “the head of all the affairs of the pharaoh”, as archaeologists Pierre Tallet and Gregory Marouard wrote in the magazine “Middle Eastern Archeology” ...

At the time, the papyri said, Anhaf was in charge of the pharaoh, and many scholars believe there may have been another person, perhaps the vizier Hemiunu, who was responsible for building the pyramid during Khufu's early reign.

Researchers are still working on understanding the complex planning that would be involved in pyramid buildings, and which would be required for the construction of not only pyramids, but also temples, boats and cemeteries located near huge structures.

The researchers noted that the Egyptians were able to accurately align construction with the cardinal points, which could help in planning the construction of the pyramids.

Glen Dash, an engineer studying the pyramids at Giza with the Ancient Egyptian Research Associations (AERA), noted that Khufu's pyramid is aligned with an exact north direction, within a tenth of a degree.

How the ancient Egyptians did this is not entirely clear. In a report published in the AERA newsletter, Dash writes that Polaris and a piece of rope were used as the construction method.

Building materials and food

Over the past few years, AERA archaeologists have excavated and studied the port at Giza, which was used to deliver building materials, food, and transport labor.

The papyri found at Wadi al-Jarfa allude to the importance of the ports of Giza, stating that the limestone blocks used in the pyramid's outer hull were transported from the quarries to the pyramid's construction site by boat.

The port, found by AERA archaeologists, is located in a city built around the pyramid of Menkaure.

This city had large houses for high-ranking officials, a barracks complex that probably contained troops and buildings, where a large number of clay tablets (used in record keeping) were discovered.

Ordinary workers probably slept in simple dwellings near the pyramid.

Estimates given by various archaeologists for the size of the workforce at Giza tend to hover around 10,000 for all three pyramids.

These people were full; in a study published in 2013, Richard Redding, chief scientist at AERA, and colleagues found that enough cattle, sheep and goats were killed each day to produce an average of 4,000 pounds of meat to feed the pyramid builders.

The conclusion was described in detail in the book “Proceedings of the 10th meeting of the ICAZ Working Group“ Archeozoology of Southwest Asia and Adjacent Territories ”.

Redding discovered that the animals were brought in from the Nile Delta and kept in a paddock until they were killed and the workers were fed.

Redding concluded that the workers' diet, which was rich in meat, could serve as an incentive for people to work on the pyramids. They probably received much better conditions and food than in their village, Redding wrote in Live Science in 2013.

Block mining

Many of the stones used for construction in the Khufu pyramids were taken from a quarry located south of the pyramid, wrote Mark Lechner, Egyptologist at the helm of AERA and engineer David Goodman.

They published their findings back in 1985 in the Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts magazine. According to the researchers, the builders used blocks from a quarry located southeast of the Menkaur pyramid.

However, it is not clear which quarry was used for Khafre's pyramid.

Upon completion, each of the Giza pyramids was fitted with a smooth outer shell of limestone. Not only that, the outer part of the hull has been reused for other construction projects in Egypt over the millennia.

A papyrus found at Wadi el Jarfa tells us that the limestone used in the hull was taken from a quarry located in Tours, near present-day Cairo, and sent to Giza by boat along the Nile River. Papire said that one boat trip took four days.

Moving blocks

To move stones overland, the Egyptians used large sleds that could be pushed or pulled by teams of workers.

The sand in front of the sakalas was likely moistened with water to reduce friction, thereby making it easier to move the sled, according to a team of physicists at the University of Amsterdam, found in a 2014 study published in Physical Review Letters.

“It turns out that wetting the Egyptian desert sand could significantly reduce friction, requiring only half the people to pull the sled onto the wet sand compared to dry sand,” says Daniel Bonn, a physics professor at the University of Amsterdam.

Scientists noted that there is an ancient Egyptian painting depicting water spilled in front of a sleigh.

Most Egyptologists agree that when the stones were brought to the pyramids, a system of ramps was used to lift the stones. However, Egyptologists did not know how these ramps were designed.

Little evidence of ramp construction has survived, but several hypothetical designs have been proposed over the past few decades.

Scientists on this project are in the process of studying and reconstructing the pyramids of Giza using various technologies. In addition to learning more about the construction of the pyramids, the project may also reveal if there are still any built-in cameras inside.

The pyramid construction technique changed from pyramid to

Pyramid, but there is no reliable data on the construction process at the moment.

There are many hypotheses based on information about tools,

Which were used for processing stone, for transporting stones to the construction site and quarries, where they took materials for blocks.

Most of the hypotheses are based on the fact that blocks were cut

In quarries, using chisels, chisels, picks, punch holes. The tools were made from copper, wood and stone.

The discrepancies between the hypotheses concern the methods of delivering blocks to the construction site and, directly, their installation, timing and amount of labor.

Mechanisms of Herodotus for lifting blocks.

Ancient Greek historian Herodotus visited Egypt around 450

Year BC At this time, the country was already under the rule of the Persians for more than one century. Herodotus did not understand the language of the indigenous Egyptians, so he had to turn to translators and Greek settlers for help. In addition, more than two thousand years have passed since the construction of ancient monuments, it is difficult to imagine what kind of knowledge about technologies could be preserved at that time.

From the book of Herodotus “History. Book two "

Stone size and transportation. “Some of them (ie the builders) had to drag the stone blocks all the way to the Nile from the quarries of the Arabian mountains, where they were cut out, while others were tasked with obtaining these stones and transporting them by ships to the other side, where they were delivered to the Libyan ridge. One hundred thousand people worked continuously, changing every three months. "

Construction of the pyramid. “This is how this pyramid is built: it is a system of successive steps, which are sometimes called“ ledges ”and sometimes“ tiers ”or“ platforms. ”However, when the first of these platforms was completed, workers used wooden logs as levers to lifting the rest of the stones; in this way, they raised blocks from the ground to the first tier. When the stone was lifted, it was installed on the second lever, which stood on the first tier, and raised from this level to the next. It could be that new ones were installed on each tier. levers, or perhaps only one such device was used, quite portable, which, in turn, was transferred from level to level. It is not possible to determine this, since both of these possibilities were mentioned. However, they probably finished building the upper part of the pyramid very first , then the next underneath, and the last to complete the base and bottom. "

And, all the same, in the book of Herodotus there is no detailed data on the methods of building the pyramids. He only says that it was built in the form "Systems of sequential stages".

And for laying facing stone (or as described by Herodotus "Other stones"), some lifting mechanisms were used, the action of which was to use a system of wooden levers.

View of Diodorus Siculus - "ramps"

Another ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (1st century BC) is not the first,

Who advanced the theory about "Ramps and sleighs"... He just said that "The stone blocks are said to have been laid by means of ramps [...] of salt and saltpeter, which were then dissolved in the waters of the Nile."

Unfortunately, there is no description of the ramps or sleds themselves. Occurs, perhaps, the very word "ramp".

"As I was told, the stone was transported a long distance from Arabia, and these structures were erected using earthen ramps, since machines for lifting had not yet been invented in those days; and the most amazing thing is that although such large structures were built among the sand , there are no traces of either the ramps themselves or the garters made of stones, so it seems as if this was not the result of the hard work of many people, but rather, the whole complex was installed once on the shore among the sand surrounding it by some god. try to portray this as a miracle, claiming that the ramps were made of salt and saltpeter and that when the river turned against them, they dissolved in its waters, and all traces of human labor were destroyed. ! Most likely, the same multitude of workers involved in the construction of these embankments returned their entire mass to their original place; since they (i.e. the Egyptians) say that 360,000 people were They were busy doing their job until the whole building was completed in almost 20 years. "

The description of Diodorus of Siculus about the shipment of building stone from Arabia is reliable, since the term "Arabia" in those days, the land between the Nile and the Red Sea was designated, from where the limestone blocks were transported along the river to the site of the construction of the pyramids.

Despite all the works of Herodotus and Diodorus, their descriptions contain many gross errors. Moreover, Diodorus constantly quotes Herodotus. That is why it is impossible to single out a specific construction technique from their records.

Extraction of blocks for construction

At present, thanks to historians, we have very accurate information about where the quarries were for the extraction of materials for the construction of the pyramids.

When working with limestone, which is relatively

With a soft stone, the workers used copper and bronze picks, drills, saws, and chisels. Even stone tools came up. There are opinions that in the days of the Old Kingdom there were iron tools, but there is no confirmation of this theory by reliable finds of such tools.

Harder stone: quartzite, granite, basalt and others - could be processed by beating with dolerite tools (diabase - full-crystalline fine-grained volcanic rocks). Drilled and sawed with bronze tubes, toothless saws, using abrasives (quartz sand). Hieroglyphs and images were knocked out of flint with chisels.

Granite blocks were broken out of the rock mass using wooden wedges swelling in the water. Perhaps the use of fire.

By the way, the bulk of the stones used for construction does not exceed 1.5 - 2.5 tons, which makes them quite transportable.

The problem with the hypothesis is the enormous laboriousness of the process.

There is also a theory put forward by the French chemist Joseph Davidowitz. He suggested that the blocks were produced directly on site. For this, a mixture of rock chips and "hepolymer concrete" based on limestone was used. According to him, he discovered a recipe for making concrete in hieroglyphs on one of the walls of the pyramid. But his hypothesis did not reach popularity, because scientists who studied the structure of the blocks noted that they are processed blocks of natural sedimentary deposits.

Block types

The bulk of the pyramid is massive limestone stones. Very uneven, weighed several tons, the distance between the blocks can be up to 10 cm. Well visible at the entrance to the Great Pyramid (Al-Mamun's passage)
Limestone blocks of the outer layer that have correct shape, fit tightly to each other, but of different heights (steps on all sides of the pyramid). Weight 2-2.5 tons.
External facing - perfectly even blocks (completely absent on the Cheops pyramid). Only a few have survived in their original place. Imported from quarries in Tour
Thin decorative blocks in all corridors of the Cheops pyramid (or in the "Great Gallery") of limestone or granite. Carefully fitted to each other.
Megalith blocks. They reach weights of tens of tons. For example, 52 monolithic slabs of syenite (granite without quartz) in the burial chamber of King Cheops. Shipped from remote quarries such as Aswan. Weighing from 25 to 40 tons. Or huge rafters in the chambers of the Cheops pyramid.

An example of methods and tools that

Used to cut megalithic blocks, an unfinished obelisk still found in the quarries of Aswan can serve.

Movingblocks

The need to move large volumes of stone is one of the most challenging tasks. The method of drawing blocks on a sled, runners were watered with water as a lubricant. Even the Egyptians knew the use of rollers for rolling large blocks on them on paved roads.

A similar method was used in Russia to move the Thunder Stone, weighing 1,500 tons. However, this method of transportation was not widely used.

Rolling method using the cradle mechanism. It was proposed after the discovery of such mechanisms during excavations of the "New Kingdom" sanctuaries. By placing four devices around the block, it was easy to roll. Even Vitruvius, in his treatise "Ten Books on Architecture", described similar techniques for moving non-standard cargo.

There is no evidence that the Egyptians used this particular method. But experiments show the possibility of working with blocks of this size.

disadvantages Scientists recognize the possibility of such technology for 2.5

The construction of the Egyptian pyramids remains one of the most mysterious topics for mankind to this day. There is a lot of controversy about who built these beautiful structures and how. So, on the issue of the origin of objects, several assumptions can be distinguished at once:

The first and most widespread version is based on the thesis that numerous slaves were involved in the construction of the pyramids. They were forced to lift the blocks to the top along specially constructed ramps. At the same time, according to the theory, stones were processed with copper tools, and lifts were also used for transportation;
The second version, like all subsequent theories, is an assumption with a fantastic bias. The point is that the pyramids are the result of the influence of the energy of the Atlanteans, who made the stones move by only the power of thought;
The third hypothesis is, of course, connected with the activities of aliens, who in ancient times built pyramids for their specific purposes;
They also say that during the construction of the pyramids there was a special human civilization in which all people were at least 2.5 m tall.

These are far from all existing assumptions, but the essence of the rest is not much different from the ones given above.

As you can see, it is possible to argue about the origin of the pyramids almost endlessly, since no concrete evidence in favor of any one theory has yet been presented. However, no less interesting and controversial is the question of the construction technology of the Egyptian pyramids. There is also a certain discussion here, but all hypotheses are substantiated exclusively from a technical point of view, which allows, at least, not to doubt the possibility of their real existence.

In this article, we will consider the main technologies for the construction of pyramids in Ancient Egypt, noting the arguments in their favor, as well as the existing shortcomings. But first, let's note the main features common to the vast majority of assumptions about a specific technology:

The indisputable fact is that the Egyptians' technology improved over time. This is confirmed by real facts obtained in the course of research on the pyramids of various years of construction. It was found that later designs are characterized by a different, improved technology;
The bulk of theories is based on the fact that the Egyptians cut blocks in quarries for construction. In this case, mainly copper tools were used, for example, chisels, chisels, punches, etc.

In view of the latter circumstance, significant differences between the theories are observed in matters of transportation of blocks and methods of their installation.

Now let us consider in detail the specific technologies, in accordance with which the pyramids of Egypt may have been built.

From Herodotus to the present day

The only source that contains at least some information about the construction of pyramids in Ancient Egypt is the descriptions of Herodotus. Actually, the first theory is based on these descriptions. So, the main provisions of this technology:

Stones for construction were quarried, where they were hollowed out with tools;
The transportation of stones to the construction site was carried out with the help of the manual force of slaves, having previously laid a wide solid road to the point of destination;
The actual construction of the pyramid was carried out in stages, with ledges. Initially, the lowest stones were laid, which could be done without any additional devices. For all subsequent steps of the pyramid, wooden platforms were used. Moreover, the same platform, upon completion of the construction of one step, was simply transferred to the next step.

Now let's dwell on each of the stages of construction in detail. First of all, let's talk about the material used.

About stones

So, in accordance with the most widespread opinion about the technology of building pyramids, stones mined in quarries served as the material. In terms of their composition, the blocks were predominantly limestone and, therefore, were rather soft. This made it possible to process them with copper tools.

Simultaneously with materials from limestone rock, harder stones were also used: from basalt, quartzite, granite. They were processed with more powerful tools. Thus, such stones were cut and drilled with abrasives (for example, quartz sand). And the hieroglyphs were applied through the use of quartz cutters. Interestingly, granite, which is the most durable, was split by thermal shock. It happened in the following way: a natural crack was found in the rock, the area around which was heated and then cooled sharply. As a result, the rock split.

In favor of this theory, its supporters refer to the mass of stones from which the pyramids are built. The fact is that their weight, as a rule, does not exceed several tons. And this allows us to speak about a high level of their transportability.

By the way, adherents of the classical theory also substantiate the reasons for choosing the shape and size of blocks for pyramids. In their opinion, the reduction in size would significantly complicate the processing process.
However, the assumption about this technology also has a significant drawback: if we agree that the construction of the pyramids was carried out in this way, then it is impossible to imagine how laborious the whole process was. However, the timing of the construction of the Egyptian pyramids was really impressive: according to the testimony of the same Herodotus, only one road for transporting stone blocks was built over 10 years.

About delivery

It is generally recognized that it is incredibly difficult to deliver building material directly to the site of the future pyramid. And it is precisely according to the methods of delivery of stones that individual directions of the classical theory of construction technology differ:

1. The first assumption is based on frescoes, often found in ancient Egyptian temples. They usually depict people dragging huge statues of certain rulers behind them. In accordance with this, some researchers calculated the possibility of moving stone blocks in this way. The essence of this method boils down to the following: several people (the number depended on the mass of the stone) pulling a large sled with them, on which a block (or several blocks) is placed. It is believed that the Egyptians watered the runners of such sleds with water to ensure sufficient glide.

In parallel with this, the followers of the hypothesis argue, a method based on the use of rollers was also used. In Egypt, paved brick roads were quite developed, along which it was more convenient not to drag sledges with blocks, but to roll the blocks themselves on rollers.

In principle, such assumptions are quite realistic and physically feasible. However, there is one nuance that the researchers do not take into account: in some pyramids there are huge, powerful and massive stones, the mass of which reaches 300 tons. Moving them by dragging is absolutely impossible;

2. The following block delivery method was proposed relatively recently. It is based on cradle mechanisms found during excavations of some sanctuaries of a later time. It has been experimentally proven that it is possible to move a block placed on four mechanisms by rolling.

However, until now, no concrete evidence has been found that the Egyptians used cradle mechanisms specifically for the blocks. In addition, this hypothesis is characterized by the same disadvantage as the previous one: blocks of large mass cannot be moved using such mechanisms. In addition, even the lightest (in comparison with the rest of the stones) block cannot be rolled over the sand, and, meanwhile, roads did not lead directly to the places of construction;

3. Finally, there is another point of view on one of the constituent parts of the pyramid building process - on the delivery of materials. So, a number of experts believe that the stone blocks were moved by means of special platforms, from which the road was built. These platforms were quarters of a circle, due to which the center of gravity of the block is kept at the same level. This design makes it easy to transport even rather heavy stones, especially when it comes to lowering them from a slope, for example, from a quarry.

About construction

How did the pyramids of Egypt appear: was the construction carried out exclusively at the expense of slaves or not? How did the Egyptians raise blocks to such heights? And in these issues today there is no unity, even within the framework of the classical approach.

Considering that the people of Ancient Egypt did not possess all modern means to raise stones to an appropriate height, the most optimal way, according to most researchers, was to make a ramp. Of course, objectively, this was not the easiest method, since a long and high ramp was needed.

However, a few years ago, another option was proposed for the construction of a ramp - inside the pyramid, which caused lively discussions. The essence of this method is that during the construction of the pyramid, an internal ramp was used, installed along its edges and sloping enough to ensure the possibility of lifting the blocks. The internal design of the pyramids is such that such a method could well be applied, but a number of important reservations should be made:

only one ramp can be made inside, which means that the construction time of the pyramids should have been simply huge, because the blocks would have to be lifted sequentially one after another, in a chain;
the use of an internal ramp makes it impossible to push the block from behind, only by pulling behind oneself, and this is very difficult when cornering;
the ramp creates the so-called tunnel effect, that is, in an emergency, all people inside the pyramid would be doomed to certain death;
such a design requires sufficient lighting, and this either required windows or required torches. But there are no windows in the Egyptian pyramids, and the use of torches in the absence of proper ventilation is practically impossible;
finally, a significant drawback of the theory of the internal ramp is that it cannot be done at the very top, therefore, the last blocks were raised in some other way.

Taking into account these shortcomings, the already mentioned technology of using semicircular platforms was proposed. In accordance with it, to lift the block, it was enough only to pull it up on a rope, and he himself, rolling on the platform, rose to the required height. After completing one level, the platforms were moved to the next and so on to the very top.

It was concrete!

But we have considered only one possible construction technology. It is no coincidence that it is called classical, since it prevails among researchers. But we were able to make sure that the classical hypothesis about the construction of pyramids is not holistic in itself, it consists of many differently directed theories and ideas.

In contrast to the first technology, about 40 years ago, another hypothesis was put forward, the main thesis of which was the statement about a completely different composition of stones: it was assumed that they consist of concrete (made on the basis of limestone) and stone chips.

Taking this into account, the construction technology changes significantly: for example, on the very first tier, a rectangular formwork is being built, into which a kind of concrete is poured. The frozen blocks in the lower row act as formwork for the blocks in the upper row.

This theory actually demonstrates the possibility of creating pyramids of this size, and also explains why the individual blocks are so perfectly fitted to each other.

However, this theory has a lot of weaknesses:

first of all, the very fact of the possibility of making concrete by the Egyptians is questioned, since they knew mainly gypsum mortar;
quarries were found in which traces of block cutting work have been preserved;
finally, in the very structure of the pyramid, there are still only external flaws that are unacceptable when using concrete.

Conclusion

Of course, there are numerous other assumptions, but they mainly relate to individual aspects of construction, for example, the issues of stone decoration or the features of masonry. In relation to the whole process, today there are two main and competing technologies, each of which explains some of the secrets of the construction of the pyramids, but does not correlate at all with others. Will there be a third technology or will one of the existing ones be finally proven - a matter of time.

Seeing the controversy about the construction of the pyramids, one involuntarily comes to the conclusion how little the supporters of the so-called alternative history know about Ancient Egypt. Alas, semi-literate hamsters with iPhones and burning tours to Egypt only add fuel to the fire. They take pictures of things, the meaning of which they do not understand and do not even try to understand. All their knowledge is limited to a travel guide.

And now people who do not distinguish the Old Kingdom from the Middle and confuse Ramses II with Senusert III, begin to draw "meaningful" conclusions based on their kitchen logic, office knowledge and pictures from a school textbook, that historians and scientists are lying. I will try to dispel a number of misconceptions.

Egypt pyramid era. This is the era of the Old Kingdom (28-23 centuries BC) - one of the few first civilizations of the Bronze Age among the barbarians. Others were the Sumerians in Mesopotamia and the Harappians in the Punjab. After a long bloody struggle, many small city-states were united under the rule of one king-pharaoh. To make their power legitimate, the pharaohs assigned themselves divine status, created a bureaucratic apparatus, an army (the arsenals of bronze weapons belonged to the pharaoh) and brought the country under their control. Pharaoh's will at that time was not limited to anything. Military campaigns made it possible to loot neighbors and increase the flow of copper and tin into Egypt, which were strategic materials at the time. Bronze began to suffice for household tools, but they were in the minority - stone and wooden tools were used throughout the entire period of Ancient Egypt. Pharaoh's officials literally controlled the population - everything was written down in the documents: to whom how much of what was issued and how much was produced. Moreover, the pharaohs appropriated all arable land as private property. The pharaohs distributed the lands as a reward to nobles and temples. The population of Egypt was imposed with taxes and duties, including for the construction of public buildings and canals. The peasant did not have any rights - the ancient peasant communities were slowly losing importance, losing their rights and falling under the rule of the pharaoh and nobles. The peasant had to work uncomplainingly and praise the gods and the pharaoh, otherwise any official could beat him with a stick.

What technologies did the Egyptians have at that time? They perfectly worked with stone (the experience was thousands of years old), made ceramics, mastered metallurgy. From the Stone Age, the Egyptians received and developed drilling technology, including stone, leather, bone, wood processing. They knew the fermentation process for making bread and beer. The Egyptians used the full range of materials available to them, down to bird feathers and intestines. It should be remembered that Egypt, in addition to stone, experienced a shortage of everything, including wood, so reeds were widely used, of which there were a lot (they were made from mats and baskets to ships, not to mention writing material - papyrus). There was no shortage of clay. The Egyptians knew how to make glazed ceramics - faience. They knew how to make various paints and varnish. The Egyptians did not know any super-technologies - they simply perfectly mastered the technologies available to them, which hamsters with iPhones are not even able to understand.

The slaves did not build the pyramid. One of the most stupid claims of alternatively gifted comrades is that historians allegedly tell them about the construction of pyramids by thousands of slaves. There is clearly a knowledge gap. Alternativeists demonstrate their ignorance by attributing false statements to historians. It is very convenient: he himself came up with nonsense - he himself refuted it.

In fact, slavery in Egypt at that time was patriarchal, that is, slaves were used in the household. There were not many slaves, mostly women. The pyramids were built by the most ordinary Egyptian peasants. Construction usually took 3-4 months during the flood of the Nile, when the peasants had nothing to do. Work on the construction site was a kind of shabbat for the peasants, because they received food rations for their work. It is clear that the annual work willy-nilly developed their professional qualities. Therefore, by the time the Great Pyramids were built, there were enough professional builders in Egypt. The stone blocks themselves were cut by professional teams of stonecutters, who worked for the state for food, clothing and beer (there was no money at that time). It can be assumed that private orders were carried out for the tombs of nobles. All the peasants of Egypt knew how to use bricks.

The construction was overseen by officials appointed by the pharaoh. It is difficult to say how much they knew about mathematics and geometry, but there were specialists who could calculate the area of \u200b\u200bthe base and the angle of inclination. True, sometimes they were wrong. So the pyramids of Pharaoh Sneferu (2613-2589 BC) turned out to be defective: one Egyptologists called it "broken", and the second "pink" the architects messed up with measuring the angle of inclination.

"Pink" pyramid

Therefore, by the time of the IV Dynasty, whose pharaohs built the Great Pyramids, the Egyptians had accumulated experience and knowledge for such grandiose construction projects. Cheops, Mikerin and Chephren only used all the resources of their state and eventually undermined the economy of Egypt and the foundations of the power of their dynasty, when the priests of the god Ra in Heliopolis eventually seized power.

The pyramids are built from 10-50 ton blocks. Another lie that alternative comrades are feeding gullible readers. This is understandable, because the drawings from children's books paint truly terrible pictures, where half-naked people drag huge blocks along the slope.

They are actually nightmares of ignorance. In fact, large blocks are only at the base of the pyramid. The higher the pyramid was, the smaller the blocks became. Here is a photo of the upper tiers of the Cheops pyramid - pay attention to the doves for scale. The height of the block is 45-50 cm, that is, the Egyptians had saws to cut blocks of this size.

Horrors about the average blocks of the Cheops pyramid of 2.5 tons came from the outstanding English Egyptologist of the 19th century. F. Petri, who made calculations on the pyramid. At the same time, for some reason he counted the mass of sandstone as 2.2 tons per cubic meter. m., although in fact - 1.7 tons per cubic meter. m. Limestone weight - 1.6 tons per cubic meter. m. It is from these rocks that the pyramids were built. The volume of the Petrie block was calculated at 1.14 cubic meters. m. As you can see, in fact, the average block did not even reach 2 tons. But many blocks are less than a cubic meter. Even the largest blocks of the lower tiers do not reach 5 tons. This is understandable, masons would not make blocks that the workers could not move.

It is not difficult to notice that the ancient builders did not particularly hammer their heads with the processing of blocks - they did it somehow and that's enough. Anyway, no one will see them later, since the pyramid will be faced with slabs.

Millions of blocks in the Cheops pyramid. The myth came from Wikipedia (I don't know who crammed this information there).

The number of blocks of the average volume does not exceed 1.65 million (2.50 million m³ - 0.6 million m³ of the rock base inside the pyramid \u003d 1.9 million m³ / 1.147 m³ \u003d 1.65 million blocks of the specified volume can physically fit in the pyramid, without accounting for the volume of the solution in the interblock seams); attributing to a 20-year construction period * 300 working days a year * 10 working hours a day * 60 minutes an hour leads to a speed of laying (and delivery to the construction site) - about a block of two minutes.

Really impressive. In fact, we do not know how many blocks are in the pyramid. The calculations are made speculatively based on the total volume of the pyramid (minus the voids and the rocky base). In fact, the pyramid may not be entirely monolithic. So, during the excavations of the Palace of Knossos in Crete, archaeologists discovered that the ancient builders of the palace walls, where stone blocks were used, built them with cavities that were clogged with rubble. It can be assumed that this is Egyptian technology. And if we consider that scientists constantly find mysterious voids filled with sand in the Cheops pyramid, it is quite possible that the Egyptians saved time and materials with just such cavities, clogging them with sand and rubble. And besides, there is an error in this calculation, which does not take into account such a thing as a man-hour. Of course, if the workers, lined up in one row, will lay one block at a time, then the calculation is correct. So about an alternatively gifted mind and thinks - they simply cannot imagine the organizational abilities of their ancestors. In fact, the construction was grandiose. Dozens, if not hundreds, of brigades worked there. So the pyramid was built from all four sides at once by several dozen brigades at the same time.

Cheops did not manage to finish building his pyramid - he died before the interior finishing work began. So he was buried in an unfinished tomb, where the working marks of the ancient builders remained on the walls.

Therefore, the millions of blocks in the Cheops pyramid are still a big question that needs to be resolved.

Geopolymer concrete. Well, the most delicious. Alternatively, gifted individuals, instead of looking for answers, began to invent them. If, in their opinion, the pyramids could not be built from stone, then they were cast from concrete. Why it is easier is not clear. The fable about "geopolymer" concrete was thrown by the French chemist of Jewish origin Joseph Davidovich. It is not difficult to look at his site geopolymer.org to understand that Davidovich did a good business, shoeing suckers with fairy tales about ancient geopolymers. Here and the sale of books, lectures, courses, paid of course. It is also not difficult to find out that the mythical Egyptian geopolymers have nothing to do with real geopolymers. In Russia, this bike was picked up by two novokhrenologists - Fomenko and Nosovsky, already shoeing our suckers.

Geopolymers are materials based on alkaline activation binders (metakaolin, for example) or, based on finely dispersed amorphous or crystalline aluminosilicate materials, sealed with alkali or salt solutions that have an alkaline reaction (usually solutions of sodium and potassium hydroxides, silicates or aluminates). This is not the case in the minds of the alternatively gifted. They have it just a stone crushed into powder, which is diluted with water, after which you can make anything from the mixture - even a block, even a column, even a statue.
The neohrenologists Fomenko and Nosovsky themselves imagine the process as follows:

To obtain primitive concrete, it was enough to grind the rock into a fine powder, remove moisture from it, and then mix it with water. It is easier to use soft rocks, for example, limestone, the outlets of which are located right on the pyramid field in Egypt. Here it could be taken just under your feet, next to the pyramids under construction. To obtain cement, moisture must be removed from the rock. But in the conditions of hot and dry Egypt, where it rains sometimes ONCE IN FIVE YEARS, v. 15, p. 447, special drying was unnecessary. The breed was already dry enough. After grinding, ready-made cement was immediately obtained. If you pour it into the formwork knocked out of the boards, pour it with water and mix thoroughly, then after drying, the particles of the crushed rock will firmly adhere to each other. When the solution dries, it will turn to stone. The result is primitive concrete.

This quote is the whole alternative theory about "geopolymer concrete". Further, the adherents of new chrenology usually have dozens of photos of the supposedly "liquid stone" and the supposedly historical insights of alternative brains. I can say one thing, do not actually make such concrete, otherwise such "concrete" will fall apart right before your eyes. Why? Because concrete must contain a component with binding properties, but alternatively gifted creatures are not aware of this. By itself, crushed limestone or gypsum does not possess astringent properties. To do this, they need to be burned. It is because of the laborious manufacturing process that concrete did not gain ground until the industrial era. It was easier to cut down a stone block than to grind the stone into powder, burn it, mix the solution. Machines made this process easier and faster, with the result that concrete displaced stone and brick from construction. But the new chukchi chukchi are not builders, but astronomers.

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But let's move on to an alternative version of "geopolymer concrete". For some reason, alternative comrades are firmly convinced that it is easier to cast a pyramid from concrete than to build from stone. Consider the process of building from a stone: a stone was cut out in a quarry, hewn, delivered to the construction site, placed in a pyramid.

Now the process of concrete casting.

1. The stone was cut out.

2. Crushed the stone into crushed stone.

3. Pounded the crushed stone into powder.

4. The powder was burnt in a fire.

5. Poured into bags or baskets.

6. Delivered to the place.

7. We built the formwork.

8. Knead the solution.

9. Wait for the block to dry.

10. They put it in a pyramid.

As you can see, this is a longer and more costly method of construction. What objections arise:

1. How and with what did they crush the crushed stone of the messenger and sandstone into powder? Some alternative comrades are of the opinion that the stone was rubbed with graters by hand. Well, let them try to do it themselves and see how they do it. And it is not at all clear how such a trick will go with them with granite, basalt, diorite or quartzite. They often offer historians to make a catapult, then make a stone block. So I propose to crush a couple of granite stones into granite chips with your own hands. It will be very interesting to look at this process.

2. The number of tools for such work will be simply fantastic - hundreds of hammers, picks, pestles and everything made of expensive bronze and copper, which were very few at that time. Egypt of the Old Kingdom could not afford such a consumption of metal when the country actually lived in the Stone Age.

3. It is not clear where the Egyptians got so much wood for burning limestone or gypsum into lime. Egypt is poor in wood and barely enough for the needs of metallurgy and ceramics. And without firing any concrete will not work.

4. The bags for cement, we are told by the proponents of the alternative version, were allegedly in stock. They say that if a block, according to Petrie, is 2.5 tons, then having a bag of 50 kg is 50 bags for casting one block. So, alternative comrades, it was Egypt of the 3rd millennium BC. e. There were no sack factories. All textiles were produced by women - wives and slaves. The bags themselves were mainly used for storing wheat - approx. 60 kg per bag. The question arises: where did they get so many bags for millions of tons of cement?

5. How were these bags of cement delivered to the construction site? The stone was mined on the opposite bank of the Nile. From the Nile to Giza - approx. 10 km.

Dragging bags on your back - I advise alternative comrades to do this experience themselves. Dragging on donkeys was expensive for the time. And there weren't so many donkeys in Egypt. Dragging on a sled? So what's the advantage over the stone block?

6. What was the formwork made of? Wood in Egypt is a rare scarce imported raw material. It was barely enough for ceiling beams, furniture, weapons, so it was necessary to import or plunder the neighboring peoples. And here we need tons of wood for the formwork. We've spent 1.5 million blocks on the Cheops pyramid, haven't you forgotten? But apparently, the alternative comrades themselves understand this. A certain Kolmykov even published a neo-chrenological article in a serious journal, where he wrote in all seriousness:

"The set of signs allows us to make a categorical conclusion that the blocks of the Cheops pyramid were made by casting into the formwork. The formwork could be, for example, animal skins sewn together or sheet metal with an uneven surface or other material fixed in the frame and allowing such traces to be left on the trace-receiving surface ".