Cheops ( Khufu) Is indeed a wonder of the world. From the foot to the top, it reaches 137.3 meters, and before it lost the top, its height was 146.7 meters. A century and a half ago, it was the tallest structure in the world, only in 1880 it was surpassed by two built-on towers of the Cologne Cathedral (by 20 meters), and in 1889 - by the Eiffel Tower. The sides of its base are 230.4 meters long, and the area is 5.4 hectares. Its original volume was 2,520,000 cubic meters; it is now about 170,000 cubic meters less, as the pyramid has been used as a quarry for centuries. About 2,250,000 stone blocks were used for its construction, each with a volume of more than a cubic meter; this material would be enough to build a city with a population of one hundred thousand. Its weight is 6.5-7 million tons. If it were hollow, it would include a space rocket launcher. According to experts, even an atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima would not have destroyed it.
It was built, according to the most common dating, in 2560-2540. BC e., although some scientists give dates about 150 years earlier. There are three chambers inside the pyramid, corresponding to the three stages of its construction. The first chamber is carved into the rock at a depth of about 30 meters below the base of the pyramid and not quite exactly in the middle of it; its area is 8 x 14 meters, height - 3.5 meters. It remained unfinished, as well as the second, which is in the core of the pyramid, just below the top, at a height of about 20 meters above the base; its area is 5.7 x 5.2 meters, the vaulted ceiling reaches a height of 6.7 meters; it was once called “the tomb of the queen”. The third chamber is the tomb of the king; unlike the other two, it is finished; the sarcophagus of Cheops was found in it. It was built at a height of 42.3 meters above the base and slightly south of the axis of the pyramid; its dimensions are 10.4 x 5.2 meters; height - 5.8 meters. It is faced with impeccably polished and carefully fitted granite slabs; above the ceiling there are five unloading chambers, the total height of which is 17 meters. They take on the weight of about a million tons of stone mass so that it does not press directly on the burial chamber.
The pharaoh's sarcophagus is wider than the entrance to the chamber. It is hewn from a single piece of brown-gray granite, without date or inscription, rather badly damaged. He stands in the western corner of the tomb, right on the floor. It was placed here during construction, and, apparently, since then, no one has moved. This sarcophagus looks like it was cast from metal. But the body of Cheops himself is not in it.
All three cells have “hallways”, and they are all connected by corridors or shafts. Some mines end in dead ends. Two shafts lead from the royal tomb to the surface of the pyramid, going out approximately in the middle of the northern and southern walls. One of their purposes is to provide ventilation; there may have been others.
Discovery: Exploding History. Secrets of the Great Pyramid
The original entrance to the pyramid is located on the north side, 25 meters above the base. Now another entrance leads to the pyramid, pierced in 820 by the caliph Mamun, who hoped to discover the untold treasures of the pharaoh, but did not find anything. This entrance is located about 15 meters lower than the previous one, almost in the very center of the north side.
The great pyramid surrounded by no less labor-intensive and expensive buildings. Herodotus, who saw the road leading from the upper (funeral) temple to the lower one, which was lined with polished slabs and had a width of 18 meters, called its construction a work "almost as huge as the construction of the pyramid itself." Now some 80 meters have survived from it - the road disappeared in late XIX century during the construction of the village of Nazlat es-Simman, now, like Giza, which became part of Cairo. Somewhere in its place there was a lower temple, 30 meters high, but it probably fell victim to people who were looking for building material even in ancient times.
Of the buildings that surrounded the Great Pyramid, only the ruins of the upper (funeral) temple and three companion pyramids have survived. The traces of the temple were discovered in 1939 by the Egyptian archaeologist Abu Seif. As usual, it was east of the pyramid, and its pediment was 100 Egyptian cubits (52.5 meters); it was built of Tours limestone, had a courtyard with 38 square granite pillars, 12 of the same pillars stood in the vestibule in front of a small sanctuary. On both sides of it, about 10 meters away, during excavations, two docks carved into the limestone plateau were found, where the “sun boats” were probably kept, the third such “dock” was found to the left of the road to the lower temple. Unfortunately, the "docks" were empty, but archaeologists were rewarded with the accidental discovery of two more such "docks" in 1954. In one of them rested a perfectly preserved boat - the most ancient ship in the world. Its length is 36 meters, and it is made of cedar.
The companion pyramids are also located east of the Great Pyramid, although they were usually built to the south. The pyramids are located from north to south "in height", the side of the square base of the first pyramid is 49.5 meters, the second - 49, the third - 46.9. Each of them had a stone fence, a memorial chapel and a burial chamber, into which a steep shaft led; in addition, next to the first was the "dock" for the "solar boat". Most scholars believe that these pyramids belonged to the wives of Khufu, of whom the first (main), according to ancient custom, was probably his sister. The names of the first two are unknown to us, the third was Henutsen.
All three companion pyramids are quite well preserved, only they are devoid of external facing.
Apparently, to the east of the first, it was planned to build another, larger one, but the construction was stopped. According to one hypothesis, it was intended for Queen Hetepheres, the wife of the pharaoh Sneferu and Khufu's mother. In the end, Khufu decided to build a secret tomb in the rock for her a little to the north. This tomb was actually concealed ... until January 1925, when the photographer Reisner's tripod fell into the gap between the camouflage blocks. Then the members of the Harvard-Boston expedition carried out treasures for three months: thousands of small gold plaques, pieces of furniture and household utensils; gold and silver bracelets, cosmetic boxes with "shadows" for eyeliner, manicure knives, jewelry boxes with the name of the queen. Canopy with her entrails and an alabaster sarcophagus were found, which, however, turned out to be empty. This is the first intact tomb of a member of the royal family from the Old Kingdom to be found.
The Great Pyramid was surrounded by a ten-meter stone wall... The ruins of the wall show that it was 3 meters thick and 10.5 meters away from the pyramid. Near it, in the distance, there were mastabas (tombs) of dignitaries: almost a hundred of them survived from the north side, more than ten from the south, about forty from the east.
The Pyramid of Cheops was built around 2600 BC.
The pyramids are shrouded in mystery to this day. Many scientists have devoted their entire lives to unraveling the great construction and purpose of these magnificent buildings. However, several millennia, from the first study of Herodotus to the present day, have not brought the expected success. The main questions remained unanswered - who? when? why? We will tell you about the most reliable assumptions and versions collected by the best scientists over several centuries and related to the history of the Egyptian pyramids.
Already in ancient times, the pyramids were considered one of the main wonders of the world! Their number was about 100 pieces located along the banks of the Nile River. If you look at all the pyramids from above, then their location is similar to the map of the starry sky. The largest, main pyramids are at Giza. The world famous sphinxes, as well as temples and tombs of the pharaohs, are also located here. A very important factor of the pyramids is that all their faces are clearly located along the magnetic poles of the Earth! You probably already know the name three main pyramids? If not, then be sure to remember - the pyramid of Cheops, Mikerin and Khafre.
The largest pyramid, Cheops, was erected by Khufu, who at that time was the pharaoh. The estimated, most accurate date of construction is 2590 BC. The height of the pyramid is more than 146 meters, the length of each side is more than 241 m. The sides are located to the cardinal points with amazing accuracy, the angle of inclination is 52 degrees. The Cheops pyramid covers an area of 5.4 hectares, the base is aligned with the horizon with an accuracy of 3 centimeters. The pyramid consists of more than 2,350,000 stone blocks, each weighing about two and a half tons! The pyramid was originally covered with white sandstone cladding for precise shape and long-term preservation. Unfortunately, the cladding has not survived to this day.
The entrance to the pyramid is at a height of 14 meters. There are no decorations inside, no inscriptions or drawings. For that, there are three chambers, the lower of which is located at a depth of 30 meters above the ground. The room is carved into the rock, in order to get to it you need to overcome 120 meters of a narrow corridor (1.1x1.0) at an angle of 27 degrees. After that, the remaining 9 meters, the angle changes to zero relative to the horizon. The tunnel ends with a burial chamber with dimensions (8.0x14.0x3.0).
Now the passage to the lower tier is closed, for which you can go up the stairs, and then along the corridor of 40 meters, which leads to the queen's chamber. A room with dimensions (5.5x5.2x6.3) is located clearly in the middle, at a height of 20 meters from the ground. There are two ventilation shafts in the walls, directed exactly north and south, but not facing the street.
Even higher is the "Grand Gallery" - a corridor more than 48 meters long, with a ceiling height of 8.4 m and an angle of inclination of 26 degrees. The walls are lined with polished limestone slabs in eight layers. At the end of the corridor there is the main room - the tomb of the pharaoh with dimensions (10.5x5.3x5.8). The chamber is lined with black Aswan granite, each block of which weighs at least thirty tons! Moreover, all blocks are so well polished and fitted that even the thinnest blade of a knife will not pass between them. The ceiling consists of 9 monoliths, each weighing over 400 tons. Above them there are unloading chambers 17 meters high, designed to preserve the peace of the pharaoh. A gable roof was built above them, made of huge blocks that take on the weight of more than a million tons! Note also that the pharaoh's sarcophagus is much wider than the entrance to the chamber, and most likely it was hewn right here, from a large block of granite.
There are also ventilation chambers (0.2x0.2) with an exact north-south direction, but unlike the queen's chamber, here they go outside. In 817, Caliph Mamun was able to enter the tomb of the pharaoh, but found there only an empty sarcophagus, the remains of Cheops were never found.
The finds near the pyramid are also interesting. For example, in 1953, during excavations, the oldest ship in the world was discovered - a wooden boat, about 44 meters long, built without nails from cedar. On the wooden elements of which traces of silt were found, it means that at one time the boat was used for its intended purpose. Ancient scriptures claim that the pyramid was surrounded by a stone wall, which was 10 meters high and 3 meters wide. Two temples were located nearby - the upper and the lower. The upper one was east of the pyramid, built of Turkish limestone, it contained about 40 granite pillars. The lower temple was used for the first part of the burial ceremony.
The essence of the entire system of buildings was most likely as follows - initially, the remains of the pharaoh were delivered along the Nile to the lower temple, where, after the necessary preparations, they were sent to the upper temple along a long, connecting corridor. In the upper temple, among the many columns, a funeral service and prayers for the repose of the pharaoh took place. After that, the body was delivered to the lower chamber of the pyramid, where the pharaoh was carefully walled up. On the four sides of the pyramid, walled up in the rocks, there were four boats intended for travel in the afterlife. The main pyramid was accompanied by three small companion pyramids (base length 49 m), located, like the upper temple, in the east. Moreover, each next of which (from north to south) is less than the previous one. It is believed that the companion pyramids were intended for the wives of the pharaoh.
There are other theories about the purpose of the pyramids. In those distant times, the pharaohs were ruled by a group of priests who possessed unearthly knowledge. This was a separate caste of people who called themselves the chosen ones. They knew mathematics, medicine, astronomy and other sciences very well. The level of education of the priests was several times higher than our idea of the world. This knowledge was inaccessible to the common man. The priests chose their disciples themselves, initiating and teaching them in underground chambers located under the pyramids. The teachings assumed a connection with the universe and awareness of the essence of earthly existence. After that, the student was subjected to tests in the labyrinths of the pyramids, then in a secret sanctuary, under pain of death, they achieved complete obedience and an oath not to disclose secrets. The priests could predict the future, thanks to their connection with the higher forces of the universe. Let's make a reservation right away, later the chosen ones disappeared, due to the so-called disconnection.
Modern scientists have found a lot of evidence for this - the 33-year duration of Christ, the date of the beginning of the Second World War. Back in 1964, Charles Smith suggested that the pyramids store information for understanding the prophecies from the Bible from the beginning of time to the second coming of God.
In 1994, a discovery was made using computer simulations that explained the location of the three main pyramids, which exactly correspond to the positions of the three stars in Orion's belt, which at the time were crossing the Giza meridian. If this assumption is correct, then the age of the pyramids could be increased to 10,400 BC! The same Sphinx is a confirmation of this theory, because his gaze is directed exactly to the point where this constellation was located.
With the help of modern equipment, hidden tunnels were discovered under the sphinx itself, which, according to the legend, were supposed to lead to a chamber containing a capsule with a message for all mankind. Indeed, the chamber was found, it contained a sarcophagus made of black granite, unfortunately, and it turned out to be empty. For that, on the walls of the tunnel leading to the chamber, drawings were found that represent predictions of the future of humanity. From there it became known that a series of cosmic cataclysms awaits our civilization, which will nightmare the "Earth" for several millennia .. However, the priests will again appear on our planet and find a way to salvation by conquering space and restoring a civilization based on the laws of life.
Cheops pyramid. Device. Riddles. Pyramids on the map. Dimensions. Photo
- Oh Osiris, I do not want to die! - Who wants to? Osiris shrugged his shoulders. - But I ... I am still a Pharaoh! .. Listen, - Cheops whispered, - I will sacrifice you a hundred thousand slaves. Just let me immortalize one of my life! - One hundred thousand? And are you sure they will all die on construction? - Rest assured. Such a pyramid, as I conceived ... - Well, if so ... Perpetuate, I do not mind.
The Pyramid of Cheops
Nobody remembers Cheops alive. Everyone remembers him only when he is dead. He was dead a hundred, and a thousand, and three thousand years ago and always, always will be dead - the pyramid immortalized his death.
1. What is called the first wonder of the world?
Already in antiquity, the pyramids of Giza were considered one of the seven "wonders of the world". The largest of the pyramids was built by Pharaoh Khufu (2590 - 2568 BC), in Greek his name sounded - Cheops. Currently, the height of the pyramid is 138 m, although initially it was 147 m: the top stones fell during earthquakes. The pyramid is composed of 2.5 million limestone blocks of various sizes, weighing an average of 2.5 tons. Initially, it was faced with white sandstone, which is harder than the main blocks, but the facing has not survived. At the base of the pyramid lies a square with a side of 230 m and is oriented to the cardinal points. According to some legends, the corners of the square symbolize Truth, Reason, Silence and Depth, according to others, the pyramid is based on four material substances from which the human body is created.
The greatest creations of antiquity among the pyramids include only the pyramid of Cheops, also called the Great Pyramid.
At a distance of about 160 meters from the pyramid of Cheops, the pyramid of Chephren rises, the height of which is 136.6 meters, and the length of the sides is 210.5 meters. At its top, part of the original cladding is still visible. 
The Pyramid of Mikerin, which is even smaller, is located 200 meters from the Pyramid of Khafre. Its height is 62 meters, and the length of the sides is 108 meters. But the most famous Egyptian monument in the world after the pyramid of Cheops is the figure of the sphinx, vigilantly guarding the city of the dead.
The three pyramids are part of a complex that also consists of several temples, small pyramids, tombs of priests and officials.
Smaller and located south of the pyramid were probably intended for the wives of rulers and remained unfinished.
2. How was the pyramid of Cheops built?
Its height is 146.6 m, which roughly corresponds to a fifty-story skyscraper. The base area is 230x230 m. In such a space, the five largest cathedrals in the world could freely fit at the same time: St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome, St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Abbey in London, as well as the Florentine and Milan cathedrals. All churches in Germany created in our millennium could have been built from the building stone that went into the construction of the Cheops pyramid. The young pharaoh Cheops gave the order to build the pyramid immediately after the death of his father Sneferu. Like all previous pharaohs from the time of Djoser (about 2609 -2590 BC), Cheops wanted to be buried after his death in a pyramid.
The ivory statue of Pharaoh Cheops is the only surviving image of the pharaoh. On the head of Cheops is the crown of the Ancient Egyptian kingdom, in his hand is a ceremonial fan.
Like his predecessors, he believed that his pyramid should surpass in size, splendor and luxury all other pyramids. But before the first of the more than two million blocks that make up the pyramid was hewn in a quarry on east coast Nile, complex preparatory work was carried out. First, it was necessary to find a suitable site for the construction of the pyramid. The weight of the huge structure is 6,400,000 tons, so the soil had to be strong enough so that the pyramid would not sink into the ground under its own weight. The construction site was chosen south of the modern Egyptian capital Cairo, on the ledge of a plateau in the desert seven kilometers west of the village of Giza. This solid rocky area was able to support the weight of the pyramid.
First, the surface of the site was leveled. For this, a waterproof shaft of sand and stones was built around it. In the resulting square, a dense network of small channels intersecting at right angles was cut down, so that the site looked like a huge chessboard. The canals were filled with water, the height of the water level was marked on the side walls, then the water was drained. The stone cutters cut down everything that protruded above the surface of the water, and the canals were again filled with stones. The base of the pyramid was ready. 
Over 4,000 people - artists, architects, stonecutters and other artisans - have been doing this preparatory work for about ten years. Only after that it was possible to proceed with the construction of the pyramid itself. According to the Greek historian Herodotus (490 - 425 BC), the construction continued for another twenty years, about 100,000 people worked on the construction of the huge tomb of Cheops. Only on the radishes, onions and garlic, which were added to the food of the construction workers, 1,600 talents were spent, i.e. approximately $ 20 million. Data on the number of workers are being questioned by many modern researchers. In their opinion, for such a number of people, there would simply not be enough space on the construction site: more than 8,000 people would not be able to work productively without interfering with each other.
Herodotus, who visited Egypt in 425 BC, wrote: "The method used was to build in steps, or, as some call, rows or terraces. When the foundation was completed, the blocks for the next row above the base were raised from the main level by means of devices made of short wooden levers; on this first row there was another one that lifted the blocks one level higher, thus, step by step, the blocks were lifted all 
Higher and higher. Each row or level had its own set of mechanisms of the same type that easily moved loads from level to level. The completion of the construction of the pyramid began at the top from the highest level, continued downward, and ended with the lowest levels, which are closer to the ground. "
During the construction of the pyramid, Egypt was a wealthy country. Every year from the end of June to November, the Nile overflowed its banks and flooded the adjacent fields with its waters, leaving a thick layer of silt on them, which turned the dry sand of the desert into fertile soil. Therefore, in favorable years, it was possible to take up to three harvests a year - grain, fruits and vegetables. So, from June to November, the peasants could not work in their fields. And they were delighted when every year in mid-June, the pharaoh's scribe appeared in their village, compiling lists of those wishing to work on the construction of the pyramid.
3. Who worked on the construction of the pyramid?
Almost everyone wanted this work, which means that it was not bonded, but voluntary labor. This was due to two reasons: each participant in the construction during the work received housing, clothing, food and a modest salary. Four months later, when the waters of the Nile left the fields, the peasants returned to their villages. 
In addition, each Egyptian considered it his natural duty and a matter of honor to participate in the construction of the pyramid for the pharaoh. After all, anyone who contributed to the fulfillment of this grandiose task hoped that a particle of the immortality of the godlike pharaoh would touch him too. Therefore, at the end of June, endless streams of peasants rushed to Giza. There they were housed in temporary barracks and formed into groups of eight. Work could begin. Having sailed on boats to the other side of the Nile, the men went to the quarry. There they cut down a block of stone, hewed it out using sledgehammers, wedges, saws and drills and received a block of the desired size - with sides from 80 cm to 1.45 m.Using ropes and levers, each group installed its block on wooden runners and on them she dragged him along the log deck to the bank of the Nile. The sailboat ferried workers and a block weighing up to 7.5 tons to the other side.
4. What was the most dangerous job?
On the roads lined with logs, the stone was transported by drag to the construction site. This was the turn of the hardest work, since cranes and other lifting devices had not yet been invented. Along an inclined entrance 20 m wide, built of bricks from Nile silt, runners with a stone block were pulled to the upper platform of the pyramid under construction with the help of ropes and levers. There, the workers laid the block in the place indicated by the architect with an accuracy of a millimeter. The higher the pyramid rose, the longer and steeper the entrance became, and the more the upper working platform became smaller. Therefore, it was getting harder and harder to work.
Then came the turn of the most dangerous work: laying the "pyramidon" - the upper block nine meters high, dragged upward along the inclined entrance. How many people died doing this job alone, we do not know. So twenty years later, the construction of the pyramid body was completed, which consists of 128 layers of stone and four meters higher than the Strasbourg Cathedral. By this time, the pyramid looked about the same as it looks now: it was a stepped mountain. However, the work did not end there: the steps were laid with stones, so that the surface of the pyramid, although not quite smooth, was already without protrusions. At the end of the work, the four triangular outer faces of the pyramid were lined with slabs of dazzling white limestone. The edges of the slabs were fitted so precisely that it was impossible to insert even a knife blade between them. Even from a distance of several meters, the pyramid gave the impression of a giant monolith. The outer slabs have been polished to a mirror finish using the hardest grinding stones. According to eyewitnesses, in the sun or in the moonlight, the tomb of Cheops mysteriously sparkled like a huge crystal glowing from within.
5. What's inside the pyramid of Cheops?
The Cheops pyramid does not consist entirely of stone. Inside it is a branched system of passages, which through a large passage 47 m long, the so-called large gallery, leads to the pharaoh's chamber - a room 10.5 m long, 5.3 m wide and 5.8 m high.It is entirely faced with granite, but not decorated with any ornament. There is a large empty granite sarcophagus without a lid. The sarcophagus was brought here during construction, since it does not pass through any of the pyramid's passages. There are such chambers of the pharaohs in almost all Egyptian pyramids ah, they served as Pharaoh's final resting place.
There are no inscriptions or decorations inside the Cheops pyramid, with the exception of a small portrait in the passage leading to the Queen's chamber. This image resembles a photograph in stone. On the outer walls of the pyramid there are numerous curvilinear grooves of large and small sizes, in which, at a certain angle of illumination, an image 150 meters high can be discerned - a portrait of a man, apparently one of the deities Ancient egypt... This image is surrounded by other images (a trident of the Atlanteans and Scythians, an airplane bird, plans of stone buildings, pyramid rooms), texts, individual letters, large signs resembling a flower bud, etc. On the north side of the pyramid is a portrait of a man and a woman with their heads bowed to each other. These huge images were painted just a few years before the main pyramid was completed and installed in 2630 BC. top stone.
Inside the Cheops pyramid there are three burial chambers, one above the other. The construction of the first chamber was not completed. It was carved into the rocky base. To get into it, you need to overcome 120 m of a narrow descending corridor. The first burial chamber is connected with the second horizontal corridor 35 m long and 1.75 m high. The second chamber is called the "queen's chamber", although according to the rite of the pharaohs' wives they were buried in separate small pyramids.
The queen's chamber was overgrown with legends. A legend is associated with it, according to which the pyramid was the main temple of a certain Supreme Deity, a place where ancient secret religious rituals were held. Somewhere in the depths of the pyramid lives an unknown creature with the face of a lion, who holds in his hands the seven keys of Eternity. No one can see it, except for those who have undergone special rituals of preparation and purification. Only to them did the Great Priest reveal the secret Divine Name. The person who owns the secret name became equal in his magical power to the pyramid itself. The main sacrament of initiation took place in the royal chamber. There the candidate, tied to a special cross, was placed in a huge sarcophagus. The person taking initiation was, as it were, in an interval between the material world and the divine world, inaccessible to human consciousness. 
From the beginning of the horizontal corridor, another one, about 50 m long and more than 8 high, goes upward. At the end of it there is a horizontal passage leading to the burial chamber of the pharaoh, trimmed with granite, in which the sarcophagus is placed. In addition to burial chambers, voids and ventilation shafts were found in the pyramid. However, the purpose of many rooms and various hollow channels is not fully understood. One of such rooms is the room where on the table lies an open book about the history and achievements of the country during the period of completion of the pyramid construction.
The purpose of the underground structures at the foot of the Cheops pyramid is also unclear. Some of them were opened in different time... In one of the underground structures in 1954, archaeologists found the oldest ship on Earth - a wooden boat, called solar, 43.6 m long, disassembled into 1224 parts. It was built of cedar without a single nail and, as evidenced by the traces of silt preserved on it, before the death of Cheops, it was still floating on the Nile.
6. How was the burial of Pharaoh?
After death, the carefully embalmed body of the ruler was placed in the burial chamber of the pyramid. The internal organs of the deceased were placed in special hermetic vessels, the so-called canopic tubes, which were placed next to the sarcophagus in the burial chamber. So, the mortal remains of the pharaoh found their last earthly refuge in the pyramid, and the "ka" of the deceased left the tomb. "Ka", according to Egyptian ideas, was considered something like a double of man, his "second self", which left the body at the time of death and could freely move between the earthly and the afterlife. Leaving the burial chamber, "ka" rushed to the top of the pyramid along its outer facing, so smooth that none of the mortals could move on it. There was already the father of the pharaohs - the sun god Ra in his solar boat, in which the deceased pharaoh began his journey into immortality.
Recently, some scholars have expressed doubt that the Great Pyramid really was the tomb of Pharaoh Cheops. They put forward three arguments in favor of this assumption:
The burial chamber, contrary to the customs of that time, has no decorations.
The sarcophagus, in which the body of the deceased pharaoh was supposed to rest, was only roughly hewn, i.e. not completely ready; the cover is missing.
And, finally, there are two narrow passages through which air from outside enters the burial chamber through small holes in the pyramid's body. But the dead do not need air - this is another weighty argument in favor of the fact that the Cheops pyramid was not a burial place.
7. Who was the first to enter the Cheops pyramid?
The entrance to the Cheops pyramid was originally located on the north side, at the level of the 13th row of granite slabs. It is now closed. You can get inside the pyramid through a manhole left by ancient robbers.
For more than 3500 years, the interior of the Great Pyramid was not disturbed by anyone: all the entrances to it were carefully walled up, and the tomb itself, according to the Egyptians, was guarded by spirits ready to kill anyone who tried to penetrate it. 
This is why the robbers appeared here much later. The first who entered the pyramid of Cheops was the Caliph Abdullah al-Mamun (813-833 after R. Chr.), The son of Harun al-Rashid. He made a tunnel to the burial chamber in the hope of discovering treasures there, as in other tombs of the pharaohs. But he did not find anything except the droppings of the bats that lived there, the layer of which on the floor and on the walls reached 28 cm. After that, the interest of robbers and jewelry seekers in the Cheops pyramid disappeared. But they were replaced by other robbers. In 1168 after R. Chr. part of Cairo was burned and completely destroyed by the Arabs, who did not want it to fall into the hands of the crusaders. When the Egyptians later set about rebuilding their city, they removed the shiny white slabs that covered the outside of the pyramid and used them to build new houses. Even now, these plates can be seen in many mosques in the old part of the city. From the former pyramid, only a stepped building remained - this is how it appears now before the enthusiastic gaze of tourists. Together with the facing, the pyramid also lost its top, the pyramidon, and the upper layers of the masonry. Therefore, now its height is no longer 144.6 m, but 137.2 m. Today, the top of the pyramid is a square with sides of about 10 m. In 1842 this site became a venue for unusual festivities. The Prussian king Frederick William IV, known for his love of art, sent an expedition to the Nile Valley led by archaeologist Richard Lepsius to acquire ancient Egyptian art and other exhibits for the Egyptian Museum, which was being created in Berlin (it was opened in 1855).
Powerful, surrounded by mystery .. - such a pyramid of Cheops stood for 4500 years
The history of the construction of the Cheops pyramid
The beginning of the construction of the pyramid dates back to about 2560 BC. The architect was Khemion, the nephew of Pharaoh Cheops, who managed all the construction projects of the Old Kingdom at that time. The construction of the Cheops pyramid took at least 20 years, while, according to various estimates, more than one hundred thousand people were involved. The project required a titanic effort: workers mined blocks for construction elsewhere, in the rocks, delivered them along the river and lifted them along an inclined plane to the top of the pyramid on wooden skids. For the construction of the Cheops pyramid, more than 2.5 million granite and limestone blocks were needed, and a gilded stone was installed at the very top, which gave the entire cladding the color of the sun's rays. But in the 2nd century, when the Arabs destroyed Cairo, the locals dismantled the entire facing of the pyramid to build their houses.
For almost three millennia, the Cheops pyramid ranked first on Earth in height, giving the palm only in 1300 to Lincoln Cathedral. Now the height of the pyramid is 138 m, it has decreased in comparison with the original by 8 m, and the base area is more than 5 hectares.
The pyramid of Cheops is revered local residents as a shrine, and every year on August 23 the Egyptians celebrate the day of the beginning of its construction. Why August was chosen, no one knows, because no historical facts no evidence of this has been found.
The device of the Cheops pyramid
Inside the pyramid of Cheops, the most interesting are three burial chambers, which are located one above the other in a strict vertical. The lowest one remained unfinished, the second belongs to the wife of the pharaoh, and the third belongs to Cheops himself.
To travel along the corridors, for the convenience of tourists, paths with steps were laid, railings were made and lighting was carried out.
Cross section of the Cheops pyramid
1. Main entrance
2. The entrance that al-Mamun made
3. Crossroads, "traffic jam" and al-Mamun's tunnel made "bypassing"
4. Descending corridor
5. Unfinished underground chamber
6. Ascending corridor
7. "Queen's Chamber" with outgoing "air ducts"
8. Horizontal tunnel
10. Pharaoh's chamber with "air ducts"
11. Antechamber
12. Mainsail
The entrance to the pyramid
The entrance to the Cheops pyramid is an arch formed of stone slabs and is located on the north side, at a height of 15 m 63 cm. Previously, it was filled with a granite plug, but it has not survived to this day. In 820, Caliph Abdullah al-Mamun decided to find treasures in the pyramid and made a seventeen-meter gap 10 meters below the historic entrance. The Baghdad ruler did not find anything, but today tourists enter the pyramid through this tunnel.
When al-Mamun was making his way, a lump of limestone that fell out blocked the entrance to another ascending corridor, and three more granite plugs remained behind the limestone. Since a vertical tunnel was found at the junction of two corridors, descending and ascending, it was suggested that granite plugs were lowered down through it in order to seal the tomb after the burial of the Egyptian king.
Burial "pit"
The descending corridor, which is 105 meters long, descends into the ground at an inclination of 26 ° 26'46 and abuts against another 8.9 m long corridor leading to chamber 5 and located horizontally. Here is an unfinished chamber measuring 14 × 8.1 m, stretching from east to west in shape. For a long time it was believed that there were no other rooms in the pyramid, except for this corridor and the chamber, but it turned out differently. The height of the chamber reaches 3.5 m. At the southern wall of the chamber there is a well with a depth of about 3 m, from which a narrow manhole (0.7 × 0.7 m in cross section) stretches southward for 16 m, ending in a dead end.
Engineers John Shae Perring and Howard Wyse (Richard William Howard Vyse) in the early 19th century tore apart the cell's floor and dug a well 11.6 meters deep, in which they hoped to find a hidden burial room. They were based on the testimony of Herodotus, who asserted that the body of Cheops is on an island surrounded by a channel in a hidden underground chamber. Their excavations have led nowhere. Later studies showed that the chamber was abandoned unfinished, and it was decided to arrange the burial chambers in the center of the pyramid itself.
The interior of the burial pit, photo from 1910
The Ascending Corridor and the Queen's Chambers
From the first third of the descending passage (after 18 m from the main entrance) upwards at the same angle of 26.5 °, an ascending passage (6) about 40 m long goes to the south, ending in the lower part of the Great Gallery (9).
At its beginning, the ascending passage contains 3 large cubic granite "plugs", which from the outside, from the descending passage, were masked by a block of limestone that fell out during the works of al-Mamun. It turned out that for almost 3 thousand years, scientists were sure that there were no other rooms in the Great Pyramid, except for the descending passage and the underground chamber. Al-Mamun failed to break through these plugs, and he simply carved a bypass in the softer limestone to the right of them.
In the middle of the ascending passage, the construction of the walls has a peculiarity: in three places so-called "frame stones" are installed - that is, the passage, square along its entire length, pierces through three monoliths. The purpose of these stones is unknown.
A horizontal corridor 35 m long and 1.75 m high leads to the second burial chamber from the lower part of the Great Gallery in a southern direction. It is traditionally called the "Queen's Chamber", although according to the rite of the wives of the pharaohs, they were buried in separate small pyramids. The “Queen's Chamber”, faced with limestone, measures 5.74 meters from east to west and 5.23 meters from north to south; its maximum height is 6.22 meters. There is a high niche in the east wall of the cell.
Grotto, Great Gallery and Pharaoh's Chambers
Another offshoot from the lower part of the Great Gallery is a narrow, almost vertical shaft, about 60 m high, leading to the lower part of the descending passage. There is an assumption that it was intended for the evacuation of workers or priests who were completing the "sealing" of the main passage to the "King's Chamber". Approximately in the middle of it there is a small, most likely natural extension - "Grotto" of irregular shape, in which several people could fit at most. The grotto (12) is located at the “junction” of the stone masonry of the pyramid and a small, about 9 meters high, hill on a limestone plateau lying at the base Great Pyramids... The walls of the Grotto are partially fortified with ancient stonework, and since some of its stones are too large, there is an assumption that the Grotto existed on the Giza plateau as an independent structure long before the construction of the pyramids, and the evacuation shaft itself was built taking into account the location of the Grotto. However, taking into account the fact that the mine was hammered into the already laid masonry, and not laid out, as evidenced by its irregular circular cross-section, the question arises of how the builders managed to get to the Grotto.
The Great Gallery continues the ascending passage. Its height is 8.53 m, it is rectangular in cross-section, with slightly tapering upward ("false vault") walls, a high inclined tunnel 46.6 m long. In the middle of the Great Gallery almost along its entire length, there is a square depression 1 meter wide in cross-section and a depth of 60 cm, and on both side protrusions there are 27 pairs of indentations of unknown purpose. The deepening ends with a "Big Step" - a high horizontal ledge, a platform 1x2 meters, at the end of the Great Gallery, directly in front of the access to the "hallway" - the Predicamera. The site has a pair of similar to the ramp depressions, depressions in the corners of the wall. Through the "hallway" the manhole leads to the burial "Tsar's Chamber" faced with black granite, where an empty granite sarcophagus is located.
Above the "Tsar's Chamber" are found in the XIX century. five unloading cavities with a total height of 17 m, between which there are monolithic slabs with a thickness of about 2 m, and above - a gable floor. Their purpose is to distribute the weight of the overlying layers of the pyramid (about a million tons) in order to protect the "King's Chamber" from pressure. In these voids, graffiti was found, probably left by workers.
A network of ventilation ducts leads from the chambers to the north and south. The channels from the Queen's Chamber do not reach the surface of the pyramid by 12 meters, and the channels from the Pharaoh's Chamber come out to the surface. No other pyramid has such branches found. Scientists have not come to a unanimous opinion whether they were built for ventilation or related to the Egyptians' ideas about the afterlife. There are doors at the upper ends of the channels, most likely, symbolizing the entrance to another world. In addition, the channels indicate the stars: Sirius, Tuban, Alnitak, which makes it possible to assume that the Cheops pyramid had an astronomical purpose.
Surrounding the pyramid of Cheops
At the eastern edge of the Cheops pyramid there are 3 small pyramids of his wives and family members. They are located from north to south, according to size: the side of the base of each building is 0.5 meters smaller than the previous one. They are well preserved inside; time only partially destroyed the outer cladding. Nearby, you can see the foundation of the funeral temple of Khufu, inside which drawings were found depicting a ritual performed by the pharaoh, it was called the Unification of the Two Lands.
Pharaoh's boats
The Pyramid of Cheops is the central figure of the complex of buildings, the location of which had ritual significance. The procession with the late Pharaoh crossed the Nile to the western bank on numerous boats. The first part of the funeral ceremony began in the lower church, to which the boats were sailing. Then the procession went to the upper temple, where the prayer house and the altar were located. To the west of the upper temple was the pyramid itself.
On each side of the pyramid, in rocky recesses, boats were walled up, on which the pharaoh was supposed to travel through the afterlife.
In 1954, archaeologist Zaki Nur discovered the first boat, called the Solar Boat. It was made of Lebanese cedar, consisted of 1224 parts, without any traces of attachment and connection. Its dimensions: length 43 m and width 5.5 m. It took 16 years to restore the boat.
On the southern side of the Cheops pyramid, a museum of this boat is open.
The second boat was found in a mine located to the east of the place where the first boat was found. A camera was lowered into the shaft, which showed traces of insects on the boat, so it was decided not to raise it and seal the shaft. This decision was made by the scientist Eshimuro from Waseda University.
In total, seven pits were discovered with real ancient Egyptian boats disassembled into parts.
Video: 5 unsolved secrets of the pyramids of Egypt
How to get there
If you want to see the Great Pyramid of Cheops, you need to arrive in Cairo. But there are practically no direct flights from Russia and you will have to make a transfer in Europe. Without a change, you can fly to Sharm el-Sheikh, and from there fly 500 kilometers to Cairo. You can get to your destination by a comfortable bus, the travel time is about 6 hours, or you can continue by plane, they fly to Cairo every half hour. In Egypt, they are very loyal to Russian tourists; a visa can be obtained directly at the airport after landing. It will cost $ 25 and is issued for a month.
Where to stay
If your goal is the treasures of antiquity and you have come to the pyramids, then you can choose a hotel in Giza and in the center of Cairo. There are almost two hundred comfortable hotels with all the benefits of civilization. In addition, there are many attractions in Cairo, it is a city of contrasts: modern skyscrapers and ancient minarets, noisy colorful bazaars and nightclubs, neon nights and quiet palm gardens.
Instruction for tourists
Don't forget that Egypt is a Muslim state. Men should simply ignore Egyptians, because even an innocent touch can be considered harassment. Women must follow the rules of dress. Modesty and again modesty, a minimum of exposed parts of the body.
On organized excursions tickets to the pyramids can be purchased at any hotel.
The pyramids zone is open to the public in the summer from 8 am to 5 pm, in the winter it is open for half an hour less, the cost of the entrance ticket is about 8 euros.
Museums are paid separately: you can see the Solar Boats for 5 euros.
For the entrance to the Cheops pyramid, you will be charged 13 euros, inspection of the Khafre pyramid will cost less - 2.6 euros. There is a very low passage here and be prepared for the fact that you will have to walk 100 meters in a bent position.
Other pyramids, such as those of Khafre's wife and mother, can be viewed free of charge by showing entrance ticket into the zone.
The best time to view them is in the morning, immediately after opening. It is strictly forbidden to climb the pyramids, cut off a piece of memory and write "There was ...". You can pay a fine for this that it will exceed the cost of your trip.
If you want to capture yourself against the backdrop of the pyramids or just the surroundings, prepare 1 euro for the right to shoot, photography is prohibited inside the pyramids. If you are offered to photograph you, do not agree and do not give the camera to anyone, otherwise you will have to buy it back.
Tickets for visiting the pyramids are limited: 150 pieces are sold at 8 am and the same number at 1 pm. There are two cash desks: one at the main entrance, the other at the Sphinx.
Each of the pyramids is closed once a year for restoration work, so you are unlikely to see everything at once.
If you don't feel like walking around the entire Giza area, you can rent a camel. Its cost will depend on your bargaining ability. But keep in mind that you will not be told all the prices at once, and when you roll, it turns out that you have to pay to get off the camel.
Delicate tip: The toilet is located in the Solar Boat Museum.
There are cafeterias on the territory of the pyramids zone, where you can have a good lunch.
There is a one-hour light and sound show every evening in the evenings. It is held in different languages: Arabic, English, Japanese, Spanish, French. On Sundays, the show is held in Russian. It is recommended to split the visit to the pyramids and the visit to the show for two days, otherwise you will not be able to accommodate so many impressions.
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Many articles and books have been written about the Egyptian pyramid of Cheops, considering it from the standpoint of the modern materialist view, not taking into account that it was built in the period of the previous highly developed civilization, the knowledge of which has not reached us. The pyramid of Cheops, with its enormous size, involuntarily raises the question of the methods of its construction. The hypotheses put forward on this score are far from the truth.
The Pyramid of Cheops, built about 4,600 years ago, is located on the rocky plateau of the Libyan Desert. The stones for its construction were delivered mainly from the quarries of the Maccatim Highlands, which is located east of the Nile River. The construction of the pyramid was carried out under the guidance of the famous architect Khafre for 20 years. According to ancient sources, peasants took part in its construction only three months a year, in their free time from field work, when the Nile flooded. But this does not exclude the work of a small number of specialists who were preparing the scope of work for thousands of seasonal builders-peasants.
The purpose of the construction of the pyramid-tomb.
The word "pyramid" literally translated from Greek means "the fire that is inside." By "fire" here one should understand the presence of an ordered energy flow both inside and outside the pyramid. Similar energy flows can be observed in crystals (quartz, diamond ...), in trees, etc. Above the top of the pyramid (tree ...), a vertical energy flow is formed, which is sometimes called a cosmic channel (pillar). In the morning, at dawn, this energy flow can be seen above the top of the pyramid with the naked eye. The energy flows at the top of the Cheops pyramid are connected with the energy flows of the neighboring pyramids, forming a channel-energy connection with each other. In nature, a similar energy connection is observed in crystal trees (druses), etc. At the same time, the formation of an additional domed energy shell, a collective aura, is observed above them. Until now, the pyramid was considered as a material body without taking into account its energetic properties, just as in medicine the physical body of a person is studied without taking into account his other six subtle bodies.
The pyramid, like the physical body of a person, is only a material frame for subtle energy systems. Legends say that there is a Great Stone in the pyramid, which flew from Space to Earth. He has great energy and magical powers. Similar stones are found in the Kaaba Mosque (Mecca, Saudi Arabia) in the Himalayas, and earlier was with the Emperor Tatzlau in Atlantis, who was buried in Taimyr. These are stones of spiritual centers and centers of civilization.
For the creation of energy vertical pillars of space communication (streams) on Earth, mankind has used a variety of technical solutions in all millennia. For example, in mountainous areas the tops of the mountains were arranged in the form of pyramids, tents, sphinxes and other structures, and under them - tombs. In flat areas, artificial architectural ground or underground structures were created (mounds, pyramids, labyrinth drawings ...)
The pyramid has design characteristics for obtaining required types energy flows. The larger the pyramid, the more powerful its energy flow. Above the summit of Mount Everest (Himalayas), one of the most powerful energy flows on Earth.
The tombs of Ancient Egypt are found both in mountainous (near Lake Victoria) and in flat places (near the Nile delta). Their construction was carried out mainly during the heyday ancient civilization with a high technical level of development ( air Transport(vimanas, chariots), eternal lamps, energy, laser, nuclear, sound weapons, etc.).
Start of construction.
The Cheops pyramid has a height of about 150 meters with the length of the base of one side of it being 250 meters. It was built on the western bank of the Nile, near the city of Cairo.
The famous architect Khefren did not erect this pyramid from scratch. There were very ancient squat pyramids made of monolithic stone, which were called by modern specialists "outliers". One of the ancient pyramids with its energy flows and underground passages (built about 14,000 years ago) was used by Chefren for its intended purpose, increasing its height and replanning the internal passages and rooms. This ancient pyramid had a strong foundation and special entrances to the dungeons for underground work.
The Pyramid of Cheops, like the ancient one, is oriented towards spiritual centers (Shambhala - in the east, and Thule - in the north), since the north pole was 12,000 years ago in the north-west of Canada near the border with America. The geographic north pole is constantly migrating around the globe.
Using the ancient pyramid as the basis for a new one, the builders achieved a significant reduction in labor and material costs, and a reduction in the construction period. Now no one remembers the more ancient builders, although more than half of the volume of the Cheops pyramid is made up of stones ancient pyramid... The original monolithic pyramid (outlier) had its own burial chamber with other dungeons. During the construction of the pyramid, Khefren made a new redevelopment of the dungeons. Therefore, some voids from the ancient pyramid, which did not fit into the new layout, do not find a logical explanation among researchers.
