Jordan  

February 11, 2002

Social Studies/ Language Arts

ALL ABOUT PYRAMIDS

   Did you know the pyramids of Giza were not built by slaves? Pyramids were built around 4,500 years ago, on a rocky desert plateau close to the Nile in Egypt. Even today, people are interested in the reasons behind the building of pyramids, the size of them and the great effort it took to make them.

    No one knows how the pyramids were actually built. One idea is that they lifted heavy stones with counter weight. Another idea is that they used skids and ramps. Another idea is that perhaps the Egyptians rolled the stones by placing them on platforms. Also, the  windlass is a wheel and axle machine where the axle is fastened to the wheel. They might have used this machine  to lift the stones. Although most stone was quarried at Giza, some even had to be transported to the side along the Nile. Also, did you know there are more than two million stones? In fact, the average weight of each stone is 5,000 pounds.

    Egyptians built pyramids for graves. the first pyramids built was the step pyramid. it was the tomb of king zoser. smaller pyramids were built around it for children and women. The pyramids of Giza were built as tombs for mighty Egyptian pharaohs. The pyramids were built to protect the dead king and help him on his journey to the afterlife, along with containing the dead body of the king. The pyramids housed the king's treasures. they wanted to bring food, drink, clothing, ornaments, but also beds to sleep in, chairs and tables, jewelry and gold cosmetics, and even boats to sail the underground river Nile.  

    The pyramids of Giza were not built by slaves. They were built by paid workers who wanted the pharaohs to live forever and have a good after life.

    The three biggest Egyptian pyramids are near each other, at Giza. the great pyramid was built for khufu around 2551 b.c.  the great pyramid is a large stone structure. it is 500 feet tall and covers 13 acres.  it has a square base and four triangular sides. Nearby is a smaller one built for his son, khafre. khufu had about 100,000 workers at a time building the great pyramids. khufu had to build a town for the workers and supply them with food, water, and clothing. since there were so many workers, it was helpful to have farms nearby to grow the food.

now you know all about pyramids. now you have learned how big the pyramids are and the efforts put in to building them. Pyramids are still very important to the Egyptians because they help them to remember the kings and pharaohs.          

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