Mankind, The Story of All of Us: Pyramids
PYRAMIDS • WHERE THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF PYRAMIDS AROUND THE WORLD, including more than 100 in Egypt, twice that in Sudan and dozens in the Middle East and China. THE AMERICAS have more pyramids than the rest of the Number of Pyramids world combined. O 1-50 O 51-100 O 101-200 O 200+ EARLY EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS EVOLUTION featured mastaba, or steps, placed on top of each other. THE OLDEST IS AT SAQQARA, EGYPT, and was built in the 27th century B.C. THE PHARAOH SNEFERU CREATED THE PYRAMID WE RECOGNIZE TODAY. HE BUILT 3 PYRAMIDS DURING HIS 45-YEAR REIGN. His first two attempts failed, but he finally got it right with the Red Pyramid, CONSIDERED THE FIRST “TRUE" PYRAMID. IT WAS SNEFERU'S SON KHUFU WHO BUILT THE GREAT PYRAMID AT GIZA– the tallest manmade structure on Earth for almost 4,000 years. LATIN AMERICAN PYRAMIDS ARE SIMILAR TO EARLY EGYPTIAN STEP PYRAMIDS, THE PYRAMIDS IN SUDAN, but they were built with no knowledge of each other. built around 700 BC., are tall but much more narrow than those in Egypt. ► HOW THESE PYRAMIDS HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON– they all were built without advanced tools or even the wheel. IT TOOK A LOT OF PEOPLE: AND A LONG TIME: 20,000 MEN built the Great Pyramid of Giza, most of them The Great Pyramid at CHOLULA, MEXICO, ШПШШЕ took more than SKILLED LABORERS - not slaves. 600 YEARS TO COMPLETE. •...... The Great Pyramid has more than Latin American pyramids have a massive 2.3 MILLION LIMESTONE AND GRANITE BLOCKS. INNER CORE OF RUBBLE. The Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan had 317 MILLION GALLONS WORTH. Each one weighs between 2 AND 15 TONS. • WHY PYRAMIDS HAD MANY USES: Egyptian pyramids had smooth angled sides DESIGNED TO HELP THE PHARAOH'S SOUL ASCEND TO HEAVEN. TOMBS FOR KINGS SITES FOR SACRIFICE PLACES FOR WORSHIP ASTRONOMICAL TOOLS The Maya built the TEMPLE OF KUKULKÁN in Chichen Itza to honor the god Kukulkán, usually represented by a serpent. THE PYRAMID OF THE SUN was built over a series of caves that served as a passageway for the gods. Because of its precise location, twice a year, on each equinox, SERPENT-SHAPED SHADOWS "CRAWL" DOWN THE SIDES THE PYRAMID, Nicknamed El Castillo, IT HAS 91 STEPS ON EACH SIDE PLUS A PLATFORM– that's 365 steps, one for each day of the Mayan calendar. marking the changing of the seasons. SOURCES: British Museum, Encyclopedia Britannica, Supreme Council of Antiquities A COLLABORATION BETWEEN HISTORY.COM AND COLUMN FIVE
Mankind, The Story of All of Us: Pyramids
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