Egypt's astounding engineering feats

by Amal Hewavissenti

The pyramids of Egypt were unfortunately despoiled by unscrupulous treasure hunters who, in the course of time, left the burial chambers void of priceless gold and other valuables. Most of the surviving pyramids of Egypt are much smaller and less well preserved than the great pyramid of Cheops. Any interested observer can easily view the imposing grandeur with which the ancient pyramid at Giza dominates the desert landscape.

Structurally, the Egyptian pyramid is precisely square at the base with four triangular walls which meet at a certain point at the uppermost surface and taper off skyward. For around a thousand years, during the periods of old and middle kingdoms (about 3000 -1600 BC) the pyramid served as the standard type of burial monuments for royal families.

Not less than 50 of these monarchal pyramids constructed at the far end of the desert have survived natural and human forces and stand majestically over the west bank of the river Nile. These are the pyramids belonging to the old world. The posterior pyramids belonging to the old world. The posterior pyramids - the Great Pyramid of Cheops at Giza for instance, are markedly characterised by smooth sides while it encompasses no less than 13 acres. The surprising aspect of the pyramid is that it was built of an astonishing number of 2.3 million stone blocks weighing multiple tons each.

The Egyptian pyramid is just one segment of a mammoth complex of structures. To the eastern corner of the pyramid, there stood the pyramid temple from which a walled causeway routed down to a valley temple with easy access to the Nile river.

A careful exploration might give one some clues to suppose that, within the pyramid complex, there existed minor pyramids for queens and princesses. The extant rains evidence that the walls of the mortuary temple, causeway and the valley temple were exquisitely embellished with fine sculpture and statures of king who stood in command. A close scrutiny shows that this complex was luxuriously furnished in the primeval times and pharaoh's grandeur was dominating the atmosphere. The burial chambers within the pyramid itself bear all the signs of being simple unadorned at first but with the dawn of 2300 BC, they began to accompany august decorations and hieroglyphic inscriptions.

These inscriptions are interpreted to spell out, through a mysterious pictorial language, charms and divine formulas intended to ensure the king's successful rebirth in the after life.

The most prominent pyramids of the old world though few, are the pyramids of Giza, Saqqara and Dahshur which grandiosely dominate the desert landscape and exemplify centuries of royalty existing through the roughest elements of nature.

Archaeological surveys conclude that no more pyramids of the same nature were erected in Egypt after 1640 BC. According to the pyramid experts, the pyramids of Sudan are comparatively smaller and less complex than those of the ancient Egyptian counterparts in the “old world”.

'New World'

In studying the architecture of Central America, the term 'Pyramid' is used broadly but loosely to denote a large array of mound forms commonly with flat summits which provide support for shrines, temples, and alters. Historians unanimously agree that native peoples of Mexico and Central America (new world) had developed sophisticated, advanced civilisations ages before the arrival of European invaders.

These pyramids rise in successively smaller stages till they taper off to the summit and are characteristically rectangular in the base plan. On the other hand, some pyramids however have circular base plans while a famous pyramid built by the Olmec people at La Venta, in Tabasco, Mexico may have had the form of a cone.

The builders of most pyramids, have designed a staircase in the centre of one side that rises to the top while some others have staircases positioned in the central points of all four sides.

Most commonly, the pyramids have rubble or frequently earth cores, mixed with stones and plaster.

In addition to having altars or temples on their summits, many of the pyramids encompass the tombs of important individuals of the royalty and the surfaces of these tombs were often decorated with sculpture. Generally, the basic building procedure of pyramids involve entombment of the dead body in a chamber of a pit below the ground level. Nobody could enter the tomb later.

Research reveal that sometimes, the tomb was forcefully inserted into an extant structure which in turn was left covered by a comparatively more sizeable pyramid, and many temples were enlarged and remodelled in course of time, many of the most impressive and monumental pyramids in Central America and Mexico are situated at Teotihuacan in Central Mexico which lies north of current Mexico city.

The mammoth pyramid of the sun which had been erected around AD 1-150 bears resemblance to a mountain in shape and is the most primitive monumental structure at Teohuacan.

The pyramid of the Sun might have been built to sanctify the cave beneath it as the place of the origin of human kind because the first humans were said to have emerged from a cave, according to native mythology.

The pyramid of the “Feathered Serpent” a work at Teotihuacan built around AD 150 - 200 had a strange core made of stones and mud while the exterior was built of carved stone and covered with a fine plaster ready for painting or carving.

Carved stone

Archaeologists make the hypothesis that a large scale mass human sacrifice was arranged to dedicate the structure to the guardianship of Gods widely known as the “Temple of inscriptions”.

It was an unusual pyramid constructed by the Maya in Chlapas, Mexico. This north facing pyramid rises in nine terrace's and a vaulted temple embellished with carved stone and modelled sculpture is atop the summit.

The pyramid has probably been raised to house the tomb of a ruler named Pascar who died in AD 683. His body lay within an elaborately carved vaulted chamber located inside the Pyramid's base.

This shows that pyramids from the two worlds (old world and new world) had vast differences in specific purposes and functional value.