6Great+Pyramid

Gillian
== The Great Pyramid. The entrance can be seen in the centre of the face of the pyramid.

The three largest pyramids of Giza. From left to right: Pyramid of Menkaura, Pyramid of Kafhre, Great Pyramid of Khufu

The Great Pyramid of Giza The Great Pyramid is the only of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World to still exist. Soon after it was built, it was added to the Seven Wonders list. The pyramid was created for King Khufu (also called King Cheops) at around 2500 B.C., and took almost thirty years to build. During the time of his reign ( 2590-2568 B.C.), the Great Pyramid was erected.  It is located on the East side of the Nile, for that is where the sun sets. It was believed that only the dead could inhabit this side because it is where their human life “sets” or ends. Building the Great Pyramid took almost 30 years to complete. Soon after Khufu took his place as Pharaoh of Egypt, building of the pyramid commenced. The pyramid required about 100,000 slaves and farmers that did not work during the flood season. They lived in settlements less than a mile away from the pyramid’s building site. Workers had different types of jobs building the pyramid. One was flattening the land. This job required digging a trench around the perimeter of the future pyramid. Water would be poured in the trench and this would determine where the land had to be flattened. Another job was dragging the stones from the boat and placing them on top of the other stones. The stones were white limestone, cut from a quarry in Tura which was about 16 miles down the Nile. These stones were laid on top of each other, until the pyramid was 484 feet tall. The Great Pyramid is now 36 feet shorter than it was when it was originally built. This is because of erosion and, when the Arabs occupied Egypt, they stripped the pyramid of its white limestone and sold it. They replaced it with yellow sandstone which is not as strong as limestone and wears away more quickly. The Great Pyramid is now 448 feet tall, making it the tallest pyramid in the world. The Great Pyramid also has the most chambers among all the of pyramids at Giza, and it required the most workers during construction. The Great Pyramid is the largest and most visited pyramid in the world. It sits on the East side of the Nile next to the pyramid of Khaefra, who was Khufu’s son. The Great Pyramid is the tomb for King Khufu and his wife. All of the treasures from the pyramid have been stolen by tomb robbers. The robbers used vinegar and fire to get into the pyramid’s sealed entrance, and almost destroyed the pyramid. Despite this, the Great Pyramid remains the only Wonder of the Ancient World to still exist. Thank You