Pyramids

Why were pyramids used in Ancient Egypt and how were they built? Pyramids were humongous tombs where pharaohs, that were deceased, were buried. No body knows why they were built in a triangular shape. Some people think they were faced toward the sun and stars, so the dead spirits can fly between the heavens. Egyptians needed some place large enough to bury pharaohs with their treasures, furniture and jewels to be used in the next life. Imhotep was the first to design a pyramid, it took 20 years to completely build the whole structure. Egyptians used skilled laborers and artists to carve the stones to fit just right. However, they used unskilled slaves and the unskilled laborers to make the stones to build the pyramid. We enjoyed learning about pyramids because they are very tall, and it was creative the way the Egyptians built them. What was most interesting was inside the pyramids. They contained fascinating objects. Some of the objects were gold, the deceased pharaohs, flowers, bread, other types of food, and chambers that have secret passages. The pyramids at Giza are 755 feet long and originally stood over 481 feet high. The first pyramid was six mastabas stacked one on top of each other. Each one was smaller then the one on the bottom. The reason they built the pyramids next to the Nile River was so it would be easier to get the blocks to the pyramid. It was easy because the stones were brought by boat. Scientists say that the stones of the pyramid's averaged two tons a piece. The largest stones weighed as much as fifteen tons each. Some of the objects, mixes, and animals they used to construct the pyramids were; camels to haul materials, sand with water to mix and make the blocks of the pyramid, wood, rope, and metal. They also used rocks to make a hammer to hammer the pyramid into shape, copper, rock chisels used to smoothen the hammer and they used a butterfly clamp to hold the rocks together. Building the pyramids was a complicated process which needed to be done so the deceased could live comfortably in the after afterlife.