The Great Pyramid is in the city of Giza, which is part of the Cairo, Egypt.  Unlike many beliefs, only the pyramid of Khufu, not all three pyramids, is on the list of wonders.  It was built by the Pharaoh Khufu of the 4^th Dynasty around 2560 BC to be his tomb when he died.  The tradition of pyramid building started in ancient Egypt as a sophistication of a mastaba, or platform, covering the royal tomb.  Later, many-stacked mastaba were used. This pyramid was built over a 20-year period.  First, the site was prepared, and then blocks of stone were transported and placed.  An outer casing was used to smooth the surface.  No one knows how the blocks were placed, but some have theories.  One theory was the use of a ramp, either straight or spiral, which was coated with mud and water to ease the movement of these blocks.  Another theory involves the use of a lever with a short-angled foot.  Through its history, the pyramid stimulated human imagination.  It was referred to as the “Granary of Joseph” and “the mountain of Pharaoh”.  After Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt, he expressed his pride in his famous quote “Soldats! Du haut de Ces Pyramids 40 siecles nous contemplent (Soldiers! From the top of these Pyramids, 40 centuries look down at us)” 

Today the pyramid is enclosed, along with the other pyramids and the Sphinx in the tourist region of the Giza Plateau.  In the area as well is a museum housing the mysterious Sun Boat, discovered only in 1964, on the south side of the pyramid.  The boat is believed to have carried the body of Khufu on his last journey on this world, before being buried in the pyramid.  It is also believed to transport him into the afterlife. 

When built, the pyramid was 145.75m high.  Over the years, it lost 10m off the top.  It was the tallest structure in the world until the 1800’s AD (43 centuries).  It was covered by a casing of stone to make the surface smoother.  The sloped angle of the sides was approximately 51^o.  Each corner faced a major point of the compass.  The horizontal cross section was square at all levels, and each side measured 229 m in length.  Two million blocks were used, each weighing more that two tons, enough blocks to build a wall around all of France that would be 3m high and 1m thick. The area covered is equal to that of St Paul’s, Westminster Abbey and St. Peter’s combined.  The entrance is on the north face, with many corridors leading every which way and which served different purposes.  The King’s sarcophagus was made of red granite inner blocks that fit together so well that a playing card could not fit between the cracks.