There are various hypotheses about how the ancient Egyptians actually built their pyramids. While the methods of constructing the monumental structures and the tools used by the builders are more or less known, opinions differ on the delivery and assembly of the blocks. A team of French architects and Egyptologists has studied the terrain around Egypt’s oldest surviving pyramid, Djoser, and has uncovered how the Egyptians were able to transport and lift the stones to build it.
The Egyptian pyramids are a real mystery to scientists. Architects, archaeologists and Egyptologists from all over the world have been trying to solve this problem for decades. Researchers are interested in the question: how exactly did the ancient Egyptians build their monumental buildings, how did they deliver blocks for their construction, how did they raise them?
The pyramids were built before the invention of the simplest mechanical devices. Since architects at that time did not yet use iron tools, it was very difficult for people to turn and shape the blocks, let alone deliver them to the construction site.
But the pyramids were built, they are more than four thousand years old and still stand without losing their shape and are directed strictly to all parts of the world.
How did the Egyptians build their pyramids and how did they deliver the huge blocks? According to one hypothesis supported by many Egyptologists, the construction technology looked like this. The Egyptians cut heavy blocks from soft limestone, which was mined near the place where the pyramids were built. Then the finished elements were dragged along the ground from the quarries with the help of a bulk ramp (the stones were transported by boats along the river), and then lifted to a height using special platforms made of short beams. The blocks were connected to each other with a special solution.
Some researchers believe that the Egyptians probably built the Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara around 2680 BC in this way. It is the oldest surviving pyramid and is considered a major milestone in monumental architecture. During its construction, the ancient Egyptian architect Imhotep used two innovations: a stepped form and a new material, stone. Before this, the shelter of the deceased pharaohs was built from sun-dried bricks.
A team of architects and Egyptologists from France, led by Xavier Landreau (Xavier Landreau) from the private Polytechnic Institute in Paris decided to learn more about the technology of building the pyramid of Djoser. They presented the results of their research in an article published in a journal PLoS One.
To do this, scientists mapped the area around the monumental structure, studied the landscape, studied the stone structure of Hisr-el-Mudir, located just a few hundred meters from the step pyramid, as well as the huge vertical mine in the area. The width and depth of the pharaoh’s vault. This mine is unique in its kind, it is no longer found in other pyramids built later.
The pyramid was found to be adjacent to two dried-up channels that were probably once active water arteries, and to have the features of a dam designed to block the waterway of Hisr al-Mudir and raise the water level.
The authors of the scientific article assumed that rainwater and water from the Nile River flowed through these channels to the place where the pyramid was built, then entered the vertical mine, flooding it and thus being able to lift the floating wooden elevator. According to researchers, with the help of this hydraulic extraction, the Egyptians lifted the stones intended for the construction of the pharaoh’s tomb to the required height. One day it was possible to lift from 50 tons to 100 tons of stones. When the elevator had to be lowered, the builders drained the mine.
“The water passed through Hisr al-Mudir, where it was cleared of sand, and then flowed into a deep depression – a huge channel 410 meters long, located next to the step pyramid. Guillaume Python explained that this channel could be a “huge underground cistern” with many compartments, including a compartment aligned with the pyramid shaft ( Guillaume Python ), co-author of the study from the University of Grenoble-Alpes.
Scientists analyzed the hydrological and geological characteristics of the area where the pyramid is located and found that during the 20-30 years of construction work, between four and 54 million cubic meters of water could enter its mine.
The idea that there could have been a lot of water near the step pyramid in ancient times has been confirmed by the authors of other studies, such as in the journal Contact World and Environment An international team of archaeologists has revealed that 31 ancient Egyptian pyramids were built along ancient tributaries of the Nile, which dried up thousands of years ago.
While Landro’s team’s hypothesis seems plausible, it’s worth noting that many Egyptologists disagree with it. They ask: if the technology described by the French scientists was indeed used by ancient builders during the construction of the pyramids, why aren’t there any traces of it at other similar sites? The wall paintings inside the pyramids, which the ancient Egyptians often liked to depict the construction process, don’t say anything about it.
In addition, the authors of the new scientific work also forgot that at first the pyramid of Djoser was built in the traditional form of a mastaba, then it was completed upwards, and after a while the area also increased – the structure became larger transversely. That is, at the first stage of construction Imhotep changed the shape of the pyramid at least three times, which was impossible to achieve with a hydraulic structure. Therefore, researchers tend to think that the stepped pyramid was erected precisely with the help of mass ramps and platforms.
Source: Port Altele
