2. Why were pyramids built?
Pyramids were the burial chambers for the pharaohs.
Egyptians built in a certain way so that the pharaoh‘s
body would be protected forever. Before the pyramids
were invented, the Egyptians built flat-topped mud brick
tombs called mastabas. These were less secure than the
pyramids.
3. Who was involved in building the
pyramids?
Most people think pyramids were built only by slaves.
Thus, however is not completely true: there were a lot
more people involved in building a pyramid.
Stonecutters, masons, surveyors, carpenters and
general laborers were in charge of building the pyramid.
Building a pyramid was very important, as it was going
to be the pharaoh’s eternal house, so every
measurement had to be precise.
4. Where in Egypt were the
pyramids built?
The pyramids were always built on the western side of
the Nile river. The Egyptians did this because they
thought that once their pharaoh was in his tomb, he
would travel west with the sun god Ra. Egyptians built
their towns on the east side of the Nile river.
5. What did pyramids look like?
Pyramids were four-sided triangles. Pyramids were built
in a triangle for one reason. The shape represented the
sun god’s sun rays falling on the earth.
6. How were pyramids built?
Pyramids were built by hand. Pyramid blocks were
moved by placing logs under them. Once the block was
mounted onto the logs, the Egyptians tied ropes around
them, and pulled. They always carried the last log to the
front of the bricks, so that it kept moving. There are
over 90 pyramids in Egypt.
7. Why did the Egyptians stop
building pyramids?
After a while, Egyptians realized that grave robbers had
robbed most of the pyramids. Therefore, they stopped
building pyramids a buried their pharaoh in the valley of
kings. They thought that the pharaoh’s body would be
better protected in the valley of kings.
