About:
Dr. Bharatkumar Bhate is M.S. General
Surgeon (Gold Medalist) by qualification with an experience of 30,000+
operations and is based at Rajkot, Gujarat. He is an avid reader and a
passionate writer. In this blog, he shares his travel experiences and creative
writings.
Connect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrBhateRajkot
Blog:
28th April 2022
(Visited the Pyramids)
I asked many European tourists on our cruise 'Why have you selected #Egypt as your tourist destination?' All answered "to see the great Pyramid of Giza because it is the only existing wonder of the ancient world". My next question was 'Have you visited India?' Some replied saying that they had come to see Taj Mahal of Agra. It is also a wonder of the modern world.
Frankly speaking, I too had visited Egypt to see Great Pyramid of #Giza, the mummies of Pharaoh and the 'Face mask of #Tutankhaman'. And that day has come today. I was infront of Great #Pyramid of Giza built by King #Khufu (Cheops) who was the second Pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty, in the first half of the Old Kingdom (period 26th century B.C.).
One interesting thing I noticed about this #Pharaoh is that his statue exhibited at #Egyptian Museum is as small as a doll of size 4 inches. It is the smallest statue discovered so far while his Pyramid remained the tallest structure of the world for 3800 years till it was surpassed by Lincoln Cathedral in 1311 . What a great contrast!!
Pyramid is any structure having square (sometimes triangular) base with triangular sides. Apex of all four triangular sides meet at one point at the top. #Pyramid is usually a solid structure but some Pyramids are hollow. Civilizations like the Olmec, Maya, Aztec and Inca all had built temple pyramids to house their deities. Chola temple and few other temples in south India have pyramid shape. A large glass pyramid is present at the entrance of Louvre museum of #Paris.
There are three Pyramids at Giza. Largest one is of Khufu, middle one is of his son #Khafre and third and the smallest one is of grand son #Menkaure. Also the three very small pyramids next to smallest pyramid of Menkaure were built for mother and two wives. Khafre's pyramid appears to be taller than the Great Pyramid because it was built on a rise that is 33 feet higher than his father’s pyramid. Khafre also built the #Sphinx, carved from the bedrock in front of his pyramid.
The million dollar question is how such huge Pyramids were built?
The limestone, granite, Basalt and Mortar of stones are used for building pyramid. Stones are large and very heavy weighing on an average about 2.18 tons which is the same weight as a midsize SUV car. About 2.3 million such stones are used to build the Khufu's pyramid. The most acceptable belief is that the Egyptians employed a slope and encircling embankment of brick, earth, and sand, which was increased in height and length as the construction of Pyramid rose up. Stone blocks were hauled up on the ramp by means of sledges, rollers, pulleys and levers. According to the ancient Greek historian #Herodotus, the Great Pyramid took 20 years to construct and demanded 20,000 regular labour and about 1,00,000 seasonal labour.
The heights of Three Pyramids : of Khufu (481.4 feet =147 metres), Khafre (471 feet =143 metres) and Menkaure (218 feet = 66 metres). The actual height of each Pyramid was more by about 5-6 feet as golden conical top (Pinnacle like) was mounted over it. Unfortunately all these golden tops are stolen. The base of each side of Khufu's pyramid is about 755 feet wide. The middle pyramid is found to have plaster in its upper part while it is lacking elsewhere in all three Pyramids. It is said to be eroded by seasonal changes over time.
The Pyramids of Giza are large enough to be viewed from outer space and are clearly identifiable on satellite photos.
Why the pyramids were built?
(1) The pyramid may function as a stairway for the pharaoh to reach the heavens. They also served as conduits to the afterworld, where the Pharaohs thought they would transform into Gods.
(2) It might symbolize sunrays spreading to the Earth.
Egyptian beliefs held that when the Pharaoh died, his spirit remained vital in the afterlife. Part of his spirit, known as ka, needed an Earthly home. Preserving the Pharoah’s body in the Pyramid ensured survival of his ka, which would allow him a happy existence in the afterlife, and will protect people from disaster. In addition to the Pharoah’s mummy, the pyramids contained food, furniture, jewellery and other items the pharaoh would need in the afterlife
The interior of Pyramid of Khufu has a network of narrow passageways and three chambers, including the Grand Gallery, which measures 26 feet high and more than 150 feet long.
Contrary to what one might expect, there are no hieroglyphic texts, pictures, treasures, or mummies in any of Pyramids of Giza. Decoration inside Pyramids began several centuries later. Actually, from tourist point of view, these three Pyramids are nothing but solid stones structure with tunnel to go inside the chamber where tombs were present.
The mummy and coffin of many kings of middle and new kingdom are kept in museum but those of old kingdom pharaoh are not found. Also all precious articles kept around the tomb are stolen. The tomb chambers of all pyramids are empty.
Even if the chamber is empty, I still wanted to see the largest pyramid of the world from inside. Apart from mental satisfaction, there is another reason. I wanted to see Colosseum of Rome and Leaning Tower of Pisa from inside. However due to long waiting in queue and limited time in package tour, I couldn't do it. This time I had no problem of time as it was our personalized tour. Also the queue was short as entry fee was prohibitive (400 Egyptian Pounds = ₹1225).
Originally the Khufu's pyramid had an entry gate much higher up. But as story says, their God adviced to make entry lower down. Thus there are two holes of entry in Khufu's pyramid but only lower one is open for public.
Khufu’s pyramid has underground tunnels and one is open for public which leads to the the burial chamber. The King's chamber is closed. Napoleon had spent some time here in King's chamber. He is said to have experienced positive vibrations inside this chamber. The burial chamber is located in the centre of the pyramid and is accessible via a tight and narrow climb up passageway. My height is 65" while tunnel was barely of 35-40" height and so I had to bend myself and climb up the difficult steps protecting my head and balancing myself from slipping. The passage is narrow and only one person can either climb up or come down. Crossing each other was difficult. At one stage, I had decided to give up and return back but found a place where I could stand and relax. Fortunately, I found one couple of Bangalore inside the tunnel. They helped me in climbing up. Photography is not allowed but this gentleman and few others were taking snaps. He had taken few photos of mine and sent to me.
Ultimately when I entered the burial chamber, it was empty with no ventilation. It was of 15' x 18' floor and of about 25' height with one 3' x 2' size entry at the corner. There was a hollow empty container of 8' x 4' x 5' size made up from a single granite stone. It was the chamber where Khufu's tomb with mummy once existed. It is set firmly in the floor and open from above.
Archeologists have never found Khufu’s remains, which they suspect could have fallen into the hands of robbers.
When I came out of great Pyramid, I also experienced positive vibrations like Napoleon. This was a lifetime experience.
This sightseeing was followed by viewing three pyramids together in a panoramic view and then viewing Sphinx.
I wish all of my friends see the great Pyramid and have wonderful experience at the wonder of the ancient world.
- Dr. Bharat Bhate