Ancient Egyptian Pyramids: A Glimpse into the Past

1. Introduction • I chose to do Ancient Egyptian pyramids as my topic because I didn’t know a whole lot of the pyramids or how they were built. So I put together this PowerPoint presentation to show what I’ve learned.

2. Pyramids • Pyramids are massive funerary structures of stone or brick with a square base and four sloping triangular sides meeting at the tip of the pyramid, or at the top. The material that it consisted of was mainly stones. The tip of the pyramid was made from gold or electrum. They were built as tombs for deceased Pharaohs, where everything that belonged to the Pharaoh was placed there. Around it, several buildings were built for his belongings. Smaller pyramids were for his wives, a temple in front of the pyramid was so people could worship him. A causeway leading from the pyramid complex down to the temple in the valley. • A valley temple was where the pharaoh's funeral would begin.

3. The Great Pyramid of Khufu • The Great Pyramid of Khufu (who was the second ruler of ancient Egypt's fourth dynasty) is best known as the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza Necropolis (now where modern Cairo, Egypt is located) and is the only Wonder of the Ancient World standing today. It was the tallest man-made structure for over 3,800 years. Around it was two mortuary temples in honor of Khufu (one close to the pyramid and one near the Nile), three small pyramids for his three wives, an even smaller satellite pyramid, a paved highway connecting the two temples, and small mastaba pyramids for nobles. • Khufu’s pyramid contained more than 2 million blocks of stone.

4. The Curse of Tutankhamen’s Tomb • Tutankhamen was the 12th Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1334-1323 BC and died at the young age of 20, beginning his reign at the age of 9. He was possibly assassinated by his enemies. • In November of 1922,  Howard Carter discovered the Tomb of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Luxor. Back then, the media wasn’t 100% reliable and word didn’t travel as fast as today’s live-stream TV networks or internet. So the media made up a lot of stories about the discovery (and everything else) to create sensations and have their papers sold. One example is Mari Corelli’s novel, publishing a warning that there would be dire consequences to anybody who entered the tomb of Tutankhamen. The warning later turned into a curse, for everybody that entered the tomb had unfortunate events happen to them. On the day Howard Carter opened the tomb, his pet Canary was eaten by a cobra. Cobras, as the goddess Wadjet, were the protectors of the Pharaoh in Ancient Egyptian times

5. The Curse of Tutankhamen’s Tomb (continued) • Death Shall Come on Swift Wings To Him Who Disturbs the Peace of the King... • -Curse engraved on the exterior of King Tutankhamen's Tomb • This curse did not scare anybody when the tomb was discovered. But they soon paid a dire price for their lack of superstition. By 1929, eleven people connected with the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamen had died early and of unnatural causes. These people were two of Lord Carnarvon's relatives, Howard Carter's personal secretary, Richard Bethell, and Bethell's father, Lord Westbury. Lord Westbury killed himself by jumping off a building, and he left a note that read “I really cannot stand any more horrors and hardly see what good I am going to do here, so I am making my exit.” • Scientists believe that the curse never really existed, because of many facts relating to the opening of the tomb. • One was that Howard Carter was the one who opened the tomb, but didn’t die until the age of 66 from natural causes. Also ten people were there when the mummy was unwrapped in 1925, and all survived until at least 1934. • So the curse can’t really be true. It is another unexplained event that we blame on supernatural beings, like God being the explanation for every undiscovered scientifically phenomenon.

6. Conclusion • Although still standing today, the pyramids were much more beautiful upon the days of the Ancient Egyptians. But mother nature got to the pyramids before we could take our pictures and preserve them for life. • Sadly, every pyramid and tomb today has been grave robbed from. All except for Tutankhamen’s, of course, which wasn’t touched by human hands for over 3,000 years. • From completing this project, what I found most interesting of the pyramids was that they were built the very hard way. The Ancient Egyptians didn’t have wheels, and even if they did, it wouldn’t be of any help to them because wheels don’t work in sand. They hauled them under the hot African sun for many miles, climbing up ramps reaching over 400 feet, and most of them were slaves being forced to work with people whipping at their backs.

7. Marking Rubric • Organization: /10 • Facts, Picture: /10 • Accuracy: /5 • Spelling / Grammar: /3 • Effort & Completion • on time: /2 • ----- • /30

8. Bibliography • Sites and pictures from: • http://homepage.powerup.com.au/~ancient/kv.htm • http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk/pyramids/index.html • www.nationalgeographic.com/pyramids/pyramids.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_pyramids