For many years the Great Pyramid at Giza was the largest building in the world. Its base is about 230m square, and its original point was 147m high. It is made up of about 2,3000,000 massive blocks of stone, each one weighing about 2.5 tonnes. It was the oldest of the seven ancient wonders of the world and is the only one left standing today. Even in ancient times, tourists came to marvel at the size of the Great Pyramid, and vast numbers of people still go to Giza today.

The Great Pyramid is incredible in terms of both scale and age. It was built for the pharaoh Khufu, who died in 2566BC. Nearby was a great temple built in his honour. The purpose of the pyramid was to protect Khufu’s body while he journeyed to meet the gods after his death. A 47m long passage leads to one of the three burial chambers inside the pyramid, the largest is known as the King’s Chamber. The chamber is made of granite. Each of the nine slabs which make up its roof weighs 50 tonnes. The pharaoh’s body was never found in the tomb. It had been robbed long ago.

Filed under: Egyptian