Jonathon Karagiannis 31444563 ATS1247

2. How were the pyramids built? Although it is clear that the Egyptian pyramids were manmade, not everyone agrees
(anyone seen Ancient Aliens?). How would you convince a skeptic otherwise, with an evidence-based approach?
Don't focus only on how the stone blocks were lifted into place – build a broader argument based on how the
Egyptians utilised natural resources, manpower and engineering knowledge. Include one or two sentences stating
why you think it is important to counteract ‘pseudoscience’.
Pseudoarcheology is important to counteracted due to the inability to verify basis. The obnoxious amount of screwing
facts, cherry picking and the fanciful conclusions of the Ancient Astronaut theory, as well as other alternative views,
consequently spawns a mistrust for acidemia for not tackling the unusual phenomena in the ancient world, without an
openness of mind (Anderson 2012).1 Begin a favourite site in the community, the compelling enigma of the Great
Pyramids obviously were built due to well refined workmanship; from humans with boons of advanced knowledge in
engineering, astronomy and geology, was sophisticated by generations of practise and experience (Bradley 1999). 2
The utilisation of natural resources shows their unmatched ability to cut stone through a sturdy economic
administration of powerful Old Kingdom kings. In exploring newfound research of the controversy of ramps theories,
fundamentally proves the signs of an intelligence that truly is unprecedented in the ancient world. However, the
astounding feat of manpower, along with the impeccable mathematical and geo-astrological precisions, dose not
however answer all the puzzles of the surviving wonder of the ancient world.
The Pyramids of Giza were built from the exquisite manipulation of natural resources. Archeologically, the
compensation for around 23 million blocks, multiple stop-points such as Wadi el-Jarf (port of Khufu on the Red Sea)
were created to harbour resources for expedition teams. Discoveries at the port have uncovered papyri that archives
the grand operation of Egyptian administration during Khufu’s regnal Year 27. 3 Pierre Tallet, and Gregory Marouard
pieced together from the archaeological context, that these bureaucratic dairies tell us of the sophisticated levels of
organisation of the vast economic enterprise extracting stone from Tura (Tallet and Marouard 2014). As proposed by
the papyrus, the supervision of quarry sites for granite stone for example, reveal clear evidence of a variety of
mistakes with saw marks on discarded at quarries and marks on the basalt paving stone near the east side of the
Pyramid (Arnold 1991).4 The brittleness of copper was clearly problematic as it tends to wear out when sawing stones,
but the Egyptians also used grapefruit-sized balls of dolerite and fork shaft drills. Granite quarries near Aswan would
have been worked with dolerite pounding stones finished with drills depicted in the tomb of Ti in Saqqara, all durable
enough to cut out blocks of granite (Chadwick 2005).5 Archae Solenhofen explores that it is apparent that the toothless
edges of the slabbed copper saws, required the simplest and most abundant resource in Egypt – loose quartz sand. The
various mineral particles found in sand are rough and hard enough to not only cut rock but to polish hard stones. 6 This
theory was experimented by tool expert Denys Stocks and stonemason Roger Hopkins where they confirmed this
method is sustainable with tests conducted with dry sand in between the saw (Solenhofen 2002). The tasks were easy
as the wet sand could cut granite relatively fine. Most notably, the ancient Egyptians most prised resources would
have been water sources: that of the Nile, which flooded all the way up to the base of the pyramid for import. In fact, a
channel was dug to the construction site, so no stone had to be dragged very far anyway (Brier and Houdin 2008) 7. All
of this information severely dents Ancient Aliens’ theory, debunked by further evidence in the gradual decline in

1
Pia Andersson
- Numen, Vol. 59, No. 2/3, Alternative Archaeology (2012) pp. 125 -137 – Many Pasts in Our Present. Stockholm
University.
2
Pamela Bradley
- Ancient Egypt: Reconstructing the Past Cambridge University Press 1999 pg 95
3
Pierre Tallet, and Gregory Marouard
- "THE HARBOR OF KHUFU on the Red Sea Coast at Wadi Al-Jarf, Egypt." Near Eastern Archaeology 77, no. 1 (2014): 4-14
4
Dieter Arnold
- “Building in Egypt; Pharaonic Stone Masonry.” (1991) Building in Egypt; Pharaonic Stone Masonry, n.d
5
Robert Chadwick
- First Civilizations: Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt (Second Edition 2005) pp. 148 – 154. First published 1996
Montreal
6
Archae Solenhofen
- Ancient Egyptian Stoneworking Tools and Methods. Ancient Egyptian Stoneworking Tools and Methods, March 31,
2002. http://www.oocities.org/unforbidden_geology/ancient_egyptian_copper_slabbing_saws.html
7
Bob Brier and Jean-pierre Houdin
- The Secret of the Great Pyramid: How One Man’s Obsession Led to the Solution of Ancient Egypt’s Greatest Mystery.
Smithsonian, 2008
Jonathon Karagiannis 31444563 ATS1247

pyramid building after the 4th Dynasty. Such poor engineering of the later pyramids is a tell-tale sign of the reduction
and depletion of the overuse of natural resources due to the megalithic works on the Horizon of Khufu. This high
demand for resources and manpower, inevitably had its negative outcomes, perhaps offering an explanation to
Herodotus’s controversial claim that “Cheops (Khufu)… brought the country into all sorts of misery” (Herodotus
ii.124).8
In examining construction theories, the prospect of the manmade nature of such highly sophisticated infrastructure
becomes clearer. The comparison of two ramp theories from Frank Müller-Römer and eccentric French architect Jean-
pierre Houdin attempt to explain how millions of 2.5-ton blocks were moved. The steep ramp theory postulated by
Müller-Römer insists that major principle of Egyptian construction technique was to pull, rather than lift, heavy stone
blocks.9 His hypothesis that multiple steep ramps topped with winches, were
each levelled on the stepped core helps the positioning of the pyramidion and
the laying, working, and dressing of the casing (Müller-Römer 2008). Indeed,
while the mathematics and engineering of Müller-Römer the steep ramp
theory only works with pyramids like Djoser, Menkaure, Red and Medium
pyramids, it does not explain the anomalies in the Great Pyramid, lacking such
a stepped core with the peculiar Grand Gallery. Houdin’s more sensible
explanation of the internal ramp theory looks promising as all the techniques
used are demonstrable from applied physics. Houdin attempted to explain the
purpose of the odd shaped Grand Gallery, as well as the purpose of the
The thermal scan and virtual reconstruction granite blocks above the king’s chamber, was for an internal ramp. His theory
(Fig 1) show that the densities of the
structure looks uncanny to Houdin’s of how the pyramids were made, mentioned in his investigations posits that
helicoidal ramp. (H.D. Bui, 2011) the workers dragged the blocks until they reached the notches at the side of
the pyramid, at which the block was repositioned for another team to pull it
up the next ramp. The block would have been inserted inside notches into the
internal structure from the corners of the pyramid and Houdin’s investigations confirmed that the Grand Gallery was
used as a massive freight elevator counterweight system (Brier and Houdin 2008). Due to the remains of grease and
scratches to lubricate the trolley in the gallery as well as a full-scale gravimetric survey of the Great Pyramid in the
1980s (Fig 1) proves Houdin’s spiral ramp theory is very plausible. In essence, the ramp system in the movement of
large stones is evidently favourable for a manmade enterprise than an extra-terrestrial one, as this controversial issue
can be understood by examining the function of the Great Pyramid’s odd features.
However, the superior enegeering techniques adopted by the Egyptians, were indeed well ahead of their time in the
building of the Great Pyramids. The myriad of mysteries like that of its concave sides, each side was orientated to the
four cardinal points by less than one -twelfth of a degree, outstanding ratio circumference to its original height is equal
to the value of pi: 3.14, (Chadwick 2005) along with the other pyramids on the Giza plateau, are aligned to the belt of
Orion, are truly compelling for alterative historians to make their arguments. Indeed, there is no denying that the
ancients were advocating geniuses, but to explain how these superhuman feats were feasible, at the very least, aside
with the esoteric and astronomical aspects, can be explained by logistics. Robert Chadwick explains that Khufu’s
father - King Snefru - brought back 7000 prisoners of war from his campaign in Nubia in order to develop a greater
labour force. He postulates that manpower was cheap and plentiful at the time for “religious duty and wellbeing of the
land were important factors” (Chadwick 2005). With such manpower at the king’s deposal, evidence of unprecedented
technological advancements is unfortunately scant, but the discovery of the ramp of Hatnub (Bradley 1999) can give
some insight into the use of sleds. The numerous depictions of wooden sleds to move massive loads from tombs of
officials of the Old Kingdom show transports of statues and other goods on sledges in a relief from the tomb of
Hetepherakhti (Leiden, 1943)10 A team of 20 fit men could easily tow a two tonne block by have water, mud or oil is
poured on the ground in front of the sled to reduce friction (Bradley 1999.) It becomes more problematic if the
Egyptians were considered primitive at the time, manpower of normal men to lift the stones would be most
detrimental to the regular human’s body, as Egyptian anthropologist Azza Sarry el-Din studied 162 skeletons that

8
Herodotus
- Histories Book 2 Chp 124 Section 1
9
Frank Müller-Römer
- Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt Vol. 44 (2008), pp. 113-140
10
Herta Therese Mohr, The Mastaba of Hetep-her-Akhti (Leiden, 1943)
Jonathon Karagiannis 31444563 ATS1247

show signs of disease and bend, inflamed spines from carrying heavy loads (Scarre and Fagan 2016) 11. Nevertheless,
the pyramids’ astronomical and mathematical codes, dose distinguish them as wonders of the ancient world, as it
cannot be denied that certain underlining marvels may never be explained by simply physical evidence.
Unlike the Ancient Astronaut assumptions of the imposing of advanced machinery, the clear evidence to manmade
megaliths. From what is observational, excellent proficiency developed through the use of resources, the cunning
application of physics and manufacturing including well throughout logistics, were brought into perfection. The
pharaonic building dispensation of the scared mountains on Giza was the zenith of Old Kingdom’s glory, ultimately
sustained by the glue of its religion to provide in the king’s journey into the afterlife.

11
Chris Scarre and Brain M. Fagan
- Ancient Civilisations Fourth Edition, pp 114