How Were Pyramids Built?

By Amber

Try to picture a triangle shaped building, made of sand-like bricks, sitting in the hot desert, over 100 meters tall. These types of buildings are called pyramids. Ancient Egyptians built these triangle-shaped buildings thousands of years ago, but why? How did they manage to build such a complex shape? In this essay, you will learn about the history of pyramids, from when, why and how they were built to where they are located.

 Over 4,400 years ago, ancient Egyptians started building pyramids. These buildings are found in Egypt. The original idea of pyramids came from “King Djoser’s architect, Imhotep” who wanted to build an elaborate tomb for the king. Pyramids served as the tombs for pharaohs of Egypt. Pharaohs are leaders, or former leaders, of ancient Egyptians. While many pharaohs were known for different things, all of them had great riches. After a pharaoh died, they were buried in their tombs with all their riches because it was believed that when a pharaoh died, they took items from the physical world with them.

Pyramids are huge and complex, especially considering how long ago they were built. The Great Pyramid is 137 meters(449.5 feet) high and 20 yards (18.3 meters) wide! There was trial and error in building them. To build, Egyptians first laid a layer of bricks on the ground, then began stacking bricks on top in a formation where each layer had fewer bricks, creating a slanted, pyramid shape. The bricks were mined from quarries, and Egyptians made it easier to transfer by “wetting the sand first.”. When the material had been transferred to the construction place, Egyptians took a ramp and transferred it to its needed place.

When they finished layering the bricks, it was time to smoothen the giant triangular building. They used a “layer of white ‘casing stones’”. These “casing stones” “were cut with astounding precision to give a smooth slope to the pyramids.. .” The process of the building took a minimum of two decades! 

The birth of these beautiful, massive, triangular buildings were complicated. They were first layered, then smoothened by casing stones into what is now called a pyramid. I hope people can respect the pyramids more, since the ancient Egyptians worked hard to make these exquisite buildings. 

About the Author

Amber is a youth writer that loves writing fantasy stories. She adores cats, and loves reading books including adventures in them.