The Great Pyramid and Khufu are Still Mysteries
Was the Great Pyramid really Khufu’s final resting place?
That is one of the greatest doubts of archaeology. On this subject a fervid debate among scholars originated, which has long slowed (and at times even impeded), objective analysis of the pyramid complex. Still, nowadays, any conclusion can be appreciated as a milestone towards the comprehension of a complex civilization, which inhabited the territories along the Nile during the dynastic, and especially the pre-dynastic, age.
It is undeniable that Egyptology has greatly contributed to our knowledge of a unique and incomparable civilization, incredibly developed socially, artistically and scientifically. Unfortunately, Egyptologists have also persisted in misattributing some archaeological finds to Dynastic Egyptians, which I believe have little to do with that civilization. This has created confusion among researchers and has affected our comprehension of the prehistory of Egypt.
Still unresolved remains, for example, the dispute over the Great Pyramid. While academics agree to confine its construction to the Fourth Dynasty, I believe that their position conflicts with more scientific evidence I observed in 15 years of studies on this subject.
The Construction Dilemma
From the beginning, the Giza Plateau was considered one of the greatest dilemmas of ancient Egypt. It’s undeniable that the Sphinx and the Pyramids are monuments technically conflicting with a civilization that scholars describe as “semi-primitive”. In fact, as scholars stated - in 2,450 BC - Egyptians had acquired the primordial knowledge of agriculture, still they hadn’t yet discovered the wheel and they had very primitive copper and wood tools.
So, the questions are: how did they build the Pyramids? Is it a certainty or a necessity to state that Khufu’s workers built the Great Pyramid? What evidence connects Khufu to the majestic building of Giza?
These questions require a very cautious approach, because it’s a thorny problem that could upset consolidated stereotypes. Building bridges between different points of view it’s never easy, but trying is not evil!
In order to better understand the theories proposed, let’s check why the Great Pyramid is considered Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu’s Tomb. What evidence exists?
This may sound strange but there aren’t solid proofs that the Great Pyramid was built during the Fourth Dynasty (2620-2500 BC).
Despite some Egyptologists imposing certain rules and areas of thought, research goes on to find out the truth of the events characterizing Egypt’s distant past.
Egyptologists claim that Khufu’s workers made one of the wonders of the Ancient world, but…
Egyptologists have never found organic matter within the Great Pyramid chambers. The Subterranean Chamber (or Chamber of Chaos), the Queen Chamber, and the King Chamber were found totally empty of finds. I want to stress some aspects concerning the robbed tombs of the Ancient Egypt. Thieves have always left traces of their passage: shards, fragments of plants, smashed objects. In the Great Pyramid none of this happened; thieves must also have swept the floor before leaving... since nothing has been found. This is an important detail;
Egyptologists have never found hieroglyphics painted or engraved on the walls inside the Great Pyramid of Giza. This is another important detail, because, as noted, in all the Ancient, Middle, and New Kingdom tombs, the pharaoh’s memory was always preserved by the ancient writing inscribed and painted on the walls of their tombs. But in this the Great Pyramid is an inexplicable exception;
Egyptologists have never found grave goods into the so-called funerary chambers inside Khufu’s monument. That is very basic detail, because Ancient Egyptian civilizations became famous thanks to the majestic wonders found within the pharaohs’ tombs. Through the finds, Egyptologists retraced the ancient Egyptian traditions. Still unforgettable is the very important expedition of Howard Carter, and the discovery of King Tut’s Tomb.
Khufu in the Pyramid?
So, why is the Great Pyramid still considered to be the last abode and resting place of Khufu by Egyptologists?
Consider:
Herodotus’ Historiae inspired modern Egyptology. But, an interesting detail is that the Greek writer drew up his Historiae 2,000 years after Khufu’s Kingdom, thanks to Egyptian priests’ memories. Furthermore, in his classic masterpiece, Herodotus told about the pyramid’s construction, underscoring that workers “used little wood machines to carry the stones to the upper of the building”, but many researchers relegate this proposal to fantasy or some priest’s memory failure. In fact, Herodotus’ tales conflict with major characteristics of the pyramid, such as the granite blocks forming the King Chamber and the Djed, of being 50 tons in weight;
In 1837, the English colonel Howard Vyse and his friend John Shae Perring, at the climax of a disastrous archaeological expedition, as if by a miracle, found the proof that the Great Pyramid was built by Khufu’s workers: a cartouche painted on the stone reproducing the name of the pharaoh was found within the chambers of the Djed, in one of the most isolated places inside the monument. Is this a fake, as many researchers affirm? Is it the confirmation that the pyramid was built in the Fourth Dynasty? The dispute is still unsolved, because all efforts to analyze the cartouche are denied.
In these two points all the Egyptologists’ proofs about the Great Pyramid are enclosed. There aren’t other facts confirming scholars’ conclusions.
It’s too few facts to plan a correct theory without any doubts.
Because of the pyramid’s shape, many conjectures have been made concerning the origins of the building, conflicting with academic proposals. Was it a tomb? Was it built by an ancient civilization that lived in Egypt before the flood?
Mathematics and Perfect Alignment
Proposals have originated from scientific studies of the Great Pyramid since the 19th century. Researchers have noted a lot of relationship between the Pyramid and mathematics for example, but also a perfect knowledge of the geographical orientations. For instance:
1) In 1859, John Taylor, an English publisher and writer, in his book “The Great Pyramid”, argued that the monument base and height are in relationship with pi (?). As well, the King Chamber was built in relationship to pi. As noted, the number pi was calculated by classic Greeks around the sixth century AD. May it be considered an empiric coincidence, or an accurate will of the builders?
2) The Great Pyramid is perfectly aligned to cardinal points. Many scholars have stated that the merkhet - a typical Egyptian timekeeping tool - was used to determine north through a constant astronomical observation. Was this enough to perfectly align the monument? And, above all, why would a semi-primitive culture have needed to align its monuments to the cardinal points and to the stars? Was it an ancient legacy?;
3) The pyramid’s base is a perfect square and its angles are perfectly 90°. After two centuries of Egyptology, it’s always so hard to conceive a civilization having such a perfect concept of the geometry.
Many doubts give rise to suspicions that Egyptology is moving towards an incorrect solution to the pyramid mysteries. These extremely week proofs are accepted as logical and correct reconstructions of events which led up to the Fourth Dynasty.
There is no proof about a possible connection between Khufu and the monument, for the many geometrical and astronomical connections with the pyramid... and, above all, for a perfect knowledge of engineering.
Granite blocks forming the King Chamber and the Djed were taken from Aswan mines, 800 miles (1287 kilometers) from Giza. Without even discussing the mode of transport— the perfect knowledge of mineral processing is unbelievable;
The Great Gallery Project is a miracle of engineering. But, what is striking is the fact that a culture such as the ancient Egyptians might conceive such a complex masterpiece;
The Descending Conduit, leading from the Entrance to the Subterranean Chamber, has the following characteristics: 109 meters (358 feet) in length, with an approximation in its alignment of 1 centimeter (0.39 inches) from the beginning until the end of the conduit; the measurements are 1 meter by 1.19 meters (3.2 feet by 3.9 feet); providing a constant angulation of 26°31’; for 100 meters (328 feet), the conduit is entirely dug in the living rock.
Could Egyptians have done this kind of job? How could they have built Pyramids?
In 1850, Auguste Mariette discovered one of the most controversial finds ever unearthed: the Inventory Stele. According to the ancient text, the Great Pyramid and the Sphinx were already built when Khufu ruled over the Egypt. So, did Khufu’s workers only do the work of maintenance? Did they, or did they not, build the Great Pyramid?
According to results of my research, Khufu was not the “father” of the Pyramid. A very easy analysis can help to find out the truth about the Egyptian past.
Egyptologists declare that the monument was built to preserve the mummified body of the pharaoh waiting for resurrection. An essential condition is to bury the body under the ground. If we take a look at the arrangement of the chambers inside the Pyramids, nothing seems to be working to these ends.
Khufu the Heretical Pharaoh
According to the claims of Egyptologists, first was built the Subterranean Chamber in which to place the sarcophagus. Then, Khufu changed his plan and the upper chambers were then built; the Queen Chamber and then, after a new change of plan, the latest and the so-called “King Chamber” were added where, actually, a kind of granite sarcophagus lies.
These plan changes are the real mystery that pushes the balance needle towards careful and unexpected considerations. Why is this?
Because, in the Ancient Kingdom, the most important funerary rule was: “474 - The spirit belongs to heaven, the body to earth” (Texts of Pyramids, Utterance 305). “The body to earth” is a funerary dogma confirming that:
1) The Pyramid was not used as tomb, or…
2) Khufu was the first heretic pharaoh of ancient Egypt.
At the time, if the body of the pharaoh was buried above the ground level, it would be a great heresy. In fact, in all tombs of Ancient Kingdom, the funerary chambers were built under the ground level. Why is the Great Pyramid an exception? Was Khufu really the first heretic pharaoh of the Ancient Egypt? And why have Egyptologists never worried about this essential detail—one that can shed light on the mysteries of the Pyramids?
A very easy Aristotelian syllogism can help for a better comprehension:
Funerary rules were well-defined and also inscribed in the Pyramid Texts;
Khufu did not respect the funerary rules because his funerary chamber was placed at 73 meters (240 feet) above the ground, in the core of the monument;
Khufu must be considered the first heretic Pharaoh of the Ancient Kingdom.
Previous Conclusions Without Debate
There is no doubt that the conventional finds analysis has been managed too freely. It lacks the capacity to link all items of investigation, in order for consistent results to be obtained. Debates about pyramids should always have a rational component, but when Egyptologists insist upon conclusions rebutted by the facts, it means that someone wants to push certain conclusions.
If the pyramid really was the last abode of Khufu, it means that the pharaoh did not follow the Ancient Kingdom funerary rules and thus must be considered a heretic, much like Akhenaton when monotheism was introduced during the Middle Kingdom. If Egyptologists don’t know that, they have stumbled into something much bigger than they can understand and, therefore quite a lot of theories have to be corrected, including the pyramid’s primordial destination.
It’s time to confine the Great Pyramid in its own historical time: the Zep Tepi.
At the same time, we must strike a blow against Egyptologists whose jobs took place in relatively comfortable manners, unchallenged.
Academic Egyptologists claim that the pyramids of Giza are funerary complexes, that is to say, the final resting places of the pharaohs of the Fourth Dynasty, along with their wives and dignitaries. I believe that this is only partly true, that the Fourth Dynasty pharaohs used structures made earlier.
In my opinion, the pyramids of Giza originally were built to document and communicate the scientific knowledge of a pre-historical and unknown society. The existence of the three chambers and of the Djed inside the Great Pyramid is not accidental. Instead, they are part of the specific, cosmological, and theological concepts the builders wished to document and communicate. What was the essential purpose? To document their history? Or, did they want to leave a “message” a “code” for whatever civilization might follow them? A kind of time capsule?
I believe that in the course of time the initial purpose of the pyramids was lost and the constructions were utilized as tombs of the later pharaohs. This would give some credibility to the reasoning of academics, while recognizing the initial role of the monuments of Giza.
Opening Doors to New Investigations
In the last two centuries, many fairy tales about pyramids have been published. At this, the beginning of the new century, it’s time to apply new scientific patterns. It’s time to open the door to a scientific overview of the Giza Plateau, because we cannot let the history of mankind get away.
Last year, I published results of my investigations about the monumental complex of Giza, and the first question was: how is it possible that Egyptologists haven’t noticed that the funerary chamber inside the Great Pyramid conflicted with funerary rules in force during the Ancient Kingdom?
Sometimes all it takes is a little bit of attention to be ready to understand the meaning of the ancient message coming from the distant past of mankind, when the gods ruled over the Egypt and the Giza complex, when the monuments of the pyramids and the Sphinx were the mirror of the sky.
Maybe Khufu was never buried within the Great Pyramid—maybe he wasn’t a heretic as it seems. But just only a scientific investigation, with an open mind, can help us to understand the truth.
Armando Mei is an investigative journalist born in Turin in 1967. He worked in prominent Italian newspapers. A self-trained Egyptologist, he worked on many research projects that were the seed for his books 36,400 BCE The Secrets of the Gods and THE PYRAMID AND THE SECRETS OF 137: Mysteries of a Lost Civilization That Mastered Space and Time, now available from Amazon.
Top image: Is the Pyramid of Giza the final resting place of Khufu as claimed by Egyptologists? Deriv; Pyramid of Giza (CC BY 2.5), Khufu (Ivory Idol, Public Domain).
By Armando Mei
What’s striking is not just what we’ve learned about the Great Pyramid, but how much remains unresolved. It feels like a reminder that ancient civilizations were far more sophisticated than we often assume, and that humility is still required when interpreting the past.
Weren’t the sphinx originally constructed as lions? Another idea is that when mankind becomes too sophisticated, the civilization is forced back to constantly reinvent the wheel (so to speak). Interesting article.