Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/113

 PYKAMID 105 during the life of the king for whom it was intended the work of building up the structure over this chamber went on, a very narrow and low passageway being kept open as the courses of the stone were added, by which access from the outside was secured to the central cham- ber. At the death of the monarch the work ceased, and the last layers were then finished off and the passageway closed up. The piles were constructed of blocks of red or syenitic granite from the quarries of Asswan, and also of others of a hard calcareous stone from the quarries of Mokattam and Turah. They were of extraordinary dimensions, and their trans- portation to the pyramids and adjustment in their places indicate a surprising degree of mechanical skill. Their thickness varied from more than four to less than two feet, and when arranged one upon another forming steps up the outer slopes, the thickness of the stones determined the height of these steps. Those near the top are of the thicker stones, but the blocks are of moderate length compared with those near the base. The foundations for the structures were excavated in the solid rock, sometimes to the depth of 10 ft., and upon this the great stones were arranged and built up layer upon layer, and one shell succeeding another, the spaces within being filled in with smaller stones closely packed. To quarry and move the immense blocks to the pyramids and then raise them to their places required no little engineering skill, notwithstanding an un- limited amount of human labor was at com- mand. Near the summits the number of men that could aid in raising the huge stones must have been comparatively small for want of room, and it seems that some mechanical pow- er must have been employed besides any which we know they possessed. The probability of this is confirmed by the fact that cavities in the stones have been found, which appear as though they might have been worn by the foot of derricks turning in them. The three pyra- mids of the Memphis group stand upon a pla- teau about 137 ft. above the level of the high- est rise of the Nile, not far apart, and nearly on a N. E. and S. "W. line. Like the other pyramids of Egypt, their four sides are direct- ed, toward the cardinal points. The largest of them, known as the great pyramid or the pyramid of Cheops (Khufu or Shufu), covers at present an area of between 12 and 13 acres. Its dimensions have been reduced by the removal of the outer portions to furnish stone for the city of Cairo. Thus despoiled, the walls have lost their smooth finished sur- face, in which state they were left by their builders, who, beginning at the top, filled in with small stones the angles formed by the re- cession of each upper layer, and bevelled off the upper edges of the great blocks, till reaching the base they left each side of an even surface sloping at an angle of 51 50'. By stripping off the outer casing the courses of stone appear in the form of steps, which, though ragged and unequal, can be ascended even by ladies. The great pyramid has 203 of these steps, the lower ones being 4 ft. 1 in. high. The horizontal sur- faces were nicely finished, and the stones were joined together with a cement of lime without sand. The masonry of the great pyramid con- Section of the Great Pyramid. sisted originally of 89,028,000 cubic feet, and still amounts to 82,111,000 ft. The present vertical height is 450 ft., against 479 ft. origi- nally, and the present length of the sides is 746 ft., against 764 ft. originally. The total weight of the stone is estimated at 6,316,000 tons. The only entrance is on the N. face, 49 ft. above the base, and about 24 ft. E. of the central line. The masonry about it is much broken away, and the piles of broken stones reach up from the ground nearly to its level. This pas- sageway (marked a in the adjoining illustration) is only 3 ft. 11 in. high and 3 ft. 5$ in. wide; it leads down a slope at an angle of 26 41' a distance of 320 ft. 10 in. to the original sepul- chral chamber, commonly known as the sub- terraneous apartment, and beyond this 52 ft. 9 in. into the rock, with an area in this por- tion of only 2 ft. 7 in. in width and 2 ft. 8 in. in height. It is supposed that it was intended to excavate another chamber at the end of this passage, and that it was not done on ac- count of the monarch continuing to live until it was found expedient to close up the mouth of the passage with the external casing of masonry. The sepulchral chamber (c) is 46 ft. long by 27 ft. in width, and its height is 11$ ft. The entrance passage, 63 ft. long, connects with a branch passage, which rises at an angle of 26 18', and thus extends 124 ft., when it becomes level and runs 109 ft. further. This connects with several chambers and passages. One situated nearly in the cen- tral portion of the pyramid, and 67 ft. above its base, is known as the queen's chamber (/). This measures 17 ft. by 18 ft. 9 in., and 20 ft. 3 in. high, and has a groined roof. It appears to have been intended for a sarcophagus ; but the only one found was in what is called the grand or king's chamber (A). This is an apart- ment lined with red granite highly polished, single stones reaching from the floor to the ceiling, and the ceiling is formed of nine large slabs of polished granite, extending from wall