Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 7.djvu/795

PYHA.MID3.] edly remain, the general features of the necropolis cannot be much changed. From the Citadel of Cairo we obtain a good view of the several groups. First, opposite to us, but a little to the south, are the three great Pyramids of El-Geezeh, two of which exceed all the others in magnitude ; at some distance farther south we see those of Aboo-Seer, likewise three in number, of smaller dimensions, and, not so far beyond them, the great Pyramid of Sakkarah, called from its form that of Steps, with smaller pyramids in its neighbourhood. Farthest of all, after a wider interval, are the two large Pyramids of Dahshoor, which approach in size the two great structures of El-Geezeh. There are more to the south as far as the Feiyoom, the last being that of El- Lahoon, but none above the Pyramids of Dahshoor can be included within the Memphite necropolis, That great tract extended, if we measure from the ruined Pyramid of Aboo- Buweysh, somewhat to the north of those of El-Geezeh, to the southernmost Pyramid of Dahshoor, throughout a space of nearly twenty miles, in aim oat every part of which some sepulchres have been discovered, while it cannot be doubted that many more await a fortunate explorer. The road to the pyramids of El-Geezeh from the town is through cultivated fields diversified by villages in palm- groves. As we approach them, these structures do not give us that idea of size that we had expected from our first distant view ; and until we stand at their feet we do not appreciate their vastness. But as we endeavour to scan the height of the Great Pyramid, when about to begin its ascent, we fully realize a result that human labour has not achieved elsewhere. The very dimensions (a height of about half a thousand feet, four sides each measuring the seventh of a mile) are in themselves gigantic; but when we know that this huge space is almost solid, containing a few chambers so small as not to be worthy of consideration in calculating its contents, we discover that no monuments of man s raising elsewhere afford any scale by which to estimate its greatness. The Pyramids, except one or more small ones, were tombs of kings. Each had its name and a priest attached to it, for whose functions there was a chapel at some distance in front of the entrance. The Great Pyramid, " the Splendid," was the mausoleum of Khufu, or Cheops, of Dynasty IV. The present per pendicular height of the structure is, according to General Vyse, 450 feet 9 inches, and the side of its present base 746 feet. It is about 30 feet lower than it was originally, in consequence of the casing stones and much of the outer masonry having been torn off; and its base is likewise smaller. General Vyse gives the former height at 480 feet 9 inches, and the side of the former base at 764 feet. Like all the other pyramids, it faces the cardinal points. At the completion of the pyramid the faces were smooth and polished, but now they present a series of great steps formed by the courses of stone, and are in some places (par ticularly in the middle of each face, and at the angles, and about the entrance) much broken. The ascent is easy though fatiguing, and the traveller is amply rewarded by the view which he obtains from the platform, about 32 feet square, at the summit. The prospect of the fertile plain and valley on the one side, and of the undulating barren surface of the Great Desert on the other, as well as of the pyramids and tombs beneath, is alike remarkable from its character and the associations which it calls up. The examination of the interior is no less interesting. All other tombs but the Memphite pyramids, and those which were simply pits, were not closed, the upper chamber being intended for the performance of funeral rites when the family of the deceased visited his sepulchre. These pyramids, however, were most carefully closed. The chambers which contained the bodies of the king, and of those (doubtless of his family) who were sometimes buried 771 in the same structure, are without sculptures, and scarcely ornamented in any way, being usually wholly plain. The passages leading to them are only large enough to admit a sarcophagus, and after the king s burial were closed by the lowering of heavy stone portcullises, and the block ing up of the entrance. The desired object was security, and we must not, therefore, expect beauty or grandeur in chambers constructed for this purpose, although we cannot fail to admire their massive and gloomy aspect. The entrance of the Great Pyramid is not far from the middle of the northern face, 49 feet in perpendicular height from the base. The fallen stones and rubbish have, however, raised a mound which reaches nearly to the entrance, the masonry about which having been torn down, we gain some idea of the construction of the pyramid. In this manner the passage has lost somewhat of its length. The passage itself is 3 feet 11 inches high, and 3 feet 5| inches wide, and is lined with fine limestone. It descends at an angle of 26 41 . 1 At a distance of G3 feet 2 inches from the beginning of the roof of the present entrance, a second passage commences from this, taking an ascending direction. The entrance of this new passage is obstructed by great blocks of granite which entirely fill it, and have bean passed by means of an excavation around them. We thus enter the ascending passage, which is of the same breadth and height as the former, and inclines at an angle of 26 18 . The stones which line its roof and sides are very rough, and it has evidently been left unfinished. After ascending this passage for a distance of 109 feet 7 inches, we reach the Grand Passage, which, from its greater dimensions, presents a comparatively imposing appearance. It ascends at the same angle as the last, while a horizontal passage runs beneath it to a chamber to be subsequently mentioned. Just within the Grand Passage is the mouth of the Well, an irregular pit, partly excavated in the rock, leading to the lower portion of the first passage. Its object was probably to afford an exit to the workmen who had been engaged in closing the ascending passage. The Grand Passage is 6 feet 10 inches in width at its base, 28 feet high, and 156 feet long. The blocks which compose its sides gradually approach, every course above the second projecting a little, and on each side is a stone bench. At the end of this passage a horizontal one begins, of much smaller but unequal dimensions, and 22 feet 1 inch in length, leading to the Grand Chamber, commonly called the King s Chamber, which it enters at the eastern end of its north side. This, which is the principal sepulchral chamber (unless, indeed, there be an undiscovered one of greater importance), is lined with red granite, and measures in length 34 feet 3 inches, in width 17 feet 1 inch, and in height 19 feet 1 inch. It is altogether plain, and contains only a sarcophagus of red granite, which is equally unadorned. Above this chamber are five small ones, which may be called entresols, evidently designed to lighten the pressure of the superincumbent masonry, particularly as the uppermost of them has a pointed roof. Four of these were discovered by the late General Howard Vyse, who found in them quarry-marks, bearing, in two varieties, the name of Khufu, the royal builder of the pyramid. These chambers are reached with difficulty, and chiefly by forced passages. The horizontal passage beneath the Grand Passage must now be described. This is but 3 feet 10 inches high, and 1 See Sir John Herscliel s " Observations on the Entrance Passages in the Pyramids of Gizeh," in Vyse s Pyramids of Gizeh, vol. ii. 107-109. The different angles of the entrance passages of other pyramids, and the circumstance that they were always closed at the completion of the buildings, show that the fact of this one s having pointed, at a supposed date of its erection, to o Draconis, which wa then the pole-star, is not to be regarded as more than accidental. Nevertheless, us above mentioned, the pyramids face the cardinal

points.