Great Pyramid of Giza
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex, built as a tomb for the Egyptian pharaoh Khufu and the only surviving structure of the ancient Seven Wonders of the World.
For close to 3,800 years, nothing built by human hands stood taller than this single tomb — a record unbroken until medieval cathedral spires finally caught up, millennia later.
A Monument to a Pharaoh
Built around 2560 BCE during Egypt's Fourth Dynasty, the Great Pyramid was constructed as a tomb intended to secure Khufu's passage into the afterlife, in accordance with ancient Egyptian religious beliefs. It originally stood at 481 feet tall, making it the tallest human-made structure on Earth for nearly 3,800 years — a record unmatched until the construction of medieval European cathedrals.
An Engineering Mystery
The pyramid is estimated to be built from more than 2.3 million limestone and granite blocks, some weighing several tons each. The precise methods ancient Egyptians used to cut, transport, and stack these blocks with such accuracy remain a subject of ongoing archaeological research and debate, though most scholars now agree the labor was performed by a rotating, organized workforce of skilled laborers rather than enslaved people, as long assumed in popular myth.
Original Appearance
When first completed, the pyramid was covered in polished white limestone casing stones that would have made it gleam brilliantly in the sun. Most of this outer casing was later removed and repurposed for other construction projects in Cairo, leaving the rougher stepped core structure visible today.
Enduring Legacy
The Great Pyramid remains part of the Giza Necropolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, alongside the neighboring pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure and the Great Sphinx. It is the last surviving member of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and continues to be one of the most visited and extensively studied ancient structures on Earth.
