The Great Pyramid of Khufu
The Pyramid of Khufu was the largest of the pyramids built in ancient Egypt. It was built of granite and limestone and kissed the sky at 146.7 meters (481 ft). Today, the height of the towering structure has been calculated at 138.8 meters (455 ft).
Khufu’s pyramid took 20 years to build according to some accounts and remained the tallest building for at least 4000 years. It is the culmination of ancient Egyptian pyramid building; with designers and workmen refining their previous pyramid building effort to erect the impressive structure.
With a total volume of 235,183 cubic meters (8,305,409 cu ft), scholars estimate that the builders of Khufu’s Pyramid used of 5.5 million tons of limestone, 8,000 tons of granite (imported from Aswan), as well as 500,000 tons of mortar to build the Great Pyramid.
The pyramid is also surrounded by other significant structures including three smaller pyramids for Khufu’s wives, two mortuary temples, a small satellite pyramid and small ‘mastaba’ tombs.
