Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Bent Pyramid (Egypt)

Archaeology: What's Hot Now
These articles that had the largest increase in popularity over the last week // via fulltextrssfeed.com
Bent Pyramid (Egypt)
Nov 2nd 2011, 10:08

Definition:

The Bent Pyramid is one of the Old Kingdom Pyramids at Giza, Egypt; built in the 4th Dynasty, 2680-2565 B.C. for the 4th dynasty pharaoh, Sneferu.

The pyramid is called "bent" because it changes angles at about 2/3 of the way to the top. To be precise, the lower 165 feet of the pyramid's shape is angled at 54 degrees, 31 minutes, at which point it abruptly flattens out to 43 degrees, 21 minutes.

Sneferu began his pyramid, but far too steeply, at an original angle of 60 degrees, and intended it to go to over 400 feet in height. John Romer speculates that while men were working inside the pyramid, ominous groans and cracks began to be heard. They stopped work on it, and built the Red Pyramid before returning to the Bent Pyramid, buttressing up its lower courses and adding the crown.

Source

John Romer. 2007. The Great Pyramid. Cambridge University Press, New York.

More on Egyptian Pyramids

This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Any mistakes are the responsibility of Kris Hirst.

Also Known As: Sneferu's Pyramid

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