Page 16 - Off the Tourist Trail - 1000 Unexpected Travel Alternatives (Part 1 of 2)

12 ANCIENT AND HISTORICAL SIGHTS 4 MORE PYRAMIDS TO RIVAL THOSE AT GIZA

Iglesia de Mercedes atop the Great Pyramid of Cholula, Mexico
Great Pyramid

of Cholula

NEED TO KNOW
The Step Pyramid of Zoser in the evening sun, Saqqara, Egypt
LOCATION Cholula is
in Puebla state, Mexico Pyramids of
6 4 "
DATE OF
CONSTRUCTION
200 BC to AD 800 .POUFSSFZ (VMG PG Saqqara & of smaller mastaba (mudbrick) tombs that provided
PYRAMID HEIGHT .&9*$0 .FYJDP an early model for the pyramids. Dominating the
217 ft (66 m) Dahshur
DAYTIME .FYJDP $JUZ site is the Step Pyramid of Zoser – the first
TEMPERATURES $)0-6-" Egyptian pyramid and the tomb of Pharaoh
Jan: 66°F (19°C); Apr: 77°F (25°C); 1BDJmD Zoser. The royal sarcophagus was sunk into the
Jul: 73°F (23°C); Oct: 70°F (21°C) 0DFBO NEED TO KNOW
bedrock of the desert, then surrounded by a
LOCATION The pyramids .FEJUFSSBOFBO granite platform that was gradually expanded into
are south of Cairo in Egypt 4F B
Cholula’s pyramid is so enormous and overgrown "MFYBOESJB a four- and then six-step pyramid according to
DATE OF $BJSP
that first-time visitors regularly mistake it for a hill. CONSTRUCTION 4"22"3" very precise calculations. The pharaoh’s engineer,
4"6%*
Although it is not as high as the Great Pyramid of 2667–2575 BC %")4)63 "3"#*" Imhotep, oversaw the design and construction of
Giza, it is actually larger, measuring a staggering PYRAMID HEIGHT &(:15 this pyramid so well that he was later raised into
Step: 203 ft (62 m); Red: 331 ft 3FE
191,360 sq yards (160,000 sq m) at the base. Built (101 m); Bent: 344 ft (105 m) -VYPS 4FB the pantheon of the gods – an honor only
over a period of 1,000 years, the monument is DAYTIME TEMPERATURES "TXBO bestowed on a handful of people in ancient Egypt.
made up of several pyramids built one over the Jan: 64°F (18°C); Apr: 82°F (28°C); Although smaller pyramids surround Zoser’s
Jul: 97°F (36°C); Oct: 86°F (30°C) 46%"/
other like Russian dolls. The giant structure was resting place, the tomb of Imhotep – the world’s
once topped with a temple dedicated to the first-named architect – has never been found.
Aztec god Quetzalcoatl, but this was later replaced The pyramids at Giza didn’t arrive fully formed The pharaohs of the Sixth Dynasty chose
with a church built by the conquistadors. Visitors – it took the ancient Egyptians around 400 years Dahshur, to the south of Saqqara, as the site for their
can relive Indiana Jones fantasies by exploring to perfect their building art. Evidence of this cemetery. Leading the way was the ruler, Snefru,
some of the of tunnels that burrow into the heart architectural experimentation lies a short drive who ordered the building of Dahshur’s two most
of the massive structure. south of Giza at the older sites of Saqqara and iconic pyramids, the Red Pyramid and the Bent
Dahshur, where several pyramids, including one Pyramid, and kick-started the golden age of
Practical Information stepped, one bent, and one red, form the Egyptian pyramids in the process. The Red Pyramid,
Getting There Cholula is on the outskirts of Puebla, the capital city of necropolis for the old royal city of Memphis. named after the color of its limestone blocks, is
Puebla state, and is 3 hours southeast of Mexico City by road. The idea of using pyramids as mausoleums thought to be the first true pyramid, with sloping
When to Go Any time of year is pleasant, although July to September arose during the Third Dynasty of ancient Egypt, slides rather than steps and descending passages
is a particularly rainy period. and the funerary complex at Saqqara contains through the blockwork to a series of tomb
Websitewww.mexonline.com/cholula-pyramid.htm five of the original structures, along with a cluster chambers. The construction techniques obviously

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