Why are dozens of Egypt’s ancient pyramids found in an unremarkable strip of barren desert, far from the shores of the modern River Nile? Perhaps, new research suggests, it’s because they were built along a branch of the river system that’s since been lost to time.
Not only does this theory explain the obscure location of the pyramids, but it might also shed some light on how these mysterious structures were built over 4,500 years ago.
Over 30 pyramids are situated along a vertical strip between Giza and Lisht along the edge of the inhospitable Western Desert, part of the Sahara. This includes the Great Pyramid of Giza, perhaps the most famous ancient Egyptian pyramid and one of the only Seven Wonders of the Ancient World to remain standing.
The pyramid field is a fair distance from the Nile River we see today. However, it’s known that the river has changed significantly over the millennia and likely had much higher discharge in the past, as well as branches that no longer exist.
The research team stands in front of the pyramid of Unas’s Valley Temple, which acted as a river harbor in antiquity.
Image credit: Eman Ghoneim
In a new study, scientists looked at satellite imagery to search for the possible location of a former river branch running near the foothills of the Western Desert Plateau alongside the pyramid fields. Upon finding a promising candidate, they headed to the area to carry out geophysical surveys and collect sediment samples.
They claim this revealed evidence of a 64-kilometer (40-mile) ancient branch of the River Nile that has since disappeared. They propose naming the long river “Ahramat,” which means “pyramids” in Arabic.
“The length probably was really, really long, but also the width of this branch in some areas was huge. We’re talking about half a kilometer or more in terms of width, which is something that is equivalent to today’s Nile course width,” Dr Eman Ghoneim, lead study author from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, told IFLScience in 2023 after presenting the research at the 13th International Congress of Egyptologists.
“So it wasn’t a small branch. It was a major branch.”
The water course of the ancient Ahramat Branch borders a large number of pyramids dating from the Old Kingdom to the Second Intermediate Period, spanning between the Third Dynasty and the 13th Dynasty.
Image credit: Eman Ghoneim et al.
It seems the river branch started to become swallowed up around 4,200 years ago in the centuries after the pyramids were constructed. Following an intense drought, the strip became caked in windblown sand, burying the river beneath a desert blanket.
“As branches disappeared, Ancient Egyptian cities and towns also silted up and disappeared, and we have no clue actually where to find them,” added Dr Ghoneim.
Before it vanished, such a river branch would have been an invaluable tool to help build the pyramids.
Rather than lugging huge quantities of stone across the sand, the waterway would smoothly allow tons of material and workers to be shipped along Egypt like a system of veins.
“If there are pyramids everywhere in this specific area, there must have been in the past water bodies that carried or facilitated the transportation of rocks and large numbers of workmen to these sites,” Dr Ghoneim concluded.
The study is published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.
Source Link: This Lost River Could Explain How The Pyramids Were Built
