News Desk
- Pyramids are found in European countries of Italy and Spain
- Experts remain dubious about “pyramids” in Bosnia and Greece
- Pyramids give insight into great ancient civilisations
ISLAMABAD: This may come as a surprise to some but pyramids are found around the world and give us a window into the magnificent civilisations from the past.
According to Smithsonian Magazine, no matter if the civilisation was Mesopotamian, Egyptian, or Mayan, its legacy today is in part marked by towering pyramids.
Here is a look at the extraordinary structures, the pyramids from around the world:
Egypt: Great Pyramid of Khufu
Built circa 2551 BC for Pharoah Khufu, is known simply as the Great Pyramid—and with more than two million stone blocks forming a geometric pyramid 450 feet high (originally 481 feet), it certainly is. Although it is no longer the world’s largest manmade structure, as it was for over three millennia, it is the largest of all the ancient pyramids, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Peru: Chavin Temple Complex
This massive complex was erected over the span of a few centuries by the pre-Columbian Chavin people, who dwelled in the highlands of what is now Peru from about 900 to 200 BC, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Mexico: The Pyramid of the Sun
Not much is known about the people who inhabited the central Mexican city of Teotihuacan in the first few centuries AD, but they clearly had architectural skills. The sides of The Pyramid of the Sun’s square base are about 730 feet wide, and its five stepped layers once rose to a height of over 200 feet, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Mexico: Great Pyramid of Cholula
What looks like a grassy hill in the modern Mexican state of Puebla is actually one of the world’s largest ancient monuments, a pyramidal complex covering nearly 45 acres and rising 177 feet high. Its formal name is Tlachihualtepetl, but many people simply call it the Great Pyramid of Cholula. After the city’s conquest by Spanish colonizers in the 16th century, a Catholic church was erected on the top of the grass-covered pyramid, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Iraq: Ziggurat of Ur
This ziggurat, built for the Sumerian king Ur-Nammu in the mid-21st century BC, eroded over time and was restored by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II in the 6th century BC, then again by archaeologists in the 20th century, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Guatemala: Mayan Pyramids of Tikal
According to the Smithsonian Magazine, Tikal was an important urban and ceremonial center for the Maya from about 300 to 900 AD, and they built many monuments here, including five pyramidal temples. The tallest—Pyramid IV, topped by the Temple of the Two-Headed Serpent—is 213 feet high. After the Maya abandoned the site, these pyramids lay largely forgotten in the rainforest for nearly 800 years. European explorers re-discovered them with great excitement in the 1850s.
Italy: Pyramid of Cestius
This steep, pointed pyramid was built circa 12 BC as a tomb for the Roman magistrate Gaius Cestius Epulo, as evidenced by an inscription carved into its sides. The inscription also identifies Cestius’ heirs, and states that the pyramid took 330 days to construct, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Sudan: The Nubian Pyramids
There are hundreds of pyramidal tombs in the region of central Sudan once known as Nubia, built mostly out of reddish sandstone. About 40 of them are located in Meroe, a major city in the Kushite kingdom from about 300 BC to 300 AD. An Italian explorer smashed the tops off many of them in the 19th century, apparently seeking treasure—they remain a remarkable sight, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
China: Tomb of Shaohao (Chinn’s Pyramid)
According to Chinaculture.org, Shaohao is the son of Yellow Emperor, the man regarded as the common ancestor of all Chinese people. The tomb lies in the east of Qufu, about 4 kilometers away from the urban area. It is 28.5 meters in width and 8.73 in height. Often called Chinn’s Pyramid, the tomb first built in 1012, covers an area of 24,700 square meters.
Spain: Pyramids of Güímar
According to HelloCanaryIslands.com, in the south east of Tenerife you will find the Pyramids of Güímar Ethnographic Park. It has been built around the six stepped pyramids found in the region, each about four metres high and whose origins are not totally clear.
Pyramids in Greece and Bosnia
Controversy surrounds the Pyramid of Hellinikon in Greece and the Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun, since many experts remain dubious about them.
