BBC History Magazine

1 Playground of the pharaohs

Long before Cairo appeared, the Nile delta was a pivot of one of the ancient world’s great civilisati­ons

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You can’t tell a history in Egypt without the ancient Egyptians. Cairo didn’t appear for more than three millennia after Pharaoh Khufu commission­ed the Great Pyramid at Giza, but that doesn’t mean the ancient Egyptians weren’t active in the region the city now occupies. The reason for the site’s importance is a simple geographic­al one. Cairo sits at the base of the Nile delta, the point where the mighty river starts to split into many tributarie­s heading towards the Mediterran­ean. From the earliest civilisati­ons, this was one of the most strategica­lly desirable pieces of real estate in all of Egypt.

From c3100 BC, when Egypt was united under one ruler, to the end of the so- called Old Kingdom a thousand years later, the ancient Egyptians had their political capital on the outskirts of modern Cairo. It wasn’t called Cairo, of course, but Memphis – and, sadly, very little survives from that once splendid city.

Pharaohs were laid to rest in the great burial grounds at Saqqara, also in the outskirts of modern Cairo, within sight of Memphis. The exception to that rule was the fourth dynasty (c2600–2490 BC), whose rulers had their pyramids constructe­d on the Giza plateau. The plateau (which, again, was situated on the site of modern Cairo) was a natural plate of limestone, high above sea level. At the time of the fourth dynasty, it actually sat next to the river Nile (the Nile has shifted its course east and west continuous­ly over the millennia).

The western part of the plateau acted as the quarry where the bulk of the stone for the Great Pyramid was cut. During the building of the pyramids, 8,000–10,000 workers lived in this area. They were supplied by goods brought in by boat along the Nile to a harbour area just south of where another of ancient Egypt’s architectu­ral masterpiec­es, the Great Sphinx, now sits.

During the building of the pyramids, 8,000–10,000 workers lived in this area

 ??  ?? Pyramids built by the pharaohs Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure tower over the outskirts of Cairo. These awesome edifices were constructe­d three millennia before the city’s foundation
Pyramids built by the pharaohs Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure tower over the outskirts of Cairo. These awesome edifices were constructe­d three millennia before the city’s foundation

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