The mystery of Egypt’s pyramids seems solved

 How Egypt’s pyramids were built? : The mystery finally appears Solved  

People have long been fascinated with how the Egyptian pyramids were built, floating theories from the construction of expansive causeways to extra terrestrial assistance. Now scientists have evidence to support another theory, centred around the discovery of a long-lost branch of the Nile that would have run alongside 31 ancient pyramids built between the 27th and 18th centuries BC. Scientists have discovered a lost river branch of the Nile, now named Ahramat, that they believe may have been used to transport building materials and massive stone blocks to pyramid construction sites in ancient Egypt.          

Scientists have discovered a long-buried branch of the Nile river that once flowed alongside more than 30 pyramids in Egypt, potentially solving the mystery of how ancient Egyptians transported the massive stone blocks to build the famous monuments. The 64-kilometre-long river branch, which ran by the iconic Giza pyramid complex among other wonders, was hidden under desert and farmland for millennia, according to a study. Though the pyramids today sit on a sandy, desert plateau near the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis, a newly published study maintains the region was once home to a bustling river branch which was likely a vital means of transportation. Researchers named the 64-kilometre river branch Ahramat (the Arabic word for “pyramids”) and said it was likely used to float large stone blocks for the construction of the pyramids. Many of the stones originated from hundreds of kilometres south of where the pyramids stand today, with some weighing more than a ton.

The existence of the river would explain why the 31 pyramids were built in a chain along a now inhospitable desert strip in the Nile Valley between 4,700 and 3,700 years ago. The strip near the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis includes the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only surviving structure of the seven wonders of the ancient world, as well as the Khafre, Cheops and Mykerinos pyramids. The Giza Pyramids Necropolis on the outskirts of Giza. The river likely also transported other equipment and people.

Geomorphologist Eman Ghoneim, the study’s lead researcher, told National Geographic she and her team from the University of North Carolina Wilmington believe the lost river “was a superhighway for ancient Egypt.” 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 Thirteenth Dynasty.  Archaeologists had long thought that ancient Egyptians must have used a nearby waterway to move the giant materials used to build the pyramids. "But nobody was certain of the location, the shape, the size or proximity of this mega waterway to the actual pyramids site," lead study author Eman Ghoneim of the University of North Carolina Wilmington in US said.

The lost waterway was discovered using radar satellite imagery. The technology allowed scientists to identify buried rivers and ancient structures under the sand. Soil and sediment samples were also analyzed. Researchers involved in the study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, are the first to map the ancient waterway’s course. They claim Ahramat would have been just short of a kilometre wide in places, and more than 24 metres deep in others. By this logic, scientists have added fuel to the theory that ancient Egyptians could have used boats to ferry the pyramid’s construction materials and workmen along the river branch. Radar gave them the "unique ability to penetrate the sand surface and produce images of hidden features including buried rivers and ancient structures," Ghoneim said. Surveys in the field and cores of sediment from the site confirmed the presence of the river, according to the study in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.

Today, where the waterway would have been is covered with desert terrain and farmland. Ahramat’s discovery may also explain why some of the pyramids are situated farther east than others. Scientists said pyramids constructed during Egypt’s Middle Kingdom (about 2030 to 1650 BC) era were built eastward because the waterway had migrated since the Old Kingdom era (about 2650 to 2130 BC). Many of the pyramids have causeways which pointed to the Ahramat branch, causing scientists to believe they likely led to since-vanished harbours. The once mighty river was increasingly covered in sand, potentially starting during a major drought around 4,200 years ago, the scientists suggested.

The Giza pyramids stood on a plateau roughly a kilometre from the banks of the river. Many of the pyramids had a "ceremonial raised walkway" which ran alongside the river before ending at the Valley Temples which served as harbours, Ghoneim said. This indicates that the river played "a key role in the transportation of the enormous building materials and workmen needed for the pyramid's construction," she added. Exactly how ancient Egyptians managed to build such huge and long-standing structures has been one of history's great mysteries. These heavy materials, most of which were from the south, "would have been much easier to float down the river" than transport over land, study co-author Suzanne Onstine of the University of Memphis in the US state of Tennessee said.

The waterway may have later filled with silt during a major drought and sandstorms in the region about 4,200 years ago. The theory that ancient Egyptians may have used a waterway to transport building materials is one that has persisted among archaeologists for years now, though evidence such as this had never been discovered. Researchers had, however, already identified evidence of water channels at different sites in the Memphis region. The banks of the rivers could have been where the funeral entourages of pharaohs were received before their bodies were moved to their "final burial place within the pyramid," she suggested. The river may also indicate why the pyramids were built in different spots. "The water's course and its volume changed over time, so fourth dynasty kings had to make different choices than 12th dynasty kings," she said. "The discovery reminded me about the intimate connection between geography, climate, environment and human behaviour."

The study mapped Ahramat from the town of Lisht, around 50 kilometres south of Cairo, to the Pyramids of Giza site. Scientists now plan to continue their mapping north and south of the pyramids and will radiocarbon date plant and seashell remains buried in the region to attempt to determine the age of Ahramat. Researchers said understanding the historical layout and evolution of the Nile is vital to comprehend how changes in the landscape influenced human activities and settlement in Egypt. Today, only small remnants of the Ahramat branch remain, namely the Bahr el-Libeini canal.