Ancient Places

A new computational study suggests the Great Pyramid of Giza was built using a sophisticated "Integrated Edge-Ramp" (IER) system, potentially solving a 4,500-year-old architectural enigma. This model challenges traditional theories of massive external ramps or complex internal spirals, proposing instead a multi-channel system of ramps built directly into the edges of the pyramid itself - and the numbers, for the first time, actually add up. For decades, the construction of Khufu's pyramid has presented a seemingly impossible logistical challenge. To complete the massive structure, comprising some 2.3 million blocks over a 230-meter base, within the pharaoh's roughly 27-year reign, ancient builders would have needed to place a block every few minutes. The new research, published in npj Heritage Science, utilizes