Historical Background

The Pyramids of Giza and other monuments on the Giza Plateau are among the great world treasures. In fact, the Pyramids are the icons of world heritage in general and are widely pictured as such. The site covers an area of 2 x 2 km. It includes the three Pyramids of Khufu, Khafraa and Mankaura private tombs and the Sphinx (Figure 1). The Pyramid complexes belong to three rulers of the 4th Dynasty. Khufu Pyramid was completed around 2560 B.C.E. Occasionally, the Great Pyramid is referred to as “Khufu”, as a common trend is to refer to a Pyramid by its honored king, and not by who built it. Presently, there exist a little over 70 surviving large Pyramids, but the largest and perhaps the most recognizable of all is the Great Pyramid at Giza, which also represents the only surviving Wonder of the Ancient World [John A.R. Legon, http://www.legon.demon.co.uk/].