The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt is undoubtedly among the most spectacular ancient monuments in the world. Built some 4, 500 years ago, it is still debated today what mysteries this extraordinary structure can hold and how exactly this engineering feat was built. So much so that researchers from various fields never tire of studying the fascinating monument and proposing new theories.

(Smithsonian Magazine / David Degner / Getty Reportage)

It was during one of these studies that, according to Josh Hrala of Science Alert, a team of scientists from the Glen Dash Research Foundation in the USA and AERA - Ancient Egypt Research Associates, an Egyptian-focused research association. Old - found that the engineers responsible for building the Great Pyramid of Giza have made a miscalculation, and as a result it is "crooked."

Royal tomb

The Great Pyramid of Giza was built to serve as a mausoleum for the Fourth Dynasty Pharaoh Cheops, who ruled Egypt from about 2551 BC to about 2528 BC. Scholars estimate that the royal tomb took about two decades to complete and was built with the participation of thousands of workers and more than 2 million stone blocks. Also, originally when the pyramid was completed it was lined with a layer of completely polished white limestone. Possibly like this:

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Over the centuries, this shiny white coating has been removed and reused in the construction and finishing of other monuments and buildings in Egypt - and this is why the stone blocks are now exposed in this way:

(Wikimedia Commons / Nina)

So! Getting back to the researchers, according to Josh, in 2016, the team was conducting surveys to find out what the exact dimensions of the Great Pyramid were before the cladding disappeared - and that's when they discovered that Egyptian engineers made a miscalculation and, In fact, the monument is crooked.

Wrong

To find out how the limestone cladding was installed over the stone blocks and how much space this layer took up, scientists had to identify the locations where the limestone stones were placed. In total, they found 84 points at the base of the pyramid where the cladding material was inserted and then transferred them all to a grid to calculate the lengths on either side of the monument.

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That's when they found out that the numbers didn't match. The calculations showed that with the limestone lining, the sides of the Great Pyramid originally measured between 230, 295 and 230, 373 meters in length. However, the west side of the monument averages between 230, 378 and 230, 436 meters, meaning that this face of the pyramid is about 14 centimeters smaller.

Well, we said it was just a little mistake, right? Considering the grandeur of the royal tomb, which was built thousands of years ago, the technology and tools available at the time, and the engineers had to calculate everything in the race, it is really surprising that the misconception was so small!

However, the discovery is nonetheless curious, not to mention that it inevitably makes us admire even more the brilliant minds and craftsmanship of all the hardworking people involved in building the Great Pyramid - for the reasons given above. What we do not know is whether Pharaoh knew that his tomb was “crooked” and if it could interfere with his passing from this life to the beyond.