Herodotus
Described as the Father of History, Herodotus (c. 484-c.425 BC) was a Greek historian and geographer known for authoring “The Histories.” Herodotus was believed to have traveled to Egypt around 450 BC. In his work, ‘‘The Histories,” Herodotus carefully separates his observations from hearsay. He is candid about acknowledging his ignorance, and when there are discrepancies between versions of a story, he provides the reader with both versions.
Let's use his own words:
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“Hitherto my own observation and judgment and inquiry are the vouchers for that which I have said; but from this point onwards I am about to tell the history of Egypt according to what I have heard, to which will be added also something of that which I have myself seen.”
- Herodotus, The Histories Chapter 2, section 123 – Translation 1 – Written Text
- Herodotus, The Histories Chapter 2, section 123 – Translation 2. Herodotus, with an English translation by A. D. Godley. Cambridge. Harvard University Press. 1920.
- Herodotus, The Histories Chapter 2, section 123 – Translation 3. The History of Herodotus, parallel English/Greek, tr. G. C. Macaulay, [1890], at sacred-texts.com
During the time of Herodotus, word of mouth was a crucial way of spreading information. However, it was evident that some of the stories shared with Herodotus were untrue. For example, he was told that the Egyptian text on the Great Pyramid had details about the number of radishes, onions, leeks, and silver spent on the workers who built the pyramid, which is inaccurate. Conversely, there were instances where Herodotus recorded his observations, and historical evidence has been found to support his descriptions. For instance, Herodotus recounted visiting a shipyard where he saw the construction of a ship he described as a "baris."
In the early 2000s, an underwater archaeologist named Franck Goddio discovered a ship that matched the description of Herodotus' "baris." This ship, also known as "Ship 17," was found 19 feet (5.8 meters) below the surface in the submerged city of Thonis-Heracleion, which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Alexandria in the Mediterranean Sea.
We are analyzing Herodotus' text to gain insight into the construction of the Great Pyramid. Herodotus gathered information about the pyramid's construction from locals who lived 2000 years after its completion. We are comparing Herodotus' original Greek text with an existing English translation and have highlighted keywords such as "Stone-Quarries," "Stone/Stones," "The Nile," "river," "boats," "causeway," and "Trench/channel of the Nile" in both versions. This will allow us to better understand the construction process and materials used in building the pyramid.
COLOR KEY
Stone Quarry Stones
The Nile River
Boat/Floating Vessel Causeway
Trench of the Nile Pyramid
Island
Greek Text:
[1]μέχρι μέν νυν Ῥαμψινίτου βασιλέος εἶναι ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ πᾶσαν εὐνομίην ἔλεγον καὶ εὐθηνέειν Αἴγυπτον μεγάλως, μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον βασιλεύσαντα σφέων Χέοπα ἐς πᾶσαν κακότητα ἐλάσαι. κατακληίσαντα γάρ μιν πάντα τὰ ἱρὰ πρῶτα μὲν σφέας θυσιέων τουτέων ἀπέρξαι, μετὰ δὲ ἐργάζεσθαι ἑωυτῷ κελεύειν πάντας Αἰγυπτίους.
[2] τοῖσι μὲν δὴ ἀποδεδέχθαι ἐκ τῶν λιθοτομιέων τῶν ἐν τῷ Ἀραβίῳ ὄρεϊ, ἐκ τουτέων ἕλκειν λίθους μέχρι τοῦ Νείλου: διαπεραιωθέντας δὲ τὸν ποταμὸν πλοίοισι τοὺς λίθους ἑτέροισι ἐπέταξε ἐκδέκεσθαι καὶ πρὸς τὸ Λιβυκὸν καλεύμενον ὄρος, πρὸς τοῦτο ἕλκειν.
[3] ἐργάζοντο δὲ κατὰ δέκα μυριάδας ἀνθρώπων αἰεὶ τὴν τρίμηνον ἑκάστην. χρόνον δὲ ἐγγενέσθαι τριβομένῳ τῷ λεῷ δέκα ἔτεα μὲν τῆς ὁδοῦ κατ᾽ ἣν εἷλκον τοὺς λίθους, τὴν ἔδειμαν ἔργον ἐὸν οὐ πολλῷ τεῳ ἔλασσον τῆς πυραμίδος. ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκέειν:
[4] τῆς μὲν γὰρ μῆκος εἰσὶ πέντε στάδιοι, εὖρος δὲ δέκα ὀργυιαί, ὕψος δέ, τῇ ὑψηλοτάτη ἐστὶ αὐτὴ ἑωυτῆς, ὀκτὼ ὀργυιαί, λίθου δὲ ξεστοῦ καὶ ζῴων ἐγγεγλυμμένων: ταύτης τε δὴ τὰ δέκα ἔτεα γενέσθαι καὶ τῶν ἐπὶ τοῦ λόφου ἐπ᾽ οὗ ἑστᾶσι αἱ πυραμίδες, τῶν ὑπὸ γῆν οἰκημάτων, τὰς ἐποιέετο θήκας ἑωυτῷ ἐν νήσῳ, διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου ἐσαγαγών.
[5] τῇ δὲ πυραμίδι αὐτῇ χρόνον γενέσθαι εἴκοσι ἔτεα ποιευμένῃ: τῆς ἐστὶ πανταχῇ μέτωπον ἕκαστον ὀκτὼ. πλέθρα ἐούσης τετραγώνου καὶ ὕψος ἴσον, λίθου δὲ ξεστοῦ τε καὶ ἁρμοσμένου τὰ μάλιστα: οὐδεὶς τῶν λίθων τριήκοντα ποδῶν ἐλάσσων.
English Translation:
124. Down to the time when Rhampsinitos was king, they told me there was in Egypt nothing but orderly rule, and Egypt prospered greatly; but after him Cheops became king over them and brought them [104] to every kind of evil: for he shut up all the temples, and having first kept them from sacrificing there, he then bade all the Egyptians work for him. So some were appointed to draw stones from the stone-quarries in the Arabian mountains to the Nile, and others he ordered to receive the stones after they had been carried over the river in boats, and to draw them to those which are called the Libyan mountains; and they worked by a hundred thousand men at a time, for each three months continually. Of this oppression there passed ten years while the causeway was made by which they drew the stones, which causeway they built, and it is a work not much less, as it appears to me, than the pyramid; for the length of it is five furlongs [105] and the breadth ten fathoms and the height, where it is highest, eight fathoms, and it is made of stone smoothed and with figures carved upon it. For this, they said, the ten years were spent, and for the underground chambers on the hill upon which the pyramids stand, which he caused to be made as sepulchral chambers for himself in an island, having conducted thither a channel from the Nile. For the making of the pyramid itself there passed a period of twenty years; and the pyramid is square, each side measuring eight hundred feet, and the height of it is the same. It is built of stone smoothed and fitted together in the most perfect manner, not one of the stones being less than thirty feet in length.
- Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 2 (EUTERPE), Translated by G. Macaulay
Herodotus' text has been translated into English multiple times with varying results. We will explore the translation of specific Greek words in Herodotus' text.
First, we will examine the Greek word (ἡ ὁδός), which has been translated in the text above to the word “causeway.”
”The word in question (ἡ ὁδός) is the generic term for 'way, path, road'. According to the Liddell and Scott Greek dictionary, which is the authority here, it can have the sense 'course, channel' of a river, but that is just a sense.”
- Andrew Merritt, Ph.D. Classics
(ἡ ὁδός) – this link takes you to the Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott Greek/English Translation.
A causeway is a raised path or walkway across wet ground and water. The walkway between the Mortuary Temple and HARBOR Temple* in the Pyramid complex is appropriately classified as a causeway. The dimensions of Unas’ Causeway and the preserved remains of other causeways have helped Egyptologists estimate the average causeway’s approximate width. Egyptologist Iorwerth Edwards estimates the causeway width was approximately 8 ft or 2.44 m wide. However, Herodotus wrote that the (ἡ ὁδός) breadth (distance from side to side, or the width) was "ten fathoms," which equals 60 feet or 18 meters. This measurement conflicts with the 8 ft (2.44 m) width estimated for other causeways, revealing an apparent inconsistency.
Let's examine Herodotus’ account of the construction of the Great Pyramid through the lens of my theory. As outlined in my theory, water played an integral role in the construction process. Therefore, we must assume that "(ἡ ὁδός)" refers to a water canal with sluices that were used to manage elevation changes. This water canal ran from the Khufu Basin to the pyramid's base, starting at the Storage at the Sphinx (already carved by Khufu) and Khafre HARBOR Temple* present site. The canal ran approximately 350 meters west and slightly north to Khufu Quarry, where it turned north for approximately 200 meters before reaching the canal surrounding the pyramid base. The water canal is marked in red on the illustration, in the same way as "(ἡ ὁδός)" in the Greek Herodotus text and "causeway" in the English translation.
“διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου ἐσαγαγών,” translated to Trench of the Nile or having conducted thither a channel from the Nile in the English translation above.
“διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου ἐσαγαγών seems to be the relevant phrase. διῶρυξ from διορύσσω 'dig through' means 'trench' '
διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου 'trench of the Nile' is evidence that it could have the sense 'conduit, canal, waterway.”
- Andrew Merritt, Ph.D. Classics
“διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου ἐσαγαγών – The links below take you to the Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott Greek/English translation of this phrase.
I believe that Herodotus' description of the Trench of the Nile, which he referred to as "διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου ἐσαγαγών," refers to a canal that runs from the Western branch of the Nile to the area where the Sphinx and Khafre “HARBOR” Temple* are currently located. This canal is highlighted in green on the illustration and noted in green in both the English translation and Greek above.
Furthermore, I think the term "causeway," which was used to translate a portion of Herodotus' writing, would make more sense if it were translated to mean "water canal."
Let's review the timeline of pyramid construction as Herodotus described it.
“…there passed ten years while the causeway (I say, CANAL, not causeway) was made by which they drew the stones, which causeway (I say, CANAL, not causeway) they build, and it is a work not much less, as it appears to me, than the pyramid; … For this, they said, ten years were spent, and for underground chambers on the hill upon which the pyramids stand, which he caused to be made as sepulcher chambers for himself in an island, having conducted thither a channel from the Nile. For the making of the pyramid itself there passed a period of twenty years; …”
- Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 2 (EUTERPE), Translated by G. Macaulay.
According to my theory, the ancient Egyptians utilized canals and sluices to transport and build the Great Pyramid. To achieve this, they built a canal from the Sphinx to the Great Pyramid and around the pyramid's base, which included sluices (Header of the Sluices). This massive undertaking could have taken the ten years that Herodotus describes. We know that pyramid finishing stones were delivered to the Khufu Pyramid from Tura by boat in the 27th year of Khufu's reign, as described by Inspector Merer's 4,500-year-old papyrus discovered by Professor Tallet in 2013. Having analyzed the means of transportation and the duration of the Great Pyramid's construction, our final consideration is the workforce required to build the Great Pyramid, according to Herodotus's writing.
Heredotus wrote “…they worked by a hundred thousand men at a time, for each three months continually. …”
In Ancient Egypt, there were three forms of labor - paid labor, corvée compulsory labor, and slavery. Paid laborers were compensated with rations, while corvée laborers were forced to work on large public projects or Pharaoh’s assignments as a form of taxation. Slavery was also a common form of labor during that time. The population in Egypt at this time was approximately 2 million people. During the season of Akhet, when the Nile overflowed for approximately three months, the demand for agricultural labor would be low. The Pharaoh could easily gather 100,000 workers for three months.
In Herodotus' text, he describes "διώρυχα τοῦ Νείλου," which has been translated to mean "dig trench of the Nile" or "trench of the Nile." This trench, marked in green on the illustration above, is labeled as the "Canal" and is located in the Khufu Basin, between the Western Branch of the Nile and the Sphinx, which was already carved by Khufu.
Professor Pierre Tallet uncovered Inspector Merer's 4500-year-old papyri in 2013 at Wadi el-Jarf. The text described how the casing or finishing stones were delivered by boat from Tura to the Khufu pyramid during Khufu's 27th year of reign.
In August of 2022, the National Academy of Science published an article titled
“Nile waterscapes Facilitated the Construction of Giza Pyramids During the 3rd Millennium BCE.”
The article was based on research led by geographer Hader Sheisha, who attempted to
reconstruct the appearance of the Nile River in ancient Egypt. I copyrighted my theory in 1986, and since then, I have known there must have been a branch of the Nile that flowed next to the Giza Plateau. Hader Sheisha’s findings confirm my theory and what Dr. Lehner later discovered. In 2023, Dr. Eman Ghaneim and her team presented their research to the 13th Congress of Egyptologists about the rediscovery of the dried-up branch of the Nile River, renaming it the Ahramet Branch (Pyramids Branch in Arabic). An article about this discovery was published on November 29, 2023. IFL Science… “Space discovery shows that the pyramids were built using water.”
In 2020, two years before the publication of the NAS article, I sent approximately 600 emails to inform academics and every single person listed in the Directory of North American Egyptologists about my theory, Secrets of the Pyramids. In these emails, I introduced my theory and Project 3 - Water Transportation at Giza, which focused on the water transportation system used during Khufu's reign. According to my theory, the Western Branch of the Nile, located adjacent to the Giza Plateau, was the source for a system of waterways built and used by Egyptians to transport building materials and supplies within the Giza Plateau.
In Project 3 - Water Transportation at Giza, I stated that every pyramid (not 38) in ancient Egypt was built near a lake or water basin with a harbor, and each pyramid had a causeway that led down from the pyramid to the temple in the harbor. The temple at Khufu Harbor is known as the Valley Temple, but I suggest using a more appropriate name, the Khufu HARBOR Temple*, due to its location. You may wonder why I named it the Western Branch of the Nile. That's because the main Nile River is located several miles to the East.
I’m happy to see that researchers are researching my website, too.
In Secrets of the Pyramids, Challenges and Rebuttals page, point 5, I note Herodotus’ text Book 2, Chapter 125 describes a machine used to lift stones, similar in design to a shaduf. This machine may have been used to lift water, which in turn lifted the stones. This aligns with my theory on the role of shadufs and sluices in pyramid construction.
Secret of the Pyramids theory is proven through math, physics, logic, the examination of ancient technology, and scientific demonstrations, along with researching ancient text such as Herodotus and Inspector Merer’s papyrus. My theory explains that the Great Pyramid COULD easily be built during Khufu’s lifetime.