A team of archaeologists led by the professor of Earth and ocean sciences at the University of North Carolina in Wilmington, Eman Ghoneim, discovered the existence of a tunnel that connects to the pyramids of Giza in Egypt. After a series of analyzes and studies of the soil, they indicated that it would be an extinct branch of the Nile River.
These constructions, more than 3,000 years old, are one of the only seven wonders of antiquity that still remain standing. Its existence was the subject of study by different Egyptologists and enthusiasts of the history of the pharaohs of that North African country. Year after year, the different archaeological expeditions revealed new information about the origin of these structures, as happened recently after the research carried out by Ghoneim.
A lost corner of the Sahara
According to the article published on the official site of the University of North Carolina, the pyramids were erected on the side of a branch of the Nile River, which allowed them to transport the stone and granite blocks easily and without much effort. Until this discovery, it was speculated that slaves used wooden sleds.
The research was published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment. There the reason was explained why nearly 30 pyramids were concentrated in an almost inhospitable corner of the Sahara.
“Many of us who are interested in ancient Egypt know that the Egyptians must have used a waterway to build their enormous monuments, such as the pyramids and valley temples, but no one was sure of the location, shape, size or proximity of this mega waterway to the site of the pyramids. “Our research provides the first map of one of the main ancient branches of the Nile on such a large scale and links it to the largest pyramid fields in Egypt,” Ghoneim said.
The architects of such works would have taken advantage of the wet season, which is when the main artery of the African country grows in water volume. As the article noted, the Egyptian pyramid fields between Giza and Lisht were built over a period of 1,000 years, 4,700 years ago.
Scientists proposed to call this ancient branch of the Nile as Ahramatwhich in Arabic means “pyramids”. It is speculated that at that time it was approximately 63 kilometers long and between 200 and 700 meters wide. Thanks to the sediments present in the ground and in the tunnel that formerly served as a water course between the triangular monuments, experts discovered its origin.
What forced the inhabitants to leave the area?
It was estimated that 4,200 years ago the largest river in Egypt began to dry up and this affected the populations near the weakest branches of the basin. “That could be one of the reasons for the arm’s eastward migration and subsequent silting,” the article suggested.
These pyramid fields were near the city of Memphis, which at that time served as the capital of the kingdom. Archaeologists even noted that several pyramids had causeways leading to the Ahramat River, another indication that materials were transported along its course.