The Great Pyramid of Giza, also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops, is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex bordering what is now El Giza, Egypt. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the only one to remain largely intact.
The Great Pyramid was constructed over a 20 year period by hundreds of thousands of workers who moved huge blocks of stone weighing more than 50 tons each up ramps that were inclined at an angle equivalent to climbing a seven-story building. The Great Pyramid was not built as a tomb but rather as a monument honoring Khufu and his family. In addition to being an architectural wonder, it also served as a burial chamber for Khufu and his wife, Queen Henutsen.
Khufu, also spelled Cheops, was a Pharaoh of ancient Egypt who ruled during the Fourth Dynasty in the first half of the Old Kingdom period (c. 2613 to 2494 BC). The exact length of his reign is unknown because different copies of Manetho’s Epitome reports 13, 14 or 15 years. However, these numbers are now believed to be anachronisms from a later time period and it seems more likely that he reigned for about 23 years.
