[Illustration: DISTANT VIEW OF PYRAMIDS, WITH THE NILE]
The road leading down to the old Nile gate is a very beautiful one.
Crossing the bridge there, we see the picturesque Nile boats, like the
lateen boats of the Mediterranean. The avenue leads out to the pyramids,
and there in the far distance you can see them,--those golden cones
about which is wrapped so much of Egypt's history and mystery. The first
sight of the pyramids naturally means much to any intelligent traveler.
It makes no difference how much you have read, how much you have heard
of them, you cannot be disappointed. It is said that the pyramids will
last as long as the world, and they certainly look it. They represent
to us the life of the world stretching back into the dim past; and,
in their imposing solidity, they seem to give assurance of lasting to
eternity. There are four of the pyramids in this group; though the mind
naturally dwells on the largest,--the Pyramid of Khufu or Cheops. And to
think that these are the works of man, and that they are tombs of the
kings who lived and reigned somewhere about fifty centuries ago! The
Great Pyramid of Cheops is 480 feet high and covers an area of thirteen
acres, each side being 755 feet. The dimensions of this astounding work
are almost mathematically exact. It is built of over two million blocks
of limestone, and they are fitted together with the nicety of mosaics.
How could these wonderful structures have been erected?--that has been
the question of modern engineers. It has been suggested that an inclined
plane of earth was constructed, and that the blocks were dragged by men
to the top, the inclined plane being added to and raised for each layer.
Then, when the pyramid was complete, the inclined plane of earth might
have been taken away. This, however, is only a theory. Nothing is known
of the methods employed. Originally the sides of the pyramid were smooth,
and a little of this outer facing is still in place. These prism-shaped
blocks were taken away from time to time for building purposes in Cairo.
[Illustration: GIZEH