Ziggurats can be described as stepped structures with temples, and or, shrines at the top of them that were built from bricks/mud bricks that had been baked in the sun. Some of which can even take on the form of a stepped pyramid, though their meaning and purpose are much different than that of a pyramid.
The purpose of the ziggurats was to protect shrines from flooding, but it also carried other purposes and meanings as well. Such as, it showed off the wealth, prestige, and stability of a city's ruler. It also glorified the gods in the area and acted as a bridge to them. And by bridge to them I mean a bridge between heaven and earth where humans could meet and interact with the gods.
(A side note before getting to the pyramids at Giza)
Stepped pyramids were formed by stacking six mastaba like elements one on top of one another, and decreasing in size with each level. The meaning behind these structures was that they were to act as a stairway to the sun god Ra, and their purpose was to protect a tomb. The first of these stepped pyramids was designed by Imhotep who was originally planning on building a single level mastaba as a tomb for Djoser. However after building it he changed his mind and decided to build/enlarge the structure on top of it.
Unlike the stepped pyramids the Great Pyramids at Giza are in the shape of a true pyramid, which has a square base with four sloping triangular faces.
At Giza there are three of these great pyramids: Menkaure, Khafre, and Khufu. With Khufu being the oldest and largest pyramid covering 13 acres and built somewhere between r.c. 2551-2528 BCE. This pyramid had been originally finished with a veneer of polished limestone to make the sides of the pyramid seem smooth instead of stepped.
The second smallest pyramid at Giza is Khafre, which has the Great Sphinx in its valley temple, and is the only pyramid to have retained some of its veneer finish; while the smallest pyramid is Menkaure.
All of these pyramids were connected to their own funerary temple by a causeway. (Which is an elevated and closed pathway or corridor). This causeway also connected to a valley temple on the bank of the Nile where a kings body was sent to after being embalmed for ceremonies. The causeway was used to carry the kings body to the chapel in the funerary temple where food and drinks could be offered to him. Other religious practices where preformed here and finally the kings body was taken into the pyramid itself and entombed in a vault. These tomb chambers were then sealed off with a 50 ton stone block after the burial.
When it comes to the Great Pyramids and ziggurats the only real similarity that I can connect between them is the notion that they were a way to connect humans to the gods. With the ziggurats acting as a bridge and the pyramids acting as a set of stairs where gods and humans could meet. There are other small similarities that kind of connect them when it comes to them being used for religious practices, but other then that they were pretty different.
4 comments:
oh and this is Jennifer.
I liked your post it is really filled with a lot of different kinds of information. I thought that they were both white washed, so that would be another thing they have in common.
interesting facts about the pyramids, you did your homework ;) You had some comparisons, but it would have been nice to hear more. about how they're different since the ziggurat structures never had an interior while the pyramids were only used for their intereior tombs and storage areas for the afterlife. well written!
I like all the comparisons, but it would have been interesting to talk a little more about the shapes of them, I mean, the Ziggurats look pretty close to the Mastabas which were where the pyramids started. Very nice info though~
Jennifer - you're right that some ziggurats were whitewashed. That does have an interesting parallel with the white limestone casing that was on the exterior of the pyramids.
-Prof. Bowen
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