Built around 2600 BC as the tomb of the pharaoh Khufu, the Great Pyramid is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the only one still largely standing. Construction took about 26 years.
It was built from an estimated 2.3 million blocks of stone. Most are local limestone from the Giza plateau, but fine white limestone for the outer casing came by boat from Tura, and granite blocks weighing up to 80 tons for the King's Chamber came from Aswan, far up the Nile. Each side of the base is about 756 feet long, and three known chambers lie inside.
It first rose about 481 feet and stayed the tallest human-made structure in the world for more than 3,700 years. Most of its smooth casing was later stripped away, lowering it to about 454 feet and exposing the stepped core seen today.
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