Pyramid

A pyramid is a geometric shape formed by connecting a polygonal base and a point called the apex by triangular faces. When unspecified the base is usually assumed to be square. One of the platonic solids, the tetrahedron, is a triangular pyramid. The square and pentagonal pyramids can also be constructed with all faces regular, and so count among the Johnson solids. All pyramids are self-dual. The volume of a pyramid is A × h / 3, where A is the area of the base and h the height from the base to the apex.

Table of contents

1 Structures 2 Esotericism 3 Related 3.1 Hierarchical structure 3.2 Game show 3.3 Novel 3.4 Album

Structures

Pyramid-shaped structures were built by many ancient societies. The most famous are those in Ancient Egypt, where huge pyramids built of stone were used as tombs for pharaohs. The Great Pyramid of Giza is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and the only one of the seven to survive into modern times. The ancient Egyptians smoothed the faces of their pyramids with gold and marble, though some of the stones used for the purpose have fallen out over the centuries.

To the south of Egypt the Nubians also built pyramids. They built far more than the Egyptians, but they are much smaller. The Nubian pyramids were constucted at a much steeper angle than Egyptian ones and were not tombs, but monuments to dead kings. Pyramids were built in Nubia up until the 300s AD.

The Mesopotamians also built pyramids called ziggurats, with a distinct series of layers. In ancient times these were brightly painted. Since they were constructed of mud-brick, little remains of them. The biblical Tower of Babel is believed to be a Babylonian ziggurat.

A number of Mesoamerican cultures also built pyramid-shaped structures. These were also usually stepped, with temples on top, more similar to the Mesoptamian ziggurat than the Egyptian pyramid. The largest pyramid by volume is that of Cholula, Mexico.

There are other pyramid-shaped ancient monuments found in Central America and parts of Asia.