00:00Before talking about why and how there are pyramids all over the world, let's talk about a few examples.
00:07I'll start with the Pyramid of the Sun in Mexico.
00:11These people really knew how to build a city.
00:15Their well-planned urban center extended over 1,800 hectares and had several pyramids.
00:23But the Pyramid of the Sun is the most impressive.
00:27This gigantic structure was built throughout our era
00:31and is one of the largest constructions of this type in the entire Western Hemisphere.
00:37It rises to 66 meters above the ground.
00:42If you ever find yourself in this ancient city, you will not be able to miss the Pyramid of the Sun.
00:49It is located just east of the Allée des Morts, the main north-south street of the city.
00:56To build this incredible pyramid, about 765,000 meters of material was used,
01:02including a red volcanic rock called tezontle.
01:06Impressive, isn't it?
01:09We know very little about those who built this pyramid and its function,
01:14but archaeologists think that there was once a temple at its top.
01:20In the 1970s, they discovered a number of tunnels and mysterious rooms in its basement.
01:27In 2011, they even found a cache containing clay pots,
01:32pieces of obsidian, bones of animals, human figurines and even a mask.
01:38Who knows what other secrets are hidden in this pyramid?
01:43If you decide to visit it, you will have to climb the 248 uneven steps on its west face.
01:50Do not stumble.
01:53Sudan also has its pyramids.
01:56The Nubian pyramids are not as large as those of Egypt, but there are still about 200.
02:02These ancient pyramids have sheltered for nearly 1,000 years the tombs of the pharaohs of the Kingdom of Meroë,
02:09which reigned over Egypt from Nubia to the Mediterranean Sea.
02:13The pyramids of Meroë were built in granite and reddish gray.
02:19And did you know that Sudan has more ancient pyramids than Egypt?
02:25The Kushite pyramids bear witness to the indigenous architecture
02:29and funerary traditions of the kingdoms of Napata and Meroë in Nubia,
02:33which ancient Egypt influenced.
02:37Meroë, where more than 40 queens and kings were buried, is the most extensive Nubian pyramid site.
02:44The walls of the tombs represent mummified kings decked out with jewels,
02:48their wooden coffers containing arches, arrows and other objects
02:53testifying to relations and trade with Egyptian and Greek civilizations.
02:59If you want to explore ancient tombs,
03:03you can avoid the crowds in Egypt and go to Sudan.
03:09Let's fly to Iraq to discover other pyramids.
03:13The ziggurats are composed of successive strata and layered temples.
03:18Instead of smooth and straight walls, they have floors, like cakes,
03:22which allowed the realization of important works and rituals.
03:27These imposing structures are scattered throughout Iraq and Iran.
03:32They bear witness to the power and skills of the peoples who built them.
03:37One of the largest and most impressive ziggurats is the hard one.
03:42It is a giant rectangular pyramid 20 to 30 meters high,
03:46surmounted by three levels of terraces and a temple.
03:53Can you imagine the number of bricks it took to build this building?
03:58720,000 for the lower part.
04:01This ziggurat was built for the Sumerian king, Ur-Namah.
04:06Like the others, it has existed for thousands of years,
04:10which explains why it was a little underprivileged.
04:14Fortunately, the Babylonian king Nabucodonosor II
04:17and a few archaeologists came to his rescue,
04:20respectively in the 6th, before our era and in the 20th century.
04:24Today it is located near the airbase of Talil.
04:29The hard ziggurat was built in 2800 BC by the king Ur-Namah
04:35for the god of the moon Nana.
04:37It was the tallest building in the city and could be seen from miles around.
04:42It looked like the arrow of a medieval cathedral.
04:45People brought their agricultural surplus there
04:48and got their share of food back, but it was also a spiritual place.
04:52Unfortunately, the temple of Nana, located at the top of the ziggurat,
04:57did not survive, but we have some blue, varnished bricks
05:01that could have been part of its decor.
05:04The lower parts of the ziggurat are still amazing.
05:07The architects even drilled holes in the outside of the temple
05:11to allow the water to evaporate.
05:15Now that we have explored some of the pyramids of our planet,
05:19let's broaden our perspective.
05:21It can be found in many regions of the world.
05:24Egypt has more than 100 pyramids,
05:27Sudan has twice as many,
05:29and dozens more are scattered in the Middle East and China.
05:34But it is in America that we find the largest number of pyramids.
05:38There are more there than in all the other parts of the world.
05:41These pyramids are located in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
05:50Here is an overview of the evolution of the pyramids throughout history.
05:53The oldest is in Egypt.
05:57It is a degree pyramid,
05:59made up of layers of superimposed stones.
06:03It is to the pharaoh Sneferu that we attribute the creation of this type of very famous pyramid.
06:09During his 45-year reign, he built three pyramids.
06:13His first two attempts failed,
06:16but he finally succeeded with the Red Pyramid,
06:19which is considered the first real pyramid.
06:24It was his son, Cheops, who built the Great Pyramid of Giza,
06:29the highest human construction on Earth for nearly 4,000 years.
06:34The pyramids of Latin America are similar to the first Egyptian degree pyramids,
06:39but they were built independently of each other.
06:43The pyramids of Sudan were built around 700 BC.
06:47They are high, but much narrower than those of Egypt.
06:51How could all these civilizations have built these buildings without communicating with each other?
06:57After all, the Aztecs, the Mayas and the ancient Egyptians were as different as possible.
07:03But despite their cultural differences, they all seemed to agree on one thing.
07:08The pyramids were pretty cool.
07:11Degree pyramids are present throughout the world,
07:14because it was the most practical and stable type of structure.
07:17It could be built in height, without light materials such as wood or metal.
07:24The triangular shape with a square base is extremely stable compared to a cubic structure,
07:29which would require more material for a lower height.
07:34As for the design of the pyramids,
07:36those of Egypt looked like giant triangles with a square base,
07:40smooth sides and a pointed top.
07:43On the other hand, the Aztecs and the Mayas preferred the appearance of a cake,
07:48with steps leading to a platform at the top.
07:51So, although all these pyramids have the same base, they each have their own style.
07:56Each group built these pyramids using different inclinations, techniques and materials.
08:03So, even if they were sometimes inspired by the work of others, they remained original.
08:09The Egyptian pyramids had smooth faces and inclinations designed to promote the ascension of the pharaoh's soul.
08:16The Pyramid of the Sun was built above caves that served as a passageway to the deities.
08:22The Mayas built the temple of Kukulkan in Chichen Itza to honor this deity,
08:27which is generally represented in the form of a snake.
08:30Named El Castillo, it has 91 steps on each side as well as a platform,
08:35i.e. 365 steps, one for each day of the Mayan calendar.
08:41Tell me, friends, how were the pyramids designed?
08:44To begin with, it was humans who built them,
08:47and not aliens landing on Earth in flying saucers.
08:51You see, one thing that all the pyramids have in common
08:54is that they were built without advanced tools and sometimes even without wheels.
08:58The workers, qualified or not, were numerous, as well as the architects.
09:04For example, it is estimated that it took 20,000 people for the Great Pyramid of Guizé,
09:09and that most of them were fine artisans.
09:13The construction of a pyramid was a large-scale enterprise
09:16that required years of planning and effort.
09:19That of Cholula, in Mexico, required 600 years of work.
09:23Translation and subtitling by QTSS
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