00:00If a question continues to confuse archaeologists today, it is this one.
00:05How did the ancient Egyptians build these monumental pyramids?
00:09According to what we know to this day, their means seemed rather limited,
00:13especially in terms of the tools and materials necessary for construction.
00:17Although we still do not have a fully convincing answer,
00:20some fascinating theories deserve to be examined.
00:24Among these hypotheses, one of the most credible evokes an ingenious method used by the Egyptians.
00:29Imagine for a moment, they would have built an inclined and sinuous ramp,
00:33composed of bricks, earth and sand, gradually surrounding the pyramid under construction.
00:39As the building grew in height, they would have simply adjusted the size and width of this structure.
00:46An ingenious method reminiscent of an ancient Jenga game.
00:50But then, how did they manage to raise these blocks of colossal stones to the top?
00:55According to Herodotus, the eminent Greek historian of Antiquity,
00:59they would have used sleds, rollers and levers,
01:03thus transforming the site into a gigantic collective force test.
01:08Still according to these stories, it would have taken no less than 20 years to complete the Pyramid of Cheops,
01:14this emblematic masterpiece.
01:16Herodotus does not stop there, he advances a stunning figure,
01:19stating that 100,000 men would have participated in this incredible project.
01:23Did the entire Egyptian population take part?
01:26Probably not.
01:28But it is plausible that the majority of these workers had been farmers
01:32mobilized during the Cru period of the Nile,
01:34when agricultural work was suspended.
01:37An ingenious organization adapted to the natural flow of the river.
01:41Contemporary archaeologists, however, have brought nuances to this vision.
01:45Towards the end of the 20th century,
01:47discoveries revealed that the workforce could have been much less numerous and more specialized.
01:53Instead of the supposed 100,000 workers,
01:55a team of about 20,000 permanent workers,
01:58assisted by support staff including bakers, doctors and some priests,
02:03would have been enough to carry out this architectural feat.
02:06Another theory, for the less bold,
02:08advanced that the pyramids would have been built from top to bottom.
02:12According to this hypothesis,
02:14these monumental buildings would have originally been
02:17only simple isolated hills serving as quarries.
02:20The stones would have been extracted gradually,
02:23and over time, successive engineers would have remodeled these hills
02:27to give them the shape of the emblematic pyramids that we admire today.
02:31Before rejecting this idea as a pure fantasy,
02:34some saw it as a part of plausibility.
02:37After all, isolated hills do exist in some cases,
02:41leaving a slight possibility of truth in this hypothesis.
02:45Whether through the construction of ramps or ingenious work techniques,
02:49one thing remains unquestionable.
02:52These pyramids continue to fascinate history and feed our imagination.
02:57By evoking the mysteries of ancient Egypt,
03:00there is also this immense unfinished obelisk,
03:03an intriguing vestige that arouses many questions among scientists
03:08about its shaping method.
03:10Some think that our ancestors would have used manual pylons
03:14to accomplish this colossal work.
03:17However, a specialist offers a different interpretation.
03:20By carefully examining the motifs left by the tool used,
03:24he emphasizes an intriguing feature.
03:26The walls of the trenches surrounding the obelisk
03:29display regular and well-aligned streaks,
03:32which seems improbable if these marks were
03:35only results of blows carried by human hands.
03:38According to this specialist, these horizontal streaks
03:41are typical of a mechanical tool,
03:43performing regular poses while removing the material.
03:46But that's not all!
03:48Imagine a tool that oscillates back and forth
03:50against the walls of the trench,
03:52evacuating debris to prevent progressive shrinking.
03:55In this scenario, this tool could have printed
03:58particular horizontal streaks
04:00where it exerted pressure against the side walls.
04:04This seems to be cutting-edge technology, doesn't it?
04:07And guess what?
04:08It is unlikely that the Egyptians of the 18th dynasty
04:11had access to such advanced know-how.
04:14Another renowned Egyptologist, during his explorations,
04:17also discovered several carrot drills.
04:20Although the real boreholes are absent,
04:23his collection contains curious vestiges of carrots
04:26in limestone, albatross, and even granite.
04:29However, the Egyptians were not content
04:31with these impressive constructions.
04:34In fact, they were the geniuses
04:36at the origin of the portable mirror.
04:38Yes, this little mirror that we use daily
04:41to inspect our appearance.
04:43But here's the trick.
04:45These mirrors were real works of art.
04:48They were adorned with inscriptions and decorative figures.
04:51That's not all.
04:52The Egyptians took great care of their appearance.
04:55They understood the importance of personal hygiene
04:58and caring for their image.
05:00In their quest for sparkling teeth,
05:02they invented toothbrushes and toothpaste.
05:05Dental problems were common at the time,
05:08and their smile was not necessarily
05:10an immaculate white.
05:12Dental art was not their favorite field.
05:14Do you understand?
05:16Perhaps their minds were more occupied
05:18by the construction of pyramids.
05:20That said,
05:21these ancient toothpaste recipes
05:23were far from uninteresting.
05:25One of the most original concoctions
05:27included gem salt, mint, dried iris petals,
05:30and pepper.
05:31A few dentists had the courage
05:33to test this formula,
05:34and, to their surprise,
05:36it turned out to be quite effective.
05:38Crushed ash was included in another recipe
05:41to prepare a toothpaste for teeth.
05:43But the absence of mint
05:45left little to be desired in terms of freshness.
05:47It was then that the Egyptians had the brilliant idea
05:50of inventing the first candy for wool.
05:52They made hot spice-based pastilles,
05:55like cinnamon, which they mixed with honey.
05:58Now let's move on to the art of interior decoration,
06:01to Egyptian fashion.
06:02They really raised the ornamentation
06:04to a whole new level.
06:06Although the decoration of furniture
06:08was born in Mesopotamia,
06:10the Egyptians sublimated it.
06:12They bet on a wide variety of colors,
06:14and even created papers of different weights.
06:17And let's not forget these little handkerchiefs
06:19that we all have at home today.
06:21Guess who had the idea?
06:23Well, the Egyptians.
06:25They used the papyrus plant,
06:27which was extremely versatile,
06:29to weave these handkerchiefs.
06:31And speaking of trends,
06:32the Egyptians were big fans of bibles.
06:35They owned a whole collection of small figurines
06:38depicting cats, dogs,
06:40and humanoid characters.
06:42These statues were made of various materials,
06:45ranging from dry mud to gold.
06:48It all depended on your wealth.
06:50Agriculture was a place of choice
06:52in Egyptian society,
06:54and they understood that clean water
06:56was essential for their culture and their animals.
06:59That's why they came up with inventions
07:01and techniques to guarantee
07:03the fertility of their land
07:05and the well-being of their plants.
07:07They first had the brilliant idea
07:09of using carts pulled by sheep.
07:11There were two types of carts,
07:13heavy and light.
07:15The heavy cart dug deep,
07:17digging large holes,
07:19while the light cart followed,
07:21eroding the earth.
07:23But that wasn't all.
07:25The light cart dug deep,
07:27eroding the earth,
07:29and sowing the seeds.
07:31To put the seeds in the holes,
07:33they had their cattle cross the field,
07:35effectively closing the holes.
07:37But all this work would be in vain
07:39if the seeds remained as dry as the desert.
07:41That's where irrigation comes in.
07:43The Egyptians were so competent in this field
07:45that other civilizations,
07:47such as the Greeks and the Romans,
07:49were forced to adopt their method.
07:51Now, let's change the subject
07:53and take a closer look at the ancient Egypt.
07:55These builders were not only experts
07:57in agriculture,
07:59they were also master architects.
08:01They built refined canals
08:03to bring water to farms and villages.
08:05And believe us,
08:07they knew how to embellish these canals.
08:09Imagine wandering along a canal
08:11bordered with decorative structures.
08:13The pharaoh Ramses II,
08:15nicknamed the Great,
08:17was a real prodigy in construction.
08:19One of his most impressive creations
08:21is located in Abu Simbel.
08:23This temple was designed
08:25so that, twice a year,
08:27the sun penetrates directly into the building
08:29to illuminate the pharaoh's statue.
08:31And let's not forget the embellishment.
08:33Without this architectural wonder,
08:35structures as impressive
08:37as the Pyramid of Cheops
08:39would never have been born.
08:41The Egyptians mastered the art
08:43of holding majestic buildings.
08:45Thanks to their genius in engineering
08:47and construction,
08:49they built vast rooms
08:51and interior sanctuaries
08:53that will not fail to amaze you.
08:55And some of their temples
08:57also served as astronomical observatories.
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