Pyramid Building Missing Link? 5,000-Year-Old Major Discovery in Egypt!

Hello everybody and welcome to Ancient Architects. Please subscribe to the channel for regular content on ancient architecture as well as all the latest news from the world of archaeology. Archaeologists have been working at a site called Jabal al-Taya in the Minya region of Egypt and they've uncovered two early dynastic tombs and these tombs apparently provide new evidence about how Egyptian funerary architecture developed in the centuries before the pyramid age. Just look at this headline, 5000 year old tombs in Minya may reveal pyramid origins and 5000 year old tombs found in Minya rewrite the origins of Egyptian pyramid architecture. Absolutely sensational! So, if this is true, we must be seeing something truly amazing. A once lost yet crucial transition phase in engineering, one that eventually led to the construction of the iconic Egyptian pyramids. And yes, it is a sensational claim printed by the media, so what exactly has been discovered? Well, the site is located on the eastern bank of the river Nile in the Minya region and it appears to have served as a burial ground for thousands of years of Egyptian history. Not only do we find two early dynastic tombs as mentioned, but the experts also found burials dating back as early as the pre-dynastic period and as recent as the late period of ancient Egypt. But the two early dynastic tombs are arguably the most important discoveries and archaeologists have noted strong similarities between these early tombs and the famous tomb of King Den at Abydos, who ruled Egypt in the first dynasty. Den's tomb is located at the royal necropolis of Umm al-Karb and it's one of the most incredible early dynastic tombs ever discovered. The similarities between Den's tomb and those discovered at Minya may suggest that builders in different regions did share architectural ideas during the early stages of Egyptian state formation. And this is particularly interesting because in those early days, it is believed that Egypt was still somewhat fragmented in terms of customs and traditions. But these discoveries may imply otherwise. So, back to the claims mentioned at the start of this video, that the new discovery could display a crucial transition phase in engineering, one that eventually led to the construction of the iconic Egyptian pyramids. Why were these claims being made? It's all regarding this first tomb and specifically the way one of its walls was constructed. It's thicker at the bottom and then gradually reduces thickness towards the top. Archaeologists believe that this design reflects an early engineering approach to improve the stability of the structure, that it is a functional idea. And I agree. But according to Mohamed Abdel-Badi, the head of the Egyptian archaeological sector, this gradual decrease in wall thickness may represent an early stage in the development of geometric thought, which later led to the appearance of the step pyramid and then the true pyramid. And they're the facts behind the sensational media headlines. They've taken this one opinion of what this wall may represent and created these headlines, that it reveals the origins of the pyramids, that we're seeing the birth of the pyramids, that the tomb in Minya has an early pyramid design. So, let's break it down. One of the four walls in this first tomb has a changing thickness from bottom to top, the wall that faces the neighbouring tomb. And this neighbouring tomb does not display the same phenomenon. All Abdel-Badi is saying is that the early dynastic Egyptians knew that graduating wall thickness can reinforce a wall, it can add stability to a structure. And therefore, as time went by, this principle may have led to the building of graduating structures, i.e. thicker at the bottom compared to the top, just like we see on this wall. They knew that a sloping wall gave a structure added stability. The earliest mastabas are found in the first dynasty, such as those discovered at the Tarkan necropolis, and these mastabas had vertical walls. But the mastaba structure would then evolve to have sloping walls to increase stability. And, as we know from the internal structure of the step pyramid, the pyramid is an evolution of the mastaba. That's the thought process of Abdel-Badi. He's not saying that this tomb is revealing the origins of the pyramids. He's really just saying that the Egyptians of the first dynasty understood basic building principles, principles that would one day be employed for mastabas and then pyramids. Media outlets have picked out the word pyramid from the Ministry of Antiquities' Facebook post and turned it into a hook to get clicks. But anyway, the tomb discoveries by themselves are fascinating. Parts of the first tomb discovered were damaged, with stone taken away and reused, but a few important details did survive, including oxide lines on stone surfaces, which were apparently linked to ancient cutting and extraction techniques. Archaeologists also discovered large wooden supports built into the structure, some of which extended across the full length of the walls, whilst others were installed at separate reinforcing sections. So, the first tomb does give us a rare glimpse of the construction methods employed in the first dynasty, but the use of wooden supports is probably related to the tapering thickness of this wall. The builders clearly had stability concerns and were looking at ways to counteract the forces of nature. The second tomb is next to the first and is also very similar in plan. Much of the stone is still intact and this gives the experts the chance to see the finished product in more detail. As stated, there was also a pre-dynastic cemetery at the site with several people buried in a crouched position and they were wrapped in plant mats, but these were largely decomposed. Pre-dynastic Nicaida II and Nicaida III pottery vessels were also found. The graves discovered that date to the late period consist of both individual and collective burials and we also find the remains of wooden coffins. So, this site at Minya is fascinating in that we have burials from multiple periods of Egyptian history in one place and we also see implemented solutions for issues of stability. In the first dynasty, the Egyptians understood that a sloping wall added stability and Abd al-Badi believes that this understanding shows how the Egyptians would one day be able to build the pyramids. The straight sides we see on the first dynasty mastabas did evolve to have sloping sides and, as we've seen, the mastaba did evolve into a pyramid. There is no specific direct link between this tomb and the pyramids, not really, we're not looking at the birth of the pyramids, but it is a fantastic find in that we do see early dynastic construction methods and engineering. Even in those early years of dynastic history, the Egyptians were showing how capable they were and of course we know exactly what heights they'd eventually reach. Thank you very much for watching this episode of Ancient Architects. If you enjoyed the video, please subscribe to the channel, please like the video and please leave a comment below. Thank you very much.