The Great Pyramid of Giza was originally white and shone in the sun
The Great Pyramid was originally covered in highly polished Tura limestone casing stones that gave it a brilliant white appearance — visible from dozens of kilometres away. Ancient texts describe it as 'glowing like the sun'. Over millennia, the casing stones were stripped (primarily after an earthquake in 1303 CE loosened them) and used to build mosques and fortresses in Cairo. The rough inner stones we see today were never meant to be exposed. Some casing stones still remain at the base of the neighbouring Khafre pyramid.
The dark, rough stone pyramid is an icon so embedded in culture it feels primordial. Discovering it was originally a brilliant white structure, essentially a giant mirror in the desert, makes the monument we think we know feel like a shadow of its original self.
“The Great Pyramid of Giza was originally covered in polished white limestone and shone in the sun for miles. The stones were stripped to build Cairo after a 14th-century earthquake. 🏔️ #OddlyHuman”