18th century BC

EGYPT: CAIRO: NEW PYRAMID DATING BACK TO 1800 BC IS OPENED TO PUBLIC

• Report rights infringement
• published: 30 Jul 2015
• views: 153

Arabic/Eng/Nat A new pyramid, dating back to 1800 B-C, has been opened to the public in Egypt. The red pyramid at Dahshour is believed to be the prototype of the famous pyramids at Giza. The authorities hope they will take the pressure off the pyramids at Giza which are fast deteriorating due to mass tourism. Experts believe the area may be full of archaeological surprises After 50 years, these pyramids, pre-dating those at Giza, have been opened to the public. Up until now, this area just 20 kilometres (15 miles) from Giza, was used as an army training base and was out of bounds to the public. But authorities eager to increase tourism revenue persuaded the army to open up the site. At the opening ceremony on Saturday, the Egyptian minister of culture said the area may hold some archaeological surprises. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) "A complete and magnificent pyramid, and it is open for tourists starting today. We started renovating it and levelling the surrounding area. I am not an expert, but I believe that this place is still a virgin for excavations." SUPERCAPTION: Farouk Hosni, Egyptian Minsiter of Culture The Red Pyramid at Dahshour dates back to 1800 B-C and is sure to delight the thousands of tourists who visit Egypt each year. VOXPOP: (English) "It's amazing, it's amazing. I don't know really what to say. The view from up there is incredible." SUPERCAPTION: English tourist VOXPOP: (English) It's just very different. It's less built up, very nice. You can just see everywhere. Despite what we imagined pyramids would be like." SUPERCAPTION: English tourist It was built by King Senefru who broke away from the tradition of building step-sided pyramids. He declared himself the living sun god Re' and built his burial chamber not under the Pyramid's earth, but high inside the pyramid. His mummy, discovered in 19-48, has since disappeared. It took an estimated 20-thousand workers 15 years to complete. Senefru's fame was overshadowed by his son and successor King Cheops, whose Giza pyramid is the largest in Egypt and one of the seven wonders of the world. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Cheops is a star of the pyramids, but today I can say that we have another star - the pyramid of Senefru, the Red Pyramid and the Bend Pyramid." SUPERCAPTION: Zahi Hawas, Head of Antiquities Twelve (m) million tourists visited the Giza pyramids last year. Those who went inside Cheops, Chephren and Mycerinus have contributed to its deterioration. Water vapour causes salt to diffuse out of the stones, substantially weakening them. It's hoped that the opening of the Dahshour pyramid will ease the tourist demand on the Giza pyramids. But the Egyptian government is also hoping it will boost its income. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/b5d62dd1e1a2792e2f29c6137282f47c Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork