Lost Technology of the Giza Pyramid Builders: The Proto-Pulley

We look at the pyramids of Egypt and the enormous stone blocks that make up the core masonry, and even though there are some great explanations for how it was done, such as the work of architect Jean-Pierre Houdin, who has studied every detail of the Great Pyramid for the past 22 years, many of us still can’t fathom how such blocks of stone were even moved. The great Greek historian Herodotus explained that the pyramids were built in steps, raising stones to their places by means of machines formed of short wooden planks. One machine raised them from the ground to the top of the first step, then another machine took them from step one to step two and so on. This founds like some kind of counter weight contraption. Whether you believe the words of Herodotus, or the explanations by Jean-Pierre Houdin or something in between, ancient technology like counterweight mechanisms and pulleys were surely employed in large ancient Egyptian building projects. I think everyone can agree that some kind of tec