Famous spots
Places of interest
Start with the places children ask about. Then ride the river from the sea to Nubia. Tap a name to see monuments and people.
Pyramid map
These stone mountains stand on the west bank, near Memphis. North is at the top.
North, toward the sea
Giza
Three big pyramids and the Sphinx. A workers' village sat nearby.
Saqqara
The Step Pyramid. Unas has writing inside his pyramid.
Dahshur
The Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid.
Meidum
An early pyramid. It looks like a tower now.
South, toward Nubia. The blue line is the Nile.
How the huge rocks moved
A theory is an idea we cannot yet prove. A clue is something we can still see.
Clues we can visit
Stones were cut in a quarry. Boats carried them on the Nile. On land, people pulled sleds. Wet sand helps a sled slide. Ramps of brick and earth may have lifted stones up the sides. The village at Giza had homes, food, and bakeries.
Theory: frequency
Some people think a special sound, called a frequency, made the huge rocks easier to move, or even lifted them. That is a theory. No old tool or diary has been found that shows it.
Theory: giants
Some people think giants carried the rocks. Stories about giants are told in many lands. At Giza the clues fit ordinary workers. We have not found giant bones that prove this idea.
Hieroglyph map
Hieroglyphs are picture signs. They were carved on temples and tombs, and written on papyrus. This map shows four famous spots.
North, by the sea
Near the sea
The Rosetta Stone was found in the delta. The same words appear in three scripts.
Saqqara
Pyramid Texts are spells carved inside a pyramid.
Karnak at Thebes
Huge temple walls are covered in hieroglyphs.
Valley of the Kings
Tomb walls and painted rooms keep names and stories.
South, at Thebes. The blue line is the Nile.
The Nile map
North is at the top. The river ends in the sea, then you travel south.
By the sea
North is this way. The Nile ends in the sea.
The delta
The river splits into branches across flat land.
Memphis and the pyramids
Kings built stone mountains near the old capital.
Home of the three famous pyramids and the Sphinx.
Workers' villages sat nearby. Queens and officials were buried here too, not only kings.
We are not sure: Many people link the Sphinx to Khafre. We are not fully sure.
Monuments
- Great Pyramid of Khufu
- Pyramid of Khafre
- Pyramid of Menkaure
- Great Sphinx
People
The Fayum
A lake and green fields sit west of the river.
Middle Egypt
Cliffs rise beside the water.
Abydos
People traveled here for a god of new life.
Before Thebes
A famous goddess temple sits on this stretch of river.
Thebes
Temples, festivals, and hidden tombs.
Toward the rocks
The river gets rocky as you go south.
Nubia
South of Egypt. Gold, forts, and Kushite kings.