The mystery surrounding the Pyramids in Egypt is so deep that archaeologists and scientists have been scratching their heads about it for thousands of years.
People have theorised about how they may have mustered the man-power to move the materials needed to construct them, why there are hidden chambers inside them, and a lot more.
However, one of these mysteries may have been solved after scientists from the University of North Carolina Wilmington made a revolutionary discovery 4,700 years after its construction.
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It's all to do with the positioning of the pyramids - which may not be what you were expecting, but think about it.
Why would they spend years and years building these mega structures, roughly in the same area, in a line in the middle of one of the most punishing environments on the planet?
If you look at the pyramids on Google Maps from above, the structures are all roughly in a line, but oddly five miles away from the nearest body of water, the Nile River.
The latest discovery has left Egyptologist experts puzzled, but it may have helped us understand the Ancient Egyptians that bit more.
The team, lead by Eman Ghoneim, found that the Pyramids may have been built to tower over a green stretch along the River Nile many millenniums ago, which also seemingly included a branch of the river.
Uncovered soil samples and satellite imagery suggest that 31 of the pyramids were originally built along a 64km-long branch of the world's longest river, which boasted luscious greenery that flourished further into the desert.
Almost unthinkable now, but this was what the original plan seemed to be.
Scientists now believe that this greenery, named Ahramat by researchers, has been buried beneath the sand, even before the pyramids had been completed.
It was estimated that it took 1,000 years to complete the structures, and the river branch may have been important to transporting the necessary materials to build the pyramids.
As explained in the newly published study, researchers explain: "Many of the pyramids, dating to the Old and Middle Kingdoms, have causeways that lead to the branch and terminate with Valley Temples which may have acted as river harbours along it in the past."
They believe that it was crucial to transport materials for workmen working on the monuments' construction.
Apparently, it was discovered that a number of the pyramids had causeways had ended at the proposed riverbanks of the Ahramat branch, as the team utilised methods such as geophysical surveys and sediment cores to find river sediments and former channels beneath the visible surface.
It is believed that a drought about 4,200 years ago could be why this branch of the Nile no longer exists.
Lead researcher Ghoneim stated: “Our research offers the first map of one of the main ancient branches of the Nile at such a large scale and links it with the largest pyramid fields of Egypt.”
It could be the first step in the right direction, but more research will help us understand these mysterious structures even more.
Topics: Environment, History, Science, Ancient Egypt
Joshua Nair