What Did The Great Pyramids Look Like In Their Prime?
The pyramids are nearly 5,000 years old at this point
The great pyramids in Egypt are old. Very, very, very old. We are closer, in age, today to ancient Rome than the Romans were to the great pyramids in the time of Jesus. They were ancient before ancient was a thing.
The great age of the pyramids makes it so that they can be forgiven for being a little past their prime. Their shape, size, and former grandeur still capture the imagination and wonder of people who see them today. But these pyramids used to look very different from how they look today. Years of wear, looting, and pollution have worn the pyramids down, so they are but shadows of their former selves.
What did the pyramids look like in their prime? They were far more impressive than they are today.
A Fabled Glow
Today, the pyramids are dingey and obviously extremely old. Like a rock worn down by years of erosion, the pyramids have lost much of their former luster. In their heyday, the pyramids actually glowed in the sun. That is because the exteriors were cased in a layer of polished white limestone. This stone would have reflected the sun making the pyramids gleam for miles around.
