This nonsense goes right back to Chariots of the Gods?, and has been repeated ad nauseam ever since that book came out. Find that book, and the relevant episode of In Search Of ..., and a lot of what they say there will probably sound awfully familiar.
I think the pyramids and other ancient megaprojects were built for the same reasons such shit is built today - someone simply wanted it, and had the money and people to make it happen. In the case of the Egyptians, it probably started as a make-work project as a response to sudden explosive population rise after agriculture and the resultant food security drove death rates down/increased infant survival rates once they got the hang of the whole "settled farming" thing. What were they really originally for? I dunno, but I like Robot Chicken's theory. (there's a link there, it's safe to click.)
I'd argue the reason for it is a bit different. Ancient Egypt was effectively a totalitarian empire. It's not just a megaproject, but a government Make-Work Scheme designed to keep a population of middle-class intellectuals and bureaucrats permanently employed, and politically loyal to the head of state.
This nonsense goes right back to Chariots of the Gods?, and has been repeated ad nauseam ever since that book came out. Find that book, and the relevant episode of In Search Of ..., and a lot of what they say there will probably sound awfully familiar.
I think the pyramids and other ancient megaprojects were built for the same reasons such shit is built today - someone simply wanted it, and had the money and people to make it happen. In the case of the Egyptians, it probably started as a make-work project as a response to sudden explosive population rise after agriculture and the resultant food security drove death rates down/increased infant survival rates once they got the hang of the whole "settled farming" thing. What were they really originally for? I dunno, but I like Robot Chicken's theory. (there's a link there, it's safe to click.)
I'd argue the reason for it is a bit different. Ancient Egypt was effectively a totalitarian empire. It's not just a megaproject, but a government Make-Work Scheme designed to keep a population of middle-class intellectuals and bureaucrats permanently employed, and politically loyal to the head of state.