Pyramid of Cheops - Egypt

As you get close to the base of the pyramid perspective means that it doesn't really look as pointy as it does from a distance. For about 4,000 years, this was the tallest man-made structure on earth, a pretty impressive record. It was eventually beaten in the 14th century by the spire of Lincoln Cathedral, England - though that was considerably skinnier.

Giza where the great pyramid is situated is to the West of Cairo and the Nile. The positioning was as result of a religious prerequisite, sun rises in the East which was connected with the start of life in the death-cult of the ancient Egyptians, and so the West where the sun sets was associated with the end of life and death. Hence all funerary pyramids were built to the West of the cities or settlements that they served.

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