Similarities and Differences Between the Parthenon and the Pyramids of Giza

Although this may seem like a boring subject, there are things that the world never compares. These two historical monuments are so different and so alike at the same time, from different eras. This assignment was accomplished over a  year ago, but it finds how similar and how different two things can be. 

Parthenon and the Great Pyramid of Giza

By Leticia 

There are 7 Wonders of the World, all of which are evidence of history, bloodshed, culture, and important pieces of history in the human race. Two of those Wonders are the Greek Parthenon, located in Acropolis, Athens, Greece, and the Great Pyramid of Giza in the Sahara Desert, Egypt. Both are marvels of human architecture, and have similar things, but yet are so different. For example, the Parthenon was built by the Greek Empire from 447 BC to 433 BC and took less than 9 years to be built, while the Pyramid was built by the Ancient Egyptian civilization in 2560 BC and took 20 years to be built, making it the oldest man-made structure on Earth. The similarities and differences have been found, and this article bears them.

30 years before the Parthenon was built, Persia and Athens fought, leaving Athens in ruins. The Athenians won the war, but the city was destroyed. Pericles began a campaign to restore Athens and to build the Parthenon, a temple to worship Athena, goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, crafts, etc, and to “show the wealth and exuberance of Athenian power.” During the 5^th century and forward, over 30, 000 Athenian men gathered in Acropolis to vote. The men voted in favour of Pericles, whereas, in Ancient Egypt, the pyramid was believed to be built for 4^th dynasty Pharaoh Khufu. When a Pharaoh gave an order, the task was done without an inquiry, as the Pharaoh ruled over Egypt. In Greece, democracy existed, although it was exclusively for male Greek citizens, and in Egypt, democracy did not exist.

Building the Parthenon required the incredible sum of 469 silver talents, which now is easily over 100 million dollars. Some people believe the building of the Parthenon cost up to 1 billion dollars, while the price of the Pyramid was approximately 250 to 300 million dollars today. The Parthenon, as I said earlier, was built to worship Athena and to “show-off” Athenian power, whereas the Pyramid was used as a tomb to mourn the Pharaoh and give him things such as oil, flour, grain, jewels, and gold to help him in the afterlife. The Pyramid has a completely different architecture of the Parthenon. The Pyramid has a square base, while the Parthenon has a rectangular base. The Pyramid is the only pyramid to have ascending and descending passages. The Pyramid has a point and is made of four triangles put together and forming a point at the top, while the Parthenon is made of 46 marble columns, has a flat roof, statues adorning the outside, several rooms on one floor, and altogether has a different architecture. It has 10 main rooms, excluding the entrances, and consists of 2 air shafts, the Pharaoh’s chamber, the Queen’s chamber, Old Tomb chamber, and the Burial Chamber, while the Parthenon has one main room, which once held Athena’s giant statue made of gold and ivory and which was robbed by another empire and later destroyed during the Crusades. Surrounding it were several corridors and another large room as seen in the picture under.          

As you descend through the Pyramid’s shadowy passages, a cramped, stuffy air engulfs you due to lack of light. The only form of illuminating the dark Pyramid was to attach a flaming torch to the wall, which added to the eery, mystical appearance. The Pyramid had few windows, but some small holes in the sturdy walls allowed people to peer through and see a narrow view. In the Parthenon, the area was much more open, and there were places where light could enter and illuminate the Parthenon. The Parthenon is 65 feet tall, whereas the Pyramid is 481 feet tall, and was the tallest man-made structure for 3800 years. It is estimated that it took 2.3 million blocks of limestone for the Pyramid.

Both, however, were built by the powerful influences of religion and tradition, for the Greek goddess Athena formed part of mythology, and was at the time considered a religion. If Athena had not existed, the Parthenon may have lost some of its glory, for the people, architects, and builders may not have put their best work if there was not the reason that Athena could reward them and that they would please her. The statue that once stood would probably never have been built in her honour, Athens’ name wouldn’t derive from Athena, and the Parthenon would not be dedicated to her, nor would the statues embellishing the roof of the Parthenon showing Greek mythology. As for the Pyramid, the belief of afterlife was most likely influenced by religion and the gods (Ubaste, Ra, etc), and the Pharaoh could have had a completely different tomb, and much less magnificent. The tradition of pyramids must have thrived then, or else the Pharaoh may not have elected the same style of architecture, certainly not one that would take so much time and money, and because on the Pyramid there are signs and inscriptions engraved on the stone of gods performing things and stories etched on the rock. Both buildings were made of stone and by ancient civilizations, and both were once rich in gold, jewels, ivory, and other precious stones. Both are now known in the world, both are rich in history and culture, and although they are very different in some ways, they are similar in others.

The Parthenon and the Pyramid have lasted for thousands of years, they have been rocked by earthquakes, looted by robbers, burned and crumbled by fire, wind, and water, beaten by wars, deteriorated by air pollution, but yet have survived all of these blows. They are shadows of what they used to be now, but they are still magnificent and dazzling, there are still the marks of the wars, earthquakes, robbers, and of the builders that constructed this, of the men that ordered it to be built, of the determination and how the impossible was made possible. The marks of all of these events are etched on the rock, engraved there forever, proof of how brilliant we can be. Every bead of sweat that trickled on every builder’s brow was worth it. Pericles and Pharaoh Khufu were amazing men, Greece and Egypt were incredibly advanced civilizations, the costs to build these structures was mind-blowing, the architecture was astounding, and the way that man, with its bare hands, was able to build these astonishing things. The Parthenon and the Great Pyramid of Giza are marvellous structures, and are similar in some things, yet so different in others.

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