'Extraordinary' Great Pyramid of Giza discovery rewrites its slave history
Archaeologists have made a groundbreaking discovery inside Egypt's Great Pyramid, finally confirming who truly built the iconic monument 4,500 years ago - and debunking the long-standing belief that it was constructed by slaves, according to MailOnline.
The remarkable find, led by esteemed Egyptologist Dr Zahi Hawass and his team, indicates that the ancient marvel was not erected by 100,000 slaves as Ancient Greek sources once suggested, but by highly skilled, paid labourers working under a strict regime.
"These findings confirm that the builders were not slaves. If they had been, they would never have been buried in the shadow of the pyramids," Dr Hawass explained on the Matt Beall Limitless podcast. "Slaves would not have prepared their tombs for eternity, like kings and queens did, inside these tombs."
Narrow chambers
"They were discovered in chambers that are challenging and perilous to access, and they use writing styles that only trained Egyptologists can accurately interpret," Dr Hawass stated.
"It's nearly impossible that someone in recent times could have forged something like this. You must climb about 45 feet and crawl through tight spaces to even reach those chambers.", reports the Express.
Revealing script
In a groundbreaking discovery, archaeologists have unearthed tombs just south of the Great Pyramid, believed to be the final resting places of the very workers who built the iconic structure.
These ancient graves held not only tools like flint instruments and pounding stones, but also statues that vividly portray labourers moving enormous stone blocks.
Intriguingly, some tombs bore titles such as "overseer of the side of the pyramid" and "craftsman."
But it's not just the tombs that are causing a stir; Dr Hawass has shed light on the actual construction methods of the pyramid.
The limestone used was sourced just 1,000 feet away, with evidence suggesting it was transported using a ramp system made from rubble and mud, traces of which were found by Dr Hawass's team to the southwest of the pyramid.
Dr Hawass explained: "The ramp had to come from the southwest corner of the pyramid and connect to the quarry," detailing the excavation at a site labelled C2 where they discovered remnants of this ramp - a mix of stone rubble, sand, and mud. Although the ramp was dismantled, not all evidence was erased, leaving behind clues for modern-day researchers.
The Great Pyramid of Giza, erected under Pharaoh Khufu's reign during the Fourth Dynasty, stands as the largest pyramid on the Giza Plateau and a testament to human architectural prowess.
Despite its fame, many secrets of its construction have been shrouded in mystery, until these recent excavations began to reveal the ingenuity of the ancient builders.
"There's a popular myth that the workers ate only garlic, onions, and bread, but we found thousands of animal bones at the site," Dr Hawass revealed. "An expert from the University of Chicago analyzed them and found that the Egyptians slaughtered 11 cows and 33 goats every day to feed the laborers. This diet was enough to support around 10,000 workers per day."
Dr Hawass now plans to launch a new expedition funded by podcast host Matt Beall - and for the first time in modern history, a robot will be sent deep into the pyramid to uncover more of its secrets.
From the mythical to the tangible, these latest findings are dramatically rewriting the story of how the Great Pyramid was built - and by whom.
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Hiyah Zaidi Published July 3, 2025 4:11pm Link is copied Comments History lessons in school often teach students that the pyramids were built by slaves. However, this may not be correct as archeologists have found inscriptions inside the Great Pyramid that they say reveal who really built the massive monument over 4,500 years ago (Picture: Getty) They say that it was built by skilled, paid laborers who worked continuously to build it. Dr Zahi Hawass, an Egyptologist, and his team have claimed to have found never before seen markings left by workers from the 13 century BC in narrow chambers above the King's Chamber, according to the Daily Mail. They say they also unearthed tombs sitting south of the pyramid which are the final resting place of the laborers. They have statues of workers and 21 hieroglyphic titles like 'overseer of the side of the pyramid' and 'craftsman' (Picture: Getty) Speaking on the Matt Beall Limitless podcast, Dr Hawass said: '[The discoveries] confirm that the builders were not slaves. If they had been, they would never have been buried in the shadow of the pyramids. Slaves would not have prepared their tombs for eternity, like kings and queens did, inside these tombs' (Picture: Getty) The Egyptologist also claimed that these findings reveal how the pyramids were built, saying that limestone from a quarry that was just 1,000 feet away was brought forward using a rubble and mud ramp, and that remnants were just found southwest of the monument. Now, Dr Hawass will send a robot into the pyramid, which will be the first excavation of the structure in modern history. And this will be funded by Mr Beall (Picture: Getty) Inscriptions in the Great Pyramid have been controversial. During the 19th century, inscriptions were found, but it sparked a debate on whether they were forged hundreds of years after the Pyramid was made. On the podcast, Mr Beall asked: 'There was some debate on whether or not that could be a forgery, but now you're saying that you've discovered three more cartes within the King's Chamber' (Picture: Getty) The Egyptologist replied by showing images that have never been shared before to the public. He said: 'They were found in chambers that are difficult and dangerous to access, and they use writing styles that only trained Egyptologists can accurately interpret. It's nearly impossible that someone in recent times could have forged something like this. You must climb about 45 feet and crawl through tight spaces to even reach those chambers.' Although visitors could have entered and scrawled more recently, Dr Hawass said: 'But the inscriptions we found are clearly much older, original graffiti from ancient Egyptian workers' (Picture: Matt Beall Limitless) The Mail reports Mark Lehner, a colleague of Dr Hawass, has been excavating a site just east of the pyramid, which they are calling 'the worker's city.' The team has claimed to find facilities that were used for sorting salted fish, a large bakery for bread, barracks and the settlement where the laborers lived. Dr Hawass said: 'There's a popular myth that the workers ate only garlic, onions, and bread, but we found thousands of animal bones at the site. An expert from the University of Chicago analyzed them and found that the Egyptians slaughtered 11 cows and 33 goats every day to feed the laborers. This diet was enough to support around 10,000 workers per day' (Picture: Getty) Mr Beall also announced that he is funding an expedition into the Big Void. This is an area which stretches for at least 100 feet above the Grand Gallery, a corridor that links the Queen's chamber to the King's in the heart of the pyramid. The expedition will see a tiny robot travel through a hole drilled into the side of the Great Pyramid. Dr Hawass hopes this will locate the lost tomb of Khufu inside the void (Picture: Getty)
