The Giza plateau was a carefully engineered landscape. Man-made canals branch from the Khufu branch of the Nile, drainage channels run beneath the three pyramid causeways, and the lowest courses of Khufu's and Menkaure's pyramids were cased in granite specifically to resist flash floods. Merer's diary even records stone being shipped from Tura via this waterway, and the Wall of the Crow protected the workers' village from inundation.
Giza plateau reveals extensive Old Kingdom water management system
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Key facts
- Man-made canals and basins branch off from the Khufu branch of the Nile (also called the Armant branch) at Giza
- Drainage channels are cut beneath the three pyramid causeways at Giza
- Lowest courses of the Khafre and Menkaure pyramids were cased in granite to protect them from flash floods
- The diary of Merer records that stone was transported from Tura to Giza by boat via the Khufu branch of the Nile
- The Wall of the Crow southeast of the main pyramid field acted as a flood control barrier protecting the workers' village
- Old Kingdom architects shaped the landscape to harness Nile water for construction while protecting structures and workers
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