I'm Alice Roberts
and I'm on an adventure
to look at the world's oldest
and greatest civilisation.
I'm going to be travelling the length
and breadth of Egypt by train
to discover its ancient past.
I want to understand how the tombs,
temples and pyramids came to be made
and dig even deeper
to understand what life was like
for the ordinary people
who made them.
Along the way,
I'll be meeting archaeologists
who are still working to uncover
the story of ancient Egypt.
I'll be looking at
some familiar sights...
..but also learning about
new discoveries.
I'm now on the railway line
that hugs the Nile
all the way to Aswan via Luxor.
In Luxor, I find out
why it's known as
the world's greatest open-air museum.
In Aswan,
I visit the land of the temples.
Today, I'll be making my base
in Cairo.
I'll visit
the great Egyptian Museum...
..get up close with the Pyramids...
..even going inside.
Down in the souk,
I'll find a hidden gem...
..and off the beaten track,
the hillside graveyard
where the elite are buried
alongside the commoners...
..as I travel ancient Egypt
by train.
My first stop is
the country's capital city.
I started my journey in Alexandria,
140 miles away from Cairo.
After a quick stop in Tanta,
I'm now getting close
to the Egyptian capital.
I've been intrigued by ancient Egypt
since I was a child
and it's down to
one particular woman.
In my local churchyard was the grave
of the pioneering Egyptologist,
Amelia Edwards.
Amelia travelled to Luxor and Aswan,
starting her journey in Cairo.
I'm sad to be saying goodbye to
Alexandria and the Mediterranean Sea,
but my journey now lies to the south.
I'm also leaving behind
that more recent history,
the Mamluk rulers,
the Greeks, the Romans,
and I'm going in search
of the Pharaohs.
I'm heading towards the Pyramids.
This is the book that Amelia penned
as she made her journey up the Nile.
Amelia Edwards wrote that
the first glimpse that many
travellers would have of the Pyramids
was on this train ride
from Alexandria to Cairo,
so I'm hoping
I might see them myself,
and, of course, they're
the most famous landmarks in Egypt
and surrounded
in myth and mystery still.
Some people say that
they are the relics of
an ancient, technologically advanced
civilisation,
others that
they were built by aliens,
but the archaeological truth
is much more interesting
and I'm going to meet the experts
who are delving into those secrets.
I'm also hoping to uncover
the origins of
the great city of Cairo itself.
As I pass through the city,
it becomes clear that the Pyramids
can't be seen from the train anymore.
Cairo has grown dramatically
since Amelia was here
over 100 years ago.
Egypt was the second country
in the world after Britain
to have a railway.
It was built by British pioneer
and designer Robert Stephenson.
Stephenson was also contracted
to make the trains.
Cairo is the hub
of the whole rail network
with hundreds of trains
passing through it every day.
Cairo station was renovated in 2014
and it is splendid.
As the nation's main station,
this was a no-expense-spared revamp
demonstrating just how proud
the Egyptians are of their railways.
The station also has its own museum
dedicated to
the nation's railway history.
Oh, look, there's the plate
of Robert Stephenson.
Newcastle on Tyne.
And just when I thought
I'd finished with trains today...
..along comes Diane from the museum
to distract me.
This to make it move.
There it is.
Diane, when did the railways
first open in Egypt
and where did it travel from and to?
It started from Alexandria in 1852.
From Alexandria,
it reached to Cairo in stages
in 1856.
With an engine built
by Robert Stephenson.
Yes.
Today, the Egyptian railway
spans over 4,000 miles
and, every year,
more than 270 million journeys
are taken by passengers.
Cairo and its sister city, Giza,
directly across the Nile,
form Greater Cairo.
With a population
of around 21 million,
this isn't just the biggest city
in Egypt.
It's the biggest city in Africa
and, yet, it's not big enough.
The city's traffic is congested 24/7,
making travelling anywhere quickly
impossible,
so the Egyptian solution is build
a brand-new capital, New Cairo,
just 30 miles away.
This is a nation
that isn't afraid to think big.
I start this new chapter
of my journey into the deep past
in the Egyptian Museum...
..right in the heart
of Cairo's city centre.
I'm meeting Yossra Ibrahim...
It's very, very nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
..an Egyptologist from the city
who now works at
the University of Mainz in Germany.
So, tell me about this, then.
I mean, this is extraordinary.
When does it date to?
It dates from about Dynasty I.
It marks the unification
of Upper and Lower Egypt.
So, this is the very beginning
of that pharaonic period.
Yes, it's the beginning
of a unified kingdom.
Yeah.
We have the pharaoh Narmer,
or the pharaoh Menes.
He's the tallest one?
Yes, it's the biggest character
to denote his importance
and his power as well.
And who are these headless bodies
over here?
So, these people
are supposed to be the enemies
who were against Narmer
or were against unification.
When are we talking about?
Fourth millennium BC?
Yes, possibly.
Yeah, yeah.
A very interesting detail
in the middle here,
you see the circle.
This is where the make-up palette
would be prepared.
It's a make-up palette?
It's supposed to be, but we're not
sure if it was used or not.
I'm drawn towards
a face I'm familiar with.
It bears a striking resemblance
to the bust of Queen Nefertiti,
which resides in
the Neues Museum in Berlin.
She's one of the most copied works
of ancient Egyptian art.
This is Nefertiti, is it?
This is an unfinished bust
of Nefertiti.
So, the famous bust of Nefertiti
currently in the Berlin Museum.
It's recognisably the same face.
Yes, yes.
Yeah.
It's the same technique.
The facial features are prominent.
And she is, you know...
She's chin up, looking out.
Now, that's really naturalistic...
It's very naturalistic.
..compared to these statues,
which are quite bizarre.
They are quite unique
with reference to the Egyptian art
'cause it's quite strange to see
the pharaoh depicted in this manner.
The museum's collection
is spellbinding.
They have artefacts from ancient
Egypt spanning thousands of years.
Both large and small.
But the treasures of one pharaoh
in particular
draw in visitors in their millions -
Tutankhamun.
Here we have the mummy mask.
Oh, do you know,
I've seen so many pictures of this,
but nothing quite prepares you
for the real thing.
It's exquisite!
It's absolutely beautiful.
It's made of gold
and you can see a lot of details.
You can see a fake beard
denoting the death of the pharaoh.
You can also see
the cobra and vulture at the top
or at the head
in order to protect it.
There's layers and layers
of symbolism...
Yes.
..and, you know, the symbolism of the
wealth that is poured into this tomb
and almost saying,
"We can afford to just lose this.
"We can afford
to put all this gold away..."
Yeah.
"..and we're still rich
and we're still powerful
"and this dynasty will continue."
Exactly.
Now, can we see his name
anywhere here?
I don't see a name.
You can see it
on a number of objects.
So, this is a mummy case
belonging to Tutankhamun
and here, you can find his name,
Tut-Ankh-Amun, or Tutankhamun.
And what's giving you
the sound of Tut?
So, Tut is composed of these
two semicircles, or the sound T...
Yeah.
..and then the W, the quail,
that's the W, so "Tut".
The top one is the sound for the M
and the zigzag is the N
and the one on the right
is the E or the I.
That's a feather.
That's a feather, yes.
Isn't it incredible?
Yes.
You're making
a living language again.
Yeah.
Honestly, it's wonderful.
Would you like to see
the sarcophagus of Tutankhamun?
Yes, I would like to see
the sarcophagus.
Of course. Please.
Is this his sarcophagus as well?
Yes, this one
was placed inside this.
How many sarcophagi?
How many cases were there?
Well, these were several cases.
There were about four on the inside
and then there were two surrounding,
or two enboxing, the coffins.
And, again,
you've got these ornate patterns,
but you've also got hieroglyphs
and these hieroglyphs are inlaid.
Yes.
And even at his feet,
you've got that extraordinary detail.
This is the goddess !sis
stretching her wings
in order to aid the protection
of the deceased, of Tutankhamun.
And in the pantheon
of Egyptian gods and goddesses,
what was the division of power?
How important were the goddesses
compared with the gods?
I would say
they assumed equal importance
because you have
several female deities
and several male deities as well,
and !sis is very important
and a powerful figure.
It doesn't just
represent motherhood.
I just think
that's such a wonderful image.
Those beautiful wings.
!sis was the goddess of fertility
and motherhood, death and rebirth,
and this image of her at the feet
of Tutankhamun's sarcophagus
is so beautiful.
It's night-time
when the city really comes to life.
Cairo's souk
is at least 600 years old.
A kilometre of shops
and street traders
and you couldn't ask for
more of a contrast
from the tranquillity of the museum.
I love that one.
That's gorgeous.
And it's the perfect place
for the weary traveller
to part with some money
at the end of a long day.
That's 50. What about 25?
30?
OK.
Thank you.
There's so much to be tempted by,
but one craftsman caught my eye.
Ah, isn't that lovely!
I've seen a design.
I don't know if you have it,
but it is
on Tutankhamun's sarcophagus.
!sis with her wings out.
Can you do a plate with that on?
Yeah.
You can do that for me?
Yeah.
Mumkin.
Ah, mumkin!
Mumkin.
Yeah.
Thank you.
"Mumkin" is a little bit of Arabic
I picked up, meaning "if possible".
Thank you. Thank you. See you later.
Beside the souk is a huge mosque
and I want to see
if I can have a look around.
Is this the Qalawun mosque?
Yeah, this is the Qalawun complex.
So, it's the tomb of Qalawun himself
and he built it?
He built this in 1285.
Yeah.
He was a sl*ve, but he became king.
He was a mamluk.
He was a sl*ve-soldier.
Yeah.
Yeah. He built this?
Yeah. La tombe.
The tomb over here.
Ah.
Here is the mosque and school.
On that side.
In front, it is a hospital.
You want to have a look?
I'd love to. Can I go and explore?
It's OK.
Thank you.
Built in the 13th century,
this is a mosque
with a school attached.
The student accommodation
was arranged around this courtyard.
This is absolutely stunning.
Right in the centre of Cairo.
You can hear the traffic outside,
you can hear the souk,
then you come into this sacred space
and this is all part of this complex
which include the school,
but it's also a mosque,
a place for learning about Islam,
and the architecture is so beautiful.
I mean, this really is a jewel
of Islamic Mamluk architecture.
Another important part
of this complex was a hospital,
which also functioned as
a medical school.
And these buildings capture
what has been going on in Egypt
for thousands of years -
recycling and reusing features
from the past.
This is such stunning
medieval architecture.
But there are also
more ancient elements here as well.
These pillars are Roman.
They come from Alexandria.
And these huge columns here
are pharaonic
from Luxor.
The most elaborate architecture and
decoration is seen in the mausoleum.
When Qalawun died,
his body was kept nearby
for two months
while they completed this tomb
for him.
And, later, his family members
would be added.
So, this is the tomb of Qalawun,
lying in the centre of this complex
that bears his name.
Just like the pharaohs
in their pyramids,
he made sure that he'd be remembered.
The Qalawun mosque complex
is a hidden gem,
a wonderful piece of history
that is still functioning
in a contemporary world,
buried deep in a city
that not only embraces change,
it thrives on it.
Before the night is done,
there's just enough time for me to
check on my Tutankhamun plate design.
Nearly done. Oh, wow, look at that!
You like it?
I think it's absolutely beautiful.
She's fantastic. Thank you.
You're welcome. Have a nice night.
Thank you so much for doing that.
I really... That's lovely.
Thank you. Nice to meet you too.
Bye-bye.
Today is the big day.
It's all about the pyramids
and the pharaohs
and I'm heading for Saqqara
to find out where the idea
of the pyramids came from.
But I also want to find out
what was here in Cairo
before it was called Cairo.
The expansion of modern-day Cairo
has consumed legendary cities
from ancient times.
In the north of the city
are the remnants of Heliopolis,
one of the oldest cities
in ancient Egypt
and a former capital.
This last remaining obelisk
was one of many in Egypt.
A few were taken by the Romans
to adorn other cities
and one can even be seen on
the Victoria Embankment in London.
Heliopolis is in what's now
a small suburb of Cairo
and from here
it's a 40-minute drive to Saqqara,
right on the edge of the city limits.
Saqqara is a site
of around 40,000 acres.
It has hundreds of tombs...
..and the very first pyramid ever.
Known as the Step Pyramid,
it was built almost 4,700 years ago
for the Pharaoh Djoser.
Look here. These niches,
they had statues in here.
Yeah.
All this.
I'm meeting Yomna Salama,
an Egyptologist, tour guide
and university lecturer
with a focus on the role of women
throughout Egyptian history.
They say sometimes
it's older than Stonehenge.
Yeah, it is older than Stonehenge
and it's also more nicely made.
And this is a pharaoh's tomb?
Yes, that's King Djoser,
the founder of the Third Dynasty,
so we're talking about 2700 BC.
It's astonishing, isn't it?
I mean, it's absolutely enormous.
I mean, that took
a lot of work to create.
We actually consider
the building of Djoser's pyramid
as a revolution in architecture
in Egypt
because before the time of Djoser,
it was mainly mud brick and wood...
Right.
..used in the construction
and building.
So, actually, the first time to
construct something in stone,
limestone, was here.
This is the first pyramid.
Yes, that's the first pyramid
in the world.
This idea of the pyramid,
do we have any idea
where it comes from?
It actually started with
a pit under the ground
and then a shaft
leading to this pit
and then a mastaba, which is
a rectangular superstructure...
Right.
..on top of this shaft
and the burial pit.
And it's interesting 'cause
it's quite steep-sided, isn't it,
when you look at each layer.
Mm, if you look,
it's nothing but six mastabas,
six rectangular superstructures
above each other.
There's all solid stone.
The burial chamber is underneath.
Here in Saqqara, also, it's not
just a necropolis for people.
We have burial shafts
for birds and animals,
and last year, we discovered
a mummified small lion, baby lion.
Really?
Yes.
So, it's birds, animals,
cats and falcons -
hundreds of mummified animals.
Do we have literature
from ancient Egypt
telling us why these animals are
being given very similar treatment?
The Egyptians,
for the soul of the dead person,
they made sacrificial gifts
and the mummified cats and falcons,
those were actually sacred animals.
But to mummify falcons and cats,
this is something very unusual
and very Egyptian.
Yes, I like that. Very Egyptian.
Everything in ancient Egypt
is related to one concept -
life after death
and the circle of life.
And it's incredible
to come here, actually,
and realise that it isn't...
I mean, I say, "Just the pyramid."
The pyramid's really impressive,
but this is all fantastic as well.
You need to stay at least one month
with me here to see everything...
That sounds great, yeah.
..but we'll try to cover
the highlights.
Let's do that, then.
Yeah.
Coming here to Saqqara,
there's so much.
What is all this around the pyramid?
Well, this is very important,
actually, what you mention.
Pyramids are
one architecture component
of what we call a burial
or a funeral complex of the pharaoh.
So, here, for example, in Saqqara,
you see the open court,
you see a temple, you see a gate
leading to the complex.
This is a funerary complex
that has all kinds of
wonderful architectural features.
This gateway leads into
a narrow colonnaded room.
This is the door or entrance,
the only true entrance
of the 14 gates,
and that's the wall that used to
surround the entire complex.
So, 13 of these gates
are just false entrances?
Yes, just to amaze the tomb-robbers
and the thieves.
And here you can see the columns
on the right and on the left side.
They are imitating a bunch
of papyrus reeds tied together.
Yes.
And, of course,
the gaps here, right and left,
were occupied by
statues of the pharaoh
sitting on his throne.
The courtyards and walkways
would be places for festivals,
but there are also areas
for quiet reflection
and paying respects.
Look at this. We have here
a frieze of cobra snakes.
And it's just a feature along the top
of the wall all the way around?
All the way around,
thousands of cobras for protection.
That's why you see cobras
on the forehead of the pharaohs.
They are protective.
At the end of the Saqqara site,
pyramids of ancient rulers
can easily be mistaken
for mounds of earth.
This is the tomb of King Teti
who died more than 4,000 years ago.
It certainly hasn't stood
the test of time,
but Yomna is taking me to
a well-preserved tomb
of one of King Teti's employees.
So, whose tomb is this?
This is the tomb of
the high official Mereruka.
He is the prime minister
or the supervisor
of all the work of King Teti.
Is this him?
That's him represented
in a noble style.
He's wearing a stretched kilt
with a walking stick and a sceptre.
And who's this here under his skirt?
This is his wife.
Here she's very small.
Here she's small because the tomb
belongs to him originally...
Yeah.
..but, inside,
you will see her as equal.
Can we go in?
Yes, let's go inside.
The silence of the dead.
And here, you will see Mereruka
and his wife holding hands.
Oh, oh.
They are represented as equal.
So, this time,
she is the same height as him.
Yes, and they're holding hands -
a very loving and caring attitude.
And all the men are in action,
so that shows you
the daily life in Egypt.
This man, for example,
is giving his master water to drink,
and you can see
the lotus flowers are beautiful
here on the River Nile.
Yeah, yeah.
Fishing scenes with nets.
It's stylised, but there's also
these naturalistic elements to it,
and the fish are brilliant.
All the different types of fish.
There's a catfish.
There's the catfish.
Isn't it wonderful?
It tells a story, doesn't it?
Exactly.
So, here we have
a big statue of Mereruka right here,
the owner of this tomb.
To your right
and to your left hand side,
you'll see him represented
in a noble style.
He's wearing the panther skin.
Oh, yes, you can see
the head of the panther.
Exactly.
So, wearing the panther skin
shows his status.
There's all these animals here.
I can see some cows.
Yes, and even you can see
they are turning ones upside down
to be slaughtered
to be given as sacrificial gifts.
It's brilliant to have
such a detailed record
of life in ancient Egypt
and not just for the elite,
but the whole economy.
Exactly.
And where was his actual tomb, then?
I mean, obviously this whole thing
is his tomb, but where is...
Was there a sarcophagus?
Yes, there is a shaft in this tomb
in this room behind us
and his sarcophagus, or coffin,
should be in the shaft.
It was inserted down into the floor?
Yeah, under the ground.
Was it sealed after his death
or did people come in?
No, no, no, after the burial,
the tomb will be sealed
and shall never be entered again.
They have only 40 to 70 days -
the mummification time -
to bring all the furniture
and the personal belongings
of the dead person
and do the sacrificial gifts
and then the tomb
will be sealed and closed.
I mean, and that sealing
of these tombs,
that's why they've been
so well preserved
and that's why we get
this astonishing insight
into ancient Egypt through them.
That's one of the major reasons,
and also because of documentation.
They documented everything
so we can tell what's missing.
I've been in Cairo
for a couple of days now
and I'm already getting
a good feel for it.
There's a fascinating old European
grandeur to its architecture.
The broad city streets carry
a seemingly endless flow of traffic
day and night.
Today, I'm heading to the other half
of Greater Cairo
directly across the Nile,
the city of Giza.
At the edge of this vast city
where it meets the desert,
it reveals its claim to fame.
The Great Pyramids of Giza...
..as well as the Sphinx.
Giza is a big draw for tourists.
I'm getting there early
to avoid the crush.
I'm meeting Ashraf Mohie El-Din,
the man with the best job title
in the world...
..the director of the Pyramids.
Ashraf, this is beautiful
and I think you see the Sphinx,
but, actually, there's so much more
around the Sphinx as well.
Yes, this was remain of
ancient harbour, so the boat...
Oh, really?
..which bring the blocks
was parked here.
So, there was a river just here?
Yes.
On the right-hand side,
we have the Sphinx temple.
It is the oldest
and the first sun temple
to worship when the sun rises
and to worship when the sun sets.
Yeah, yeah.
You have to remember,
everything started,
created on this land.
Right here.
Yes!
It's really a huge temple.
Ashraf, what is this temple, then?
What was it for?
This is the Valley Temple
of the King Kha-f-re -
Khafre.
Khafre.
It's a huge temple.
Dates back to Dynasty IV,
4,600 years.
The temple itself,
it was built from limestone
and was cased inside and outside
with granite blocks.
Each pillar, it's about 60 tonnes.
If you have a look from here,
you can see all the pillars
in one straight line.
That's amazing, isn't it?
I mean, that engineering...
Yes.
..and that degree of precision.
It's exactly one straight line.
Yeah.
It's almost like
brutalist architecture.
It's very simple and very powerful.
Yes.
This would have been roofed over.
Yes.
It would have been
a dark, mysterious place.
That's right, but there is some
niches in the ceiling over there...
Yeah, yeah.
..to bring the sun rays.
So, the statues were shining because
when the sun rays went to statues,
we get the reflection.
So, do you think
right at this point, then,
there's that kind of identification
of the sun as a deity
and the king
as effectively that deity?
Of course, yes, because the king,
he's a son of the god.
After the death,
he became the god himself.
Yeah.
So, all the people come to worship
the god, bring offering to the god.
To where? In his temple.
Mm.
And it's so perfectly fitted.
I mean, do you think
they were finishing these blocks
once they placed them in situ?
We have workshops outside...
Yeah.
..so they brought the granite,
cut it and polish it,
and after they finish it,
they brought the block to here.
And it's so neat.
I mean, look at these joints
and you just see that precision.
Just incredible.
It's really perfect.
This is so beautiful and enormous.
I mean, it's just amazing
to even think about
how they started this sculpture.
Sphinx was cut
from one single rock,
just one piece.
This is literally carved
out of the mountain in situ?
Yes.
It represent the king, Khafre,
as a sun god.
It takes the face features of Khafre
and the body of a lion.
It's a combination between
the wisdom of the human face
and the power and strengths
of the lion.
It's really complex beliefs,
isn't it, really complex symbolism?
Yes, of course.
Do you get the impression
that this religion was something
which inspired fear or joy?
The workers, they have
a strong belief in gods,
they have a belief in afterlife,
they believe in rebirth
and the resurrection,
so they were doing this
by their desire.
They were not forced,
they were not sl*ves.
If you have the belief,
you will do miracles.
We do many studies,
we do many excavations,
and from excavations,
we found lots of information
telling us about the history.
This is what I think is so incredible
about ancient Egyptian archaeology,
is that you have this documentary
evidence that goes alongside it.
You've got the writing,
you've got the written word,
you've got what was in
the minds of the makers.
We were lucky because they were
recording everything on papyri,
on the walls of the tombs,
so we got lots of information.
From 4,500 years ago.
I mean, it's incredible.
And in terms of
this miraculous construction,
what kind of tools are they using?
Actually, this is limestone.
Around, you know,
we found workshops,
and in the workshops,
we found tools from granite
because granite is harder
than limestone.
So, they're not using metal tools?
Not, because it wasn't invented
in this early time yet.
Just across from the Sphinx
are the Pyramids.
Their enormous scale is all about
the status of the pharaoh
whose body is entombed deep inside,
but they also stand as testament
to the ancient Egyptians' ability
to construct monumental architecture
on a superhuman scale.
They're saying, "Look at us.
"We can make the greatest buildings
in the world."
It's really difficult
to get a sense of scale, isn't it?
It's really huge.
Yeah, yeah.
I mean, I can see
there's a little horse-drawn cart
just disappearing over there...
Yeah.
..and suddenly you actually
appreciate the immensity.
They are huge!
We have three big Pyramids of Giza.
Khufu, and the second one,
his son is Khafre,
or Kha-f-re,
and the grandson is Menkaure,
and the small pyramids
for the queens,
the wives of Menkaure.
And this is a family and their tombs
just kind of securing that idea
of a dynasty in the landscape.
Yes, this is one dynasty.
Dates back, Dynasty IV, 4,600 years.
Oh, it's just incredible!
Museums here and across the world are
full of artefacts from ancient Egypt
and, yet, it's estimated
they've only found a tiny fraction
of the archaeological remains
under the sands.
There is still so much more
to be discovered.
Presumably, the pharaoh
has to start the work on this
when he comes to the throne?
Of course, yes.
Building a pyramid
takes about 20 years
and the Khufu pyramid's
about 2,300,000 blocks.
It's about 13 acres squared.
Yeah.
It's really huge!
Did they build the chamber first
and then start accumulating
the pyramid around the chamber?
How does it work?
OK, it's a very good question.
I will answer to you.
This is the base of the pyramid.
They make a ramp from sand.
So, this ramp goes up
in a circular way around the pyramid
and start to build the chambers,
the tunnels...
Yeah.
..the passages,
and they're going up
course by course,
level by level.
So, it all has to be planned out
from the very beginning.
Yes. That's right.
And they're going up
course by course,
so this ramp goes up
in a circular way...
Yeah.
..to be easy for the sledges
which hold the blocks to go up
until they reach
the top of the pyramid,
so they start to case the pyramid
from outside
with fine and white limestone
and were removing the ramp from
the top to the pattern down there.
Oh!
So, if you imagine how would
the pyramid look like
in ancient time,
it was so smooth, so flat, so white.
So, what's happened to the casing?
Because, you know, that middle one
has still got some casing...
Yes.
..but most of it's gone.
They were stripped out to be reused
in the modern buildings.
Right.
They didn't care about the pyramid.
They used the pyramid as a quarry.
So, what we see of the surface today,
that stepped effect,
that wouldn't have been there.
It would have been completely smooth.
Smooth and flat.
And you can see remains of the outer
casing on the top of Khafre
because the robbers didn't go
to the top of the pyramid.
So, we can imagine it.
We can imagine
what it would have looked like.
Yes.
I'm lucky to have been given
half an hour to see the tomb of Khufu
deep inside the Great Pyramid
before it opens to the public.
I'm told
it's a bit of a steep climb -
around 70 metres
and over 400 steps.
And I'm just about to leave
all the tourists behind
because, thanks to Ashraf,
I'm incredibly privileged to be going
inside the Great Pyramid of Khufu
on my own.
I'm climbing deep inside
the Great Pyramid,
looking for the tomb of Khufu.
I can see a shaft
descending down there
to a chamber far below me,
but I'm heading up
to the king's chamber.
This is just incredible.
It's like being in a cave or a mine,
but, actually,
I'm going deep inside a pyramid.
It's opening out.
Oh, my God! Look at this space!
Keeps on going
into the heart of the pyramid.
It's getting hotter and hotter
the higher I climb.
Hoo!
And now a bit of a crawl.
This is it.
This is the central chamber
right in the heart of the pyramid
and this space is... is incredible,
it's austere.
There's nothing on the walls,
no inscriptions, no carving,
but we know that
this was the resting place of Khufu
because of graffiti elsewhere.
And this is
his great granite sarcophagus
and it would have held his mummy.
But when the chamber was opened
just over 200 years ago,
it was like this.
It was just as I'm seeing it now -
empty.
It'd been plundered centuries before.
It's completely awe-inspiring,
but there's also something
quite terrifying about it.
I'm getting quite a strong sense
that I shouldn't be here.
The Great Pyramid is
a monumental piece of history,
a statement from a civilisation
whose kings were all-powerful,
whose architects were heroic.
It feels incredibly special
to be this close to it,
to be able to touch it,
but there are some rules.
That sign definitely wasn't here
when Amelia Edwards came to visit
in 1873.
Amelia did her whole journey
up the Nile
and then comes back
to the Pyramids at Giza
and she climbs this one,
the Great Pyramid of Khufu.
"The view from this place
is immense," she writes.
"The country is so flat,
the atmosphere is so clear,
"the standpoint so isolated
"that one really sees more
and sees further
"than from many a mountain summit
of 10,000 or 12,000 feet.
"The ground lies, as it were,
immediately under one
"and the great necropolis
is seen as in a ground plan.
"Without ascending the pyramid,
"it's certainly not possible
to form a clear notion
"of the way in which
this great burial field is laid out.
"We see from this point how each
royal pyramid is surrounded
"by its quadrangle of lesser tombs,
"some in the form of small pyramids,
others partly rock-cut,
"partly built of massive slabs like
the roofing stones of the temples.
"We see how Khufu and Khafre
and Menkaure lay,
"each under his mountain of stone
"with his family
and his nobles around him.
"They are the grandest graves
in all the world."
Back on the train
and this next journey is symbolic.
I'm following the Nile south
from Cairo to Minya.
This is such a beautiful
fertile landscape
and here on the banks of the Nile
are some of the most iconic temples
and the most prestigious tombs
in all of ancient Egypt.
The railway crosses
from Lower Egypt to Upper Egypt
and Minya is a border town
that links the two.
I'm not too far now from
the land of the temples,
the Valley of the Kings
and Queens.
They're next,
but now I'm going somewhere
well off the main tourist trail.
A short trip from the station
brings me to a place
called Beni Hasan.
I suspect
there's a lot more steps to come.
It's an ancient Egyptian cemetery.
Here, the tombs are protected
and well away from
the floodplain of the Nile.
The cemetery dates back
around 4,000 years
and in more recent times,
some kind person has built
a long set of steps.
Now, the name of Beni Hasan
comes from that town over there,
that abandoned Arab town.
I'm down amongst the graves
of the lower cemetery here
and these are all shaft graves.
There's about 900 of them
across this hillside.
This whole site was excavated by John
Garstang from Blackburn, Lancashire
at the beginning of the 20th century.
He discovered two separate areas
for burials.
Here, all over the hillside,
is for the ordinary people -
small rectangular holes
one after the other.
I'm heading up to the upper cemetery
and that's where the elite were
buried in these rock-cut tombs.
I can just see the entrances.
At the very top are 39 tombs
for the upper echelons of society.
Made it to the upper cemetery.
This is the tomb of Amenemhat,
a local ruler and priest.
The tomb artwork reflects
his interests and hobbies in life.
He seems to have liked music,
wine and sport.
There are also some wrestling
or fighting scenes.
Khnumhotep II was buried in this one.
He came from a family
of local governors.
The scenes in here
tell the story of a group of traders
perhaps coming from
the eastern desert
bringing pigment for eye paint.
Each tomb also contains
a burial shaft
for the sarcophagus
of the mummified body.
Thank you so much.
Cairo, Giza and Beni Hasan
have given me an incredible insight
into ancient Egypt.
My next location is Luxor,
the Valley of the Kings,
the Temple of Karnak
and the Avenue of the Sphinxes.
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