Emily Chan
Of all the great ancient civilizations, Egypt is one that remains the most shrouded in mystery. Although experts have been studying life in Egypt for years, there is still so much that is unknown.
Just recently, a team of researchers has found evidence of a “long-lost” branch of the Nile River that may point to the reason behind the location of several pyramids. The study was published in the journal Communications Earth and Environment.
Researchers identified parts of a section of the river that is no longer in existence. They named the segments the Ahramat Branch.
The branch is now buried underneath farmland and sand in the Sahara Desert, but it once stretched along the eastern edge of the Western Desert Plateau, which is located to the west of the Nile.
The Ahramat Branch was 40 miles long and ran near 31 pyramids that are also situated on the eastern edge of the plateau.
The group of pyramids is the largest cluster of pyramids in Egypt. It includes the Giza complex. This chain was built around 4,700 years ago, over the course of a millennium.
Previously, researchers could not figure out why the pyramids were erected in that area since it is currently just a narrow strip of desert.
Usually, such massive monuments and structures would be constructed near large sources of water to make transportation of building materials easier. However, no waterway had ever been found in the area, and the Nile was several miles away.
The authors of the study suggested that the Ahramat Branch was within close range of the 31 pyramids, which explained why the structures were built at that site.
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