The Great Pyramid originally gleamed with polished white limestone.

The pyramids most people know are sandy, weathered stone against desert sky. The original look was much brighter. Britannica notes that the Great Pyramid once had polished limestone casing stones that made the structure smooth and caused it to gleam in sunlight. Most of that outer casing was later removed or lost, leaving the stepped core we recognize today. That means the mental postcard is partly an afterimage of damage and time. Ancient visitors would have seen something cleaner, brighter, and more reflective than the ruin-like monument we file away now.

1 discovery explored