BEST IELTS General Reading Test 457

BEST IELTS General Reading Test 457

IELTS GENERAL READING TEST 457 – PASSAGE – 3

IELTS GENERAL READING TEST – 457

READING PASSAGE – 3

The Great Pyramid of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops) is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex bordering present-day Giza in Greater Cairo, Egypt. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain largely intact.

Based on a mark in an interior chamber naming the work gang and a reference to the Fourth Dynasty Egyptian pharaoh Khufu, some Egyptologists believe that the pyramid was thus built as a tomb over a 10- to 20-year period concluding around 2560 BC, though the evidence is far from conclusive on this. Initially standing at 146.5 metres, the Great Pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for more than 3,800 years until Lincoln Cathedral was finished in 1311 AD.

IELTS General Reading Test

Originally, the Great Pyramid was covered by limestone casing stones that formed a smooth outer surface, and in ancient times it must have looked like a spectacular single shiny white block of stone; what is seen today is the underlying core structure. Some of the casing stones that once covered the structure can still be seen around the base.

Many alternative, often contradictory, theories have been proposed regarding the pyramid’s construction techniques. Many disagree on whether the blocks were dragged, lifted, or even rolled into place. The Greeks believed that slave labour was used, but modern discoveries made at nearby workers’ camps associated with construction at Giza suggest that it could have been built instead by tens of thousands of skilled workers. Verner posited that the labour was organized into a hierarchy, consisting of two gangs of 100,000 men, divided into five zaa or phyle of 20,000 men each, which may have been further divided according to the skills of the workers.

IELTS General Reading Test

One mystery of the pyramid’s construction is its planning. John Romer suggests that they used the same method that had been used for earlier and later constructions, laying out parts of the plan on the ground at a 1-to-1 scale. He writes that “such a working diagram would also serve to generate the architecture of the pyramid with precision unmatched by any other means”. He also argues for a 14-year time-span for its construction.

A modern construction management study, in association with Mark Lehner and other Egyptologists, estimated that the total project required an average workforce of about 14,500 people and a peak workforce of roughly 40,000. Without the use of pulleys, wheels, or iron tools, they used critical path analysis methods, which suggest that the Great Pyramid was completed from start to finish in approximately 10 years.

IELTS General Reading Test

The original entrance to the Great Pyramid is on the northern side, 17 metres vertically above ground level and 7.29 metres east of the center line of the pyramid. From this original entrance, there is the Descending Passage 0.96 metres high and 1.04 metres wide, which goes down at an angle of 26° 31’23” through the masonry of the pyramid and then into the bedrock beneath it. After 105.23 metres, the passage becomes level and continues for an additional 8.84 metres to the Lower Chamber, which appears not to have been finished.

There is a continuation of the horizontal passage in the south wall of the lower chamber; there is also a pit dug in the floor of the chamber. It’s possible that this Lower Chamber was intended to be the original burial chamber, but Pharaoh Khufu later changed his mind and wanted it to be higher up in the pyramid.

IELTS General Reading Test

28.2 metres from the entrance is a square hole in the roof of the Descending Passage. Originally concealed with a slab of stone, this is the beginning of the Ascending Passage. The Ascending Passage is 39.3 metres long, as wide and high as the Descending Passage, and slopes up at almost precisely the same angle to reach the Grand Gallery. At the start of the Grand Gallery on the right-hand side there is a hole cut in the wall.

This is the start of a vertical shaft which follows an irregular path through the masonry of the pyramid to join the Descending Passage. Also at the start of the Grand Gallery there is the Horizontal Passage leading to the Queen’s Chamber. The passage is 1.1m high for most of its length, but near the chamber there is a step in the floor, after which the passage is 1.73 metres high. At the other end of the Grand Gallery is the narrow tunnel that is used to access the King’s Chamber.

IELTS General Reading Test

Questions 28-32

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in passage 3?

Yes – if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer

No – if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer

Not Given – if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

28. It is certain that the Great Pyramid was built as a tomb.

29. A long time ago, the Great Pyramid’s appearance would have been extremely impressive and different from its current appearance.

30. The various ideas about how the Great Pyramid was constructed tend to disagree on the kinds of blocks used.

31. The Great Pyramid was built by skilled workers, not slaves.

32. The Lower Chamber may have been intended for another purpose originally.

IELTS General Reading Test

Questions 33-36

Label the elements of the diagram of the Great Pyramid of Giza using words from the box.

THE GREAT PYRAMID

Questions 37-40

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from passage 3 for each answer.

37. Which building was the first to have a height exceeding that of the Great Pyramid of Giza?

38. Where can some of the limestone which used to form the entire exterior surface of the pyramid now be found?

39. Where was the evidence found which points to the involvement of a large number of skilled labourers in the building of the Great Pyramid?

40. Which of the inner chambers of the Great Pyramid seems to be incomplete?

IELTS General Reading Test

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IELTS General Reading Test

ANSWERS

28. NO

29. YES

30. NOT GIVEN

31. NOT GIVEN

32. YES

33. KING’S CHAMBER

34. QUEEN’S CHAMBER

35. LOWER CHAMBER

36. ASCENDING PASSAGE

37. LINCOLN CATHEDRAL

38. (AROUND THE) BASE

39. (NEARBY) WORKERS’ CAMPS

40. (THE) LOWER CHAMBER