The Great Pyramid is located at the city of Giza, a necropolis of ancient Memphis, and today's part of Greater Cairo, Egypt. When it was built, the Great pyramid was 145.75 m (481 ft) high. Over the years, it lost 10 m (30 ft) off its top. It ranked as the tallest structure on Earth for more than 43 centuries, only to be surpassed in height in the nineteenth century AD. It was covered with a casing of stones to smooth its surface (some of the casing can still be seen near the top of Khefre's pyramid). The sloping angle of its sides is 54 degrees 54 min. Each side is carefully oriented with one of the cardinal points of the compass, that is, north, south, east, and west. The horizontal cross section of the pyramid is square at any level, with each side measuring 229 m in length. The maximum error between side lengths is astonishingly less than 0.1%.

The structure consists of more than 2 million blocks of stone, each weighing several tons. The area covered by the Great pyramid can accommodate St Peter's in Rome, the cathedrals of Florence and Milan, and Westminster and St Paul's in London combined. On the north face, is the pyramid's entrance. The King's chamber is located at the heart of the pyramid, only accessible through the Great Gallery and an ascending corridor. The King's sarcophagus is made of red granite, as are the interior walls of the King's Chamber. Most impressive, is the sharp-edged stone over the doorway which is over 3 m (10 ft) long, 2.4 m (8 feet) high and 1.3 m (4 ft) thick. All of the interior stones fit so well, that a card won't fit between them.

Those pyramids in Egypt date from 2700 B.C. to 1000 B.C. The monument was built by the Egyptian pharaoh Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty around the year B.C. 2560 to serve as a tomb when he dies. The tradition of pyramid building started in Ancient Egypt as a sophistication of the idea of a mastaba or "platform" covering the royal tomb. Later, several stacked mastabas were used.

The great pyramid is believed to have been built over a 20 years period. The site was first prepared, and blocks of stone were transported and placed. An outer casing (which disappeared over the years) was then used to smooth the surface. Although it is not known how the blocks were put in place, several theories have been proposed. One theory involves the construction of a straight or spiral ramp that was raised as the construction proceeded. This ramp, coated with mud and water, eased the displacement of the blocks which were pushed (or pulled) into place. A second theory suggests that the blocks were placed using long levers with a short angled foot.

Throughout their history, the pyramids of Giza have stimulated human imagination. They were referred to as "The Granaries of Joseph" and "The Mountains of Pharaoh". There are many more pyramids than in Egypt, for example ancient civilizations such as areas in Mexico and Peru used pyramids for some of the same reason the Egyptians did.