Dassault Systèmes' Solutions presents theory on the Great Pyramid of Kheops
Dassault Systèmes, a provider of 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions,
announced that it today held a world premiere unveiling of the scientifically proven Great Pyramid construction theory with its creator, architect Jean-Pierre Houdin.
Dassault Systèmes' real-time 3D solutions enabled Jean-Pierre Houdin to model and
explore the pyramid in 3D and run simulations confirming his theory that the pyramid was built from the inside!
The secret of the Great Pyramid, the sole survivor of the Seven Wonders of the World,
has fascinated people throughout time. Countless theories exist as to how it was built,
but none stands up to analysis. In 1999, Houdin had an insight and decided to devote
himself to developing his theory. Eight years of passion and research ensued, whereby he
imagined the construction site of Kheops as the first industrial construction site in history. To further refine and test his theory, he called on Dassault Systèmes to help. As part of its "Passion for Innovation" sponsorship programme, DS decided to help Houdin solve the 4,500-year-old mystery with its real-time 3D solutions.
DS's real-time 3D solutions allowed Houdin to establish the first theory ever explaining
the construction of the Great Pyramid from start to finish. The theory is founded on
three foundations:
- the use of an outside ramp to build the first 43 metres of the pyramid
- the use of an internal spiral ramp running behind the faces of the pyramid to complete the construction
- and the use of the Great Gallery to accommodate an ingenious system of counterweights to lift the heavy granite ceiling rafters (up to 63 tonnes) in the King's Funeral Chamber.
"Jean-Pierre Houdin's theory is not only interesting; it is coherent and revolutionary.
Take the builders of that time seriously, he sees them as grand masters of construction,
as real engineers," declares Egyptologist and pyramid specialist Rainer Stadelmann,
ex-director of the German Institute of Archaeology in Cairo. Bob Brier, PhD, Egyptologist and world-renowned expert in the field of mummies adds: "Half-baked theories have been put forward about the Great Pyramid and until now none passed the test of sustained analysis. Jean-Pierre Houdin's theory is worth examining simply because of his rigorously scientific approach, which he supports with a large volume of field-based evidence." Both experts will accompany Houdin on a scientific expedition to the site.
Other participants in the March 30 conference include: Hui Duong Bui, member of the
French Science Academy and research director at Poytechnique, who in 1986 conducted
onsite Kheops microgravimetry measurements for the EDF Foundation; Marc Buonomo, project manager for Eiffel and the Millau viaduct; and Craig B. Smith, who has studied the
construction of the Kheops pyramid in the light of modern project management techniques.
The final step for Houdin and Dassault Systèmes will be to prove the theory in real-life
with non-invasive verification techniques conducted on the Kheops site.
The largest real-time 3D virtual reality auditorium in the world, seven computers running Dassault Systèmes' 3D Virtools solutions are linked in a network to recreate the Kheops construction site in 3D, exactly as it was 4,500 years ago. The system allows the presenter to move about the virtual site freely in response to the audience's questions. This is a first, linking the real and virtual worlds via an immersive, interactive 3D experience.
