Those rough blocks were never meant to be the Great Pyramid’s finished surface. Fine white limestone once formed smooth sides that gleamed in the sun. Much of that casing was later removed and reused for building work in Cairo.

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You recognise this pyramid. But those rough blocks were never meant to be its finished surface. A surviving casing stone shows its outer face was cut smooth and sloping. The builders brought fine white limestone from quarries across the Nile, fitted it over the pyramid, and polished it. So why doesn’t it look like that now? Builders took the casing stones for construction in Cairo. Historical accounts link some to the Mosque of Sultan Hassan. It was valuable limestone, already quarried and shaped. Today, with most of the casing gone, the exposed blocks give the pyramid its rough, stepped appearance. With the casing intact, its sides would be smooth, white, and gleaming in the sun.