I don’t think sugar cube pyramid crafts existed in Ancient Egypt. After all, it is a very old civilization. 🙂 In fact, it is said to be one of the oldest and longest lasting. Located along the Nile River where fertile land can be found, ancient Egypt reportedly lasted over 3,000 years.  People who study Egypt’s past, called historians, divide Ancient Egypt into 3 primary kingdoms.  They are called the Old, Middle and New Kingdoms. Famous structures called The Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx were built during the Old Kingdom (2575-2150 BC).  This time period is often called the Age of the Pyramids. In honor of the Age of the Pyramids I thought it seemed fitting to make a pyramid for this week’s craft.  So grab some sugar cubes, and the other supplies I’ll clue you in on shortly, and let’s get to work!

The Great Pyramids of Giza were built during the Old Kingdom (2575-2150) in Ancient Egypt

Supplies

• 1 egg white
• pinch of cream of tartar
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar
• 2 boxes of sugar cubes (I think there were 195 cubes per box)
• mixing bowl
• mixing spoon
• dull knife for spreading mortar
• cardboard or other flat surface for pyramid construction

Pyramid Supplies

Instructions

1.  Prepare the mortar:  Beat one egg white and a pinch of cream of tartar until soft peaks form.  (I am not sure if mine truly qualified as soft peaks.  It looked really foamy and worked just fine.)

2.  Spread some mortar in a small square formation on your cardboard so that your pyramid can stick to the cardboard.

3.  Count out 100 cubes to assemble the base of the pyramid.   You want to make a 10 x 10 square with the cubes.  Use a dull knife, or other tool of your choice, to glue the cubes together.

Pyramid Base

I just have to mention that my kids and I assembled the base outside.  It was warm and sunny and the mortar started drying up a bit in the sun.  We haven’t had warm weather in awhile so while it was really nice to be outside, the sun soon seemed like it was beating down on us because we aren’t used to it yet.  It is a bit tedious working with these little cubes and finding a rhythm to stick them together quickly but not carelessly.  Soon we were getting snippy with each other.

Then I began to think about the story of Moses found in the book of Exodus in the Bible.  I imagined the Israelites slaving away making mud bricks for the Egyptians out in the hot desert sun.  I thought, “Oh my word, am I really this wimpy?  Thousands of years ago real people existed enduring extreme physical labor out in the scorching sun all day long and I can’t even stick a few sugar cubes together in 70 degree weather without complaining!”  Always nice to have a little reality check.  But anyways, on to step 4.

4.  Now it’s time for the next layer.  Repeat the same process now making an 8 x 8 square that will rest on top of the 10 x 10 base.

5.  Continue stacking layer upon layer until you have 1 sugar cube standing proudly on the top.

This project does take some time.  At least an hour or two depending on how many little hands are working together.  So I think it is a great opportunity to talk about the Ancient Egyptian culture. I found some helpful sites with coloring pages, puzzles and historical information that can help guide the discussion.  Parents, some of this information involves the topic of mummification which can be a little gruesome.  So I advise looking it over.

Gruesomeness aside, let me know what fun facts you learn about the Egyptians by leaving me a comment! As always, I love to hear from you!

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