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Ancient ruins or an ancient stone statue recalls the work of miners who brought the material from a quarry so that the sculptor can create a work of art. Carving of massive stone blocks and piercing tunnels in mountains are arts in which the same tools of mining are used and mining engineers are involved. Studying history of mining necessitates also the study of archaeology, art, architecture, and world history in general since it is the history of civilization. The pyramids of Egypt, the gold of Tut Ankh Amoun, the Coloseum in Rome, the Taj Mahal in Agra, and the …

The Great Pyramid in Egypt built about two thousand years BC is not just a pile of stones. It is a grave containing a burial chamber, passages, and ventilation ducts, etc. It is an engineering feat. It took many centuries of experimentation till it was possible to build a true pyramid. There are about one hundred pyramids in Egypt. After about 500 years when the Egyptians stopped building pyramids, the Nubans who occupied Egypt around 1000 BC, built in Meroe another two hundred pyramids but far much smaller than those at Memphis.