Housing the Great Pyramid Laborers
Permanent housing was rare in the ancient Egyptian pyramid builder’s cities. Laborers on the Pyramid project lived in dorms or barracks, and some have been uncovered at a dig site called Heit el-Ghurab. The Lehner excavation found blocks of up to 170 meters long, large galleries that also had some touches of Egyptian homes. These barracks could hold groups of 1,600 to 2,000 workers at a time. Space for workers could be rotated; there were the seasonal laborers who would work on the project during the off season and return home. As one shift left, another could take their bunks. In addition to the seasonal crew, there was a skeleton crew that stayed the whole year, and a handful of who made their permanent home in the pyramid city.