The Russians Take the Great Pyramid of Giza

Vivian Gomez
The Roosevelts

Climbing 455 feet in the dark in 20 minutes may be hard to believe, but the photos Vitaliy Raskalov, Vadim Mahorox and Mara Dupri took from atop the Great Pyramid of Giza are clearly not ‘Shopped.
The trio were on a tour of the pyramids and broke off to hide at approximately 4 p.m. Five hours later, they emerged from their hiding place, climbed the pyramid, took photos of and from the pyramid and climbed back down the pyramid – all without getting caught. That’s some incredible luck when you consider how tight security is supposed to be. Climbing the Great Pyramid is a huge no-no, punishable by one to three years in jail. It’s also pretty dangerous, particularly in the dark while presumably moving quickly and trying to avoid detection.

Considering that the Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the World and the only one that remains intact, despite having lost a few feet (it used to stand at 481 feet), its no surprise that the stunt has sparked concern for the structure’s preservation. Still totally worth risking life, limb and jail time for the three friends, whose photos continue making the rounds all over the Internet.

In an email from Makhorov to CNN, he describes feeling drawn to Egypt and explains that it has been his childhood dream to climb atop of the Great Pyramid of Giza. “No words can express the fascination I felt when seeing my childhood dream come alive. Probably this very feeling made us climb onto the top of the Pyramid and see the the panorama of the whole complex, the desert and Cairo itself. . . . It was exhausting, but the thought that we were going to witness something spectacular pushed us forward.”

Makhorov acknowledges the risk the group took. “We were very lucky not to get [caught]. We would have been in serious trouble if we did. That’s why I would like to apologize for this ascension. We didn’t want to insult anyone. We were just following the dream.”