The Falicon pyramid is a monument located at a rural site near the town of

Falicon Falicon (; ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. Population Tourism Falicon is one of sixteen villages grouped together by the Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur tourist department as the ''Route des Villages ...

, on the

French Riviera The French Riviera, known in French as the (; , ; ), is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is considered to be the coastal area of the Alpes-Maritimes department, extending fr ...

, near

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million karstic Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. There is some eviden ...

cave known as the "Cave of the Bats" () and is one of the few

pyramid A pyramid () is a structure whose visible surfaces are triangular in broad outline and converge toward the top, making the appearance roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be of any polygon shape, such as trian ...

s in Europe. The pyramid is constructed of small, irregularly shaped stones, possesses a fairly acute angle of inclination, and is in a partly ruined condition. While most of its upper section is missing, the lower section is reasonably well preserved. The pyramid's purpose and exact origins are unknown. Though it had been suggested that it may have been constructed by

Roman legionaries The Roman legion (, ) was the largest military unit of the Roman army, composed of Roman citizens serving as legionaries. During the Roman Republic the manipular legion comprised 4,200 infantry and 300 cavalry. After the Marian reforms in 1 ...

involved in Egyptian cult practices, more recent research indicated that it was actually built between 1803 and 1812, i.e. during the rule of

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

after the 1798–1801

French campaign in Egypt and Syria The French invasion of Egypt and Syria (1798–1801) was a military expedition led by Napoleon Bonaparte during the French Revolutionary Wars. The campaign aimed to undermine British trade routes, expand French influence, and establish a ...

References

External links

Pictures of the Falicon's pyramid
on the website of the

Laboratoire de Zététique The Laboratoire de Zététique (English: ''Zetetic Laboratory'') is a structure founded by professor in 1998. Purpose and history The laboratory is a Research center, research and information centre concerned with purported "paranormal" or "a ...

of the

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

University of Nice Sophia-Antipolis A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

. {{coord, 43.7499, N, 7.2604, E, source:wikidata, display=title Pyramids in France Buildings and structures in Alpes-Maritimes