The pyramids mean only the famous monuments of Giza for many tourists, but there’s another group of pyramids within day-tripping distance of Cairo. The massive necropolis of Saqqara and the nearby sites of Dahshur and Abu Sir, thirty kilometres south of the capital, are where pyramid construction first began in Egypt. Here, the Step Pyramid, the Bent Pyramid, and the Red Pyramid are beautiful reminders of the pharaohs’ early architecture and some of the most dazzling treasures of the Old Kingdom. A day trip here is a must-do while in Cairo for history lovers.
The Step Pyramid, the tomb of the Third Dynasty ruler Djoser or Zoser, designed by Imhotep and believed to be the first significant stone structure erected in Egypt, is Saqqara’s most conspicuous landmark. The shape of the pyramid can be described as a creation of the First and Second Dynasties’ large mastabas (mud-brick tombs); the six steps, Each is smaller than the one below, created by the addition of successive new layers of masonry to the initial mastaba, followed by the enlargement of the lower stages.
The Step Pyramid at Saqqara stands 60 metres high and is made of low quality locally quarried clay sandstone. Due to safety concerns, you can not reach the pyramid anymore. The chambers and passages within the pyramid served partly to bury the King’s close relatives (including those of his sons who died in infancy) and partly to store gravestones for the use of the deceased.
Pyramid of Unas
The Pyramid of Unas at Saqqara, the last king of the Fifth Dynasty, is southwest of the Step Pyramid. The pyramid’s interior, which was opened in 1881, is open to tourists. A sloping passage from the north side, the entrance to which was originally hidden under the paving, leads to an antechamber from which, at the far end, a horizontal corridor was originally blocked by three trapdoors,It moves on to a central chamber. There are inscriptions covering the walls of the central chamber and the tomb chamber, the “Pyramid Texts,” the oldest known Egyptian religious texts, referring to life after death in which the incised hieroglyphs are packed with blue pigment. The King’s sarcophagus with alabaster false doors to the right and left is situated against the west wall of the tomb chamber.
Double Mastaba of Nebet and Khenut
The large Double Mastaba of Nebet and Khenut, Unas’ wives, is to the northeast of the Pyramid of Unas. Both tombs, showing the equal position of the two inhabitants, have the same ground plan and layout. The tomb of Khenut, to the west, is quite ruined, but the tomb of Nebet is well preserved and worth a close inspection.
The entrance leads into an antechamber of some scale on the southeast side, the walls of which are decorated with reliefs of the dead Queen sailing across the marshes in a boat. A spacious open court is to the left (west) of this chamber, without decoration, and a second smaller antechamber with highly unusual mural reliefs is straight on, depicting Nebet with servants carrying food and sledges laden with large jars. Nebet is shown seated in front of votive offerings on the north wall, above the door.
SaqqaraTomb of Nefer and Companions
The Tomb of Nefer and Companions (Fifth Dynasty), probably the family or communal tomb of a guild of singers, is on the south side of the causeway leading to the Pyramid of Unas. Eight metres deep, it has a single chamber with nine tomb shafts. In one of these, the mummy of a naked man was discovered, Adorned only with a necklace of blue beads, lying slightly bent at his side with his legs, as if asleep. Faced with plaster, the walls display a rich variety of reliefs. There are five rows of scenes from daily life on the left-hand wall, including woodworkers, agricultural scenes, and a rare and insightful scene depicting the launch of a boat. the dead men are depicted with their wives at a funeral banquet.
Double Tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep
The Double Tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep (Fifth Dynasty), two friends or relatives who were priests of Re in Niuserre’s Sun Temple and Court manicurists, is to the east of the Tomb of Nefer and Companions, under the causeway (which was built over it). The tomb is partly hewn out of the rock, partly made of masonry, and fine-grained limestone faces the front section. The rich decoration of painted reliefs is well preserved in the stone-built front part.
On the walls of the portico are reliefs depicting the burial rites, and on both sides of the entrance are the dead men with their eldest sons. The mummy is seen being conveyed to the crypt inside the gateway, accompanied by offering bearers. The portico leads into an antechamber with outstanding preserved reliefs in five rows, referring alternately to Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, into an antechamber with excellent preserved reliefs in five rows. Scenes of agricultural life and of the professional practises of the dead men are on the north and east walls. Various methods of capturing fish and birds are portrayed on the south wall.
Saqqara Tomb of Iru-kaptah Khenu
East of the Pyramid of Unas is the rock-cut Tomb of Iru-kaptah (Fifth Dynasty), the Superintendent of the Royal Slaughterhouses. This one, too, has one chamber at the end of a narrow corridor. On the left-hand and rear walls of the chamber are ten figures of a dead man carved from the rock in high relief. On the right-hand wall are similar figures of three young men and a woman who were also buried in the tomb.
Monastery of St. Jeremias
A route leads east from the tombs to the nearby ruins of the Monastery of St. Jeremias (Jeremiah), excavated in 1907-09 by JE Quibell. Established in the second half of the fifth century and demolished by the Arabs around 960 AD, two churches, a refectory, a bakery, an oil press and other offices, the room occupied by St. Jeremiah, and cells for the monks are part of the monastery buildings.
Pyramid of Userkaf
The mound of rubble, which represents the Pyramid of Userkaf, the founder of the Fifth Dynasty, is northeast of the Step Pyramid of Djoser. With an initial base measurement of 75 metres, the pyramid was comparatively small and lay within an equally small precinct. On the south side was the mortuary temple, and to the southwest of this are the remains of a subsidiary pyramid. In the area south of Userkaf’s Pyramid are mastabas of the Old Kingdom.
Pyramid of Teti
The mound of earth marking the site of the Pyramid of Teti, the founder of the Sixth Dynasty, is some 500 metres northeast of the Djoser Pyramid. The scanty ruins of the mortuary temple, remnants of an alabaster altar, and several table-like statue bases are on its east side. A confused tangle of systems spanning from the Old Kingdom to the Ptolemaic period is farther east.
Saqqara Tomb of Mereruka
The Tomb of Mereruka contains unique paintings describing the deceased who are interested in daily activities such as fishing and labour inspection. Some of the best wall paintings are in the first (northern) room, where you can see Mereruka and his wife investigating various operations, goldsmiths making necklaces and vessels, three statues being drawn to the tomb while a priest burns incense, and carpenters making beds.
The reliefs on the north wall in the large sacrificial chamber show Mereruka examining domestic animals; a shipbuilding scene; and Mereruka carried in a litter with a large retinue, including two leading dog dwarfs.
Saqqara Bent Pyramid
In the reign of Sneferu, perhaps before the Red Pyramid, the formidable and mysterious Bent Pyramid was constructed and apparently built as a regular pyramid with straight sides and with the usual temple of the valley, causeway, subsidiary pyramid, and enclosure wall. The well-preserved casing, consisting of slightly inclined downward slabs of Tura calcareous, gives a good idea of the original external appearance of other pyramids.
There is no known explanation for the shift of angle halfway up the pyramid, from 54 ° 31 in the lower part to 43 ° 21. Two hypotheses have been put forward: some unexpected occurrence may have made it possible to rapidly complete the pyramid, There were concerns about the stability of the pyramid during its construction, or as plaster-filled cracks in the interior and traces of timber supports indicate, and the upper section was given a less steep angle to minimise the weight of stone.
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