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SAKKARA  PYRAMIDS  OF  EGYPT

SAQQARA PYRAMIDS

Saqqara, the oldest complete hewn-stone building complex known in history was built: Djoser's step pyramid .

The Step Pyramid of Sakkara  itself is comprised of six steps and is approximately 60 meters (197 feet) in height. Under the pyramid, there exists a concealed underground construction of corridors and paths that measure in total length to around 5635 meters; the largest underground construction at the time.

Saqqara is one of the most extensive archaeological sites in Egypt comprising many important monuments such as the Step Pyramid of Djoser, Pyramid of  Unas, Pyramid of Sekhemket, Mastaba of Ti, the Tomb of Mereruka, and deep underground Persian Tombs and it was the   cemetery for Memphis,which was the capital of the Old Kingdom .

The Step Pyramid Complex at Sakkara presents Saqqara is the earliest pyramid in the development of the ancient Egyptian pyramid concept

Saqqara features numerous pyramids, including the world famous Step pyramid of Djoser, sometimes referred to as the Step Tomb due to its rectangular base, as well as a number of mastabas. Located some 30 km south of modern-day Cairo, Saqqara covers an area of around 7 km by 1.5 km.

So, The earliest burials of nobles can be traced back to the First Dynasty, at the north side of the Saqqara plateau. During this time, the royal burial ground was at Abydos.

The first royal burials at Saqqara, comprising underground galleries, date to the Second Dynasty. The last Second Dynasty king Khasekhemwy was buried in his tomb at Abydos, but also built a funerary monument at Saqqara consisting of a large rectangular enclosure, known as Gisr el-Mudir. It probably inspired the monumental enclosure wall around the Step Pyramid complex. Djoser's funerary complex, built by the royal architect Imhotep, further comprises a large number of dummy buildings and a secondary mastaba (the so-called 'Southern Tomb'). French architect and Egyptologist Jean-Philippe Lauer spent the greater part of his life excavating and restoring Djoser's funerary complex.

LOCATION
Saqqara has been designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979 ….

Saqqara is located near the entrance of the Nile Delta, at the point where the river starts dividing into several arms, on the west bank of the Nile. Its first tombs, dated to the beginning of the 1st Dynasty, were built on the ridge of the desert plateau, probably immediately to the west of the new capital of Memphis

Djoser's Step Pyramid, can be seen from Giza, which lies some 17 kilometres to the North, and from Dashur, about 10 kilometres to the South. From Egypt's modern-day capital, Cairo, Saqqara is some 40 kilometres away.
Its northern most monuments, the Archaic Tombs, are located slightly to the south of the 5th Dynasty necropolis of Abusir. It is believed by some that the oldest remains of Memphis are to be found underneath the modern-day village of Abusir, immediately to the east of the Archaic Tombs.
To the south, Saqqara borders on Dashur , it must be noted that when the first pyramids were built at Dashur, in the beginning of the 4th Dynasty, there was a large area of unexploited desert between the two sites. The southern-most royal monument at Saqqara was built by Shepseskaf, the last king of the 4th Dynasty.

Throughout its almost 3.000 year long history, Saqqara expanded to cover an area of 6 kilometers from north to south by 1,5 kilometers from east to west. As such, it is one of the largest and most important areas of the Memphite necropolis.
This 9 square kilometers area is usually divided into two parts: Saqqara-North and Saqqara-South.


SQQARA - NORTH

Saqqara North stretches between the Archaic Tombs just south of Abusir, and the unfinished complex of Sekhemkhet. It can be divided into the following cemeteries :

  • Northern cemetery
  • Teti cemetery
  • Djoser
  • Unas cemeteries : To the north and the south of the causeway of Unas' mortuary complex evolved several cemeteries.
    • The north cemetery consists mainly of late 5th Dynasty tombs, with the tombs of two of Unas' queens. Its tombs were built between and on top of the tombs of Hotepsekhemwi and Ninetjer, which are, perhaps, the oldest royal tombs at Saqqara.
    • The area south of the causeway was developed mainly from the late 18th Dynasty on. It contains such tombs as those of Horemheb and Maya, the most beautiful tombs in Saqqara.
The areas around the unfinished pyramid of Sekhemkhet and the so-called Great Enclosure have not yet been fully explored
SQQARA - SOUTH

At some distance to the South of Sekhemkhet's unfinished complex, three kings built their pyramids. The first was Djedkare of the 5th Dynasty, whose attention may have been drawn by the high plateau that dominates this part of the area. He was also the first king to return to Saqqara after several of his predecessors had preferred Abusir, to the North of Saqqara, for their burials.

The name Saqqara .. Is possibly derived from Sokar, an ancient Egyptian funerary god.

 

MEMPHIS .. Ancient Egyptian capital
Old Kingdom       Middle Kingdom      New Kingdom

The Site of the Ancient Memphis
A Village and Its Cemetery



It was the ancient capital of Aneb-Hetch, the first name of Lower Egypt. Memphis is the Greek translation of Coptic Menfe, City was originally Ineb-Hedj, meaning "The White Wall". Its ruins are located near the town of Helwan, south of Cairo.

According to legend related by Manetho, the city was founded by the pharaoh Menes around 3000 BCE, the King who united Upper and Lower Egypt.. Capital of Egypt during the Old Kingdom, it remained an important city throughout ancient Mediterranean history.


It occupied a strategic position at the mouth of the Nile delta, and was home to feverish activity. Menes founded the city by creating dikes to protect the area from Nile floods. Its principal port, Peru-nefer, harboured a high density of workshops, factories, and warehouses that distributed food and merchandise throughout the ancient kingdom. During its golden age, Memphis thrived as a regional centre for commerce, trade, and religion.

DJOSER PYRAMIDS COMPLEX

Djoser cemetery  To the north and west of the Djoser complex, several tombs were built during the 3rd Dynasty and later. Among these tombs, the mastaba of Ptahhotep of the 5th Dynasty is the most famous.
To the west of this cemetery, a gallery of tombs for the sacred bulls of Apis, and known today by its Greek name Serapeu,  was constructed from the 19th Dynasty on. It would continue to be used until well into the Roman Period.

The Step pyramid complex is comprised of a series of sections creating the complex, much like later pyramids, with several exterior outlets as dedication to the gods. The Djoser complex or the step pyramid complex .
There are various theories regarding the method and stages of construction and also regarding the function of the many smaller buildings throughout the complex, the complex reflects a true transition in ancient Egyptian development, in terms of aesthetics, architecture, as well as politics.

The complex presents almost a perfect merger between the old and the new of the ancients; is apparent in the various elements of decoration and construction. The complex includes the main step pyramid, the first of its kind, The significance of these features is reflected in later buildings which were used as symbols in the hieroglyphic sign-list of sacred constructions .
Sakkara is also the site of many tombs from the 1st and 2nd Dynasties. Most are made out of mud bricks, but some tombs are made of limestone, decorated with daily life scenes.

Who visit Sakkara Also visit

Sakkara still exists and can be seen
 The site is open to the public as an open-air museum


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