Abu-Sir, Memphis, Dahshur and Maydum"
Abu-Sir, Memphis, Dahshur and Maydum"
Abu-Sir, Memphis, Dahshur and Maydum"
Dahshur
Although the reason is not known, Senferu, founder of the fourth dyansty and father of Khufu, again moved the royal necropolis from Saqqara to Dahshur where he built two pyramids, one known as the "Bent Pyramid" or "rhomboid" and the other as the "Red Pyramid".
The "Bent Pyramid" owes its name to the fact that half way up,
the walls change dramatically from one angle of incline "54d30"
to another "43d". The Pyramid also has two entrance, one on the
north side and one on the west, leading to two chambers
covered by a corbelled roof.
It has been possible to
attribute the second
pyramid to Sneferu from
some stone facing where his
name was found written in
red ink. Its name derives
from the warm color of the
stone at sunset.
This is the first monument to have the perfect classical, Pyramid
form. Sneferu also had another pyramid built at Maydum, known
as the "false pyramid" and was thus the only sovereign to
possess three altogether.
Abu-Sir
A small village in the Nile Valley, Abu-sir is a site of great historic
and architectural importance, as an Egyptian necropolis of the
fifth dynasty was located here.
The site is of particular note as it was chosen for royal burials
although not all the pyramids of this dynasty were built at Abu-sir,
two are to be found in nearby Saqqara, slightly further south "the
pyramids of Unas and Userkaf".
However, numerous pyramids made in local stone are found
here and their appearance, less grandiose compared to the usual
monumental structures, could be an indication of a period of
economic crisis for Egypt, or even of a difficult moment for the
power of the royal dynasties , coinciding with the time of their
construction.
The pyramids of various sovereigns can be seen at Abu-ser. such
as those of Sahrea "with subsidiary pyramids", Nyuserre "with a
subsidiary pyramid and two queens pyramids" Neferikara "the
most impressive which, with the other two, forms the upper
group of monuments dominating the archaeological site, and
visible even from quite a distance ", Neferikara and queen
Khentkawes II, wife of Neferikara.
Also quite interesting is the only mastaba here, beloging to
Ptahshepses a high-ranking official during the reign of Sahura.
Most of the papyri attributed to the Old Kingdom come from this
site and provide great insight into life and economy at the time
of the fifth dynasty.
About a kilometer from Abu-seris Abu-Ghurab where there are
remains of several sun-temple, also dated to the fifth dynasty
whose members were devotees of the deities connected with
the cult of the sun, such as Ra and Aten.
Memphis
Very little remains today of the ancient capital of Menufer,
called Memphis by the Greeks, the city where Phoenicians,
Judeans, Armenians, Greeks, Libyans and Sudanese each had
their quarter which extended over fifteen kilometers between
Giza and Saqqara, with the citadel of the "white walls" at its
center, perhaps begun by the great, architect Imhotep and
with a wealth of temples and sanctuaries dedicated to all the
gods of the ancient world.
Right, from above the
alabaster sphinx of Amun Ofis II, 4.5 meters high and 8
meters
long that once flanked the
entrance to the temple of
Ptah, is one of the largest
in existence made from a
single block, the imposing
colossus of Ramesses II,
one of the gigantic 13 meter high statues that originally
stood in front
of the pylons of the temple of
Ptah.
The decline began with the creation of Alexandria and by the
fourth century AD it was already a mass of ruins. With the rise of
Cairo the few temples left standing because they had been used
as Christian churches, were demolished and the entire area
become a building site for the new city.
Today nothing is left but a few ruins that came to light in the
excavations that began in the 19th century. The most important
are those of the famous temple of Ptah, where the kings were
crowned, and a chapel of Seti I, both located near the present
village of Village of Saqqara.
Maydum
Almost on a level with Elfayyum, towards the Nile stands the false
pyramid, another highly original work attributed so Senferu, the
first king of the 4th dynasty. As it stands today the structure is in
the form of a high step from which two steps rise.
its present aspect might lead one to believe that it was a solar
temple, but the great quantity of debris around the base reveals
that it looked quite different originally.
Other steps must have jutted out from the four sides of the
present base, so that the entire structure was in the form of a
sharply pointed eight-step pyramid.
The summit may have been somewhat like the sun temples of
Abu-Ghurab, buitl a hundred years later, with a third obelisk
emerging from the tru ncated pyramid.
It is also thought that an outer casing had been planned to turn
it into a true flat sided pyramid but that work had come to a halt
shortly after beginning.
The name of Maydum is also associated with quite a different
item, the "Maydum geese" representing one of the oldest wall
paintings of ancient Egypt still existing.
The painting is tempera on plaster, 1.73 meters in length and
dates from about 2700 BC. Originally it decorated the tomb of
"Itat" at Maydum and was without doubt part of a larger
composition of which it is easy to imagine the decorative detail
and natural liveliness.
This extremely stylized piece is now housed in the Egyptian
Museum in Cairo. The colors are solid without any shading, the
animals are quite symmetrical and are drawn with a sharp
profile.
The image is therefore abstract but still the attention to detail,
the sensitivity to use of color and a clear concern with rality and
nature are highly evident.
