Saqqara Necropolis
Saqqara, Egypt is 40 kilometers south of Cairo and on the western bank of the Nile. Its name comes from the name of the burial god Sokar. It is where the old cemetery of the city of Memphis was. It is a chain of cemeteries that run along the river from Abu Rowash in the north to Dahshur in the south. All of these cemeteries were part of the ancient metropolis of Memphis, and the whole chain is about 6.2 kilometers long.
The fact that they were used in Egypt from the start of the first dynasty until the time of Christ makes them important. Saqqara is one of the most interesting Egyptian archaeological sites. The oldest buildings there are ancient Egyptian tombs that are 3,000 years old, and the newest are Coptic monasteries.
About Saqqara:
Saqqara is an ancient cemetery in the desert near the Nile. It marks the time when the Egyptians stopped using the mastaba, which was the traditional Egyptian tomb, and started using the pyramid, which is the more famous of the two.
Between the mastaba and the pyramid was a building called a “proto-pyramid.” Its design was changed until the Great Pyramid of Giza was finished. During the Old Kingdom, Memphis, which was in the west, was the capital of Egypt, and the royal cemetery of Sakkara was built there.
The Step Pyramid of Djoser (Zoser) may be in the Funeral Complex of Pharaoh Djoser (Zoser), which was built during the third dynasty of the ancient Egyptian kingdom. It is the oldest known large pyramid in Egypt.
Even though Saqqara was used as a cemetery for officials for a long time, it was eventually left alone and, except for Djoser’s pyramid, buried under sand for thousands of years. Auguste Mariette found the Serapeum in 1851. Since then, there have been constant excavations in Saqqara.
Saqqara step pyramid:
The one in Saqqara is different from other pyramids because it looks more like a set of stairs than a pyramid. After all, this is how the Egyptians pictured it, so Djoser’s spirit could fly to the afterlife and talk to the gods and kings who had died before him. It took a long time for Djoser and his famous architect Imhotep to decide on the step pyramid design for Sakkara.
They started with a square building with one story, but even after adding a little and then a little more, they weren’t happy with it. So they built three more stories on top of it. The building was now four stories tall, but Imhotep and Djoser still wanted something more. In the end, they did what they set out to do and built the beautiful six-story building called the Saqqara step pyramid.
The most Saqqara tombs:
1-Pyramid of Unas:
The Unas Pyramid is the smallest of the Saqqara pyramids, but the writings on its walls were meant to help the pharaoh in the afterlife. In the tombs, Gaston found a number of objects and a story of an unknown origin. Unas was also the first pharaoh to put such writings in his tomb. Together with other writings found in nearby pyramids, these are now called the Pyramid Texts.
Unas made it common to write magic spells on walls, maybe so they would go with the pharaoh when he died or keep away people who shouldn’t be there. But this style caught on quickly among the wealthy, who could pay to be buried in style.
2-Buried Pyramid:
Because Sekhemkhet only ruled for a short time, his pyramid, the Pyramid of Sekhemkhet, is only about 7 meters tall and not finished. Inside the tomb, a sealed, unmarked sarcophagus was found. After Pharaoh Sekhemkhet died, people stopped caring about this pyramid, and the sand eventually buried it. It was called the Buried Pyramid after Egyptologist M. Zakaria Goneim found it in 1950.
The underground tomb of the Pyramid of Sekhemkhet was cut out of a solid rock block. The tomb was closed off by a stone wall that, when found, gave archaeologists hope that they had finally found an unbroken burial site from the Ancient Empire. Inside was a sealed alabaster tomb.
When the sarcophagus was opened, there was nothing inside. This made people sad. The place was never where Sekhemkhet was laid to rest. The study of the Egyptian pyramids already gives us a lot of puzzles to solve, but this one is new.
3-Pyramid of Userkaf:
Userkaf, the first king of Egypt’s Fifth Dynasty, moved to Saqqara and built his pyramid north of the step pyramid enclosure’s western wall. He may have had to dig some of the step pyramid’s shafts in order to get this job. The only way to get to the fifth-dynasty pyramid structures in Saqqara is from the valley level, so a road was built to go up to them.
4-Pyramid of Teti:
As the leader, he has tried to keep his power by bringing back important people from the Unas government. His bodyguards killed him in the end, and he was buried at the royal cemetery in Saqqara. When I talk about the structure’s architecture, I briefly mention that the base of Teti’s pyramid is 78 meters tall and that its whole height is 52 meters.
How to get to Saqqara?
About 30 kilometers from the center of Cairo and 17 kilometers from the center of Giza, this site is best seen after seeing the Pyramids at Giza. There won’t be many taxis in the area, so your best bet is to take a tour or rent a car.
Entrance to Saqqara Egypt:
After paying cash for your admission ticket, you’ll go through a small tunnel to your first stop at Saqqara, which is a square area with columns that used to be broken but are now standing. When you walk in, friendly locals will be waiting to show you around and tell you everything you need to know about the area. Those who are interested should stay with the group for the whole trip and give money as a reward. If not, you should politely refuse his help.
