Lepsius XXV pyramid
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 Remains of Lepsius XXV / 1
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The Lepsius XXV pyramid is a peculiar tomb located in Abusir , which has characteristics of both pyramids and mastabas . It is referred to as the double pyramid by Miroslav Verner .
The heavily damaged structure is located on the pyramid field of Abusir, south of the Lepsius XXIV and Chentkaus II pyramids .
exploration
On his Egypt expedition from 1842 to 1845, the German Egyptologist Karl Richard Lepsius located a small pyramid complex and assigned it the serial number XXV (25) in his list of pyramids .
In his research, Ludwig Borchardt classified the building as a double mastaba 60 years later, but did not examine it further.
Since no more intensive research was carried out for a long time, the building was thought to be a queen pyramid of the 5th Dynasty , similar to the Lepsius XXIV pyramid located directly to the north , although the superficial examination seemed to indicate that the mortuary temple is unusually on the western side found.
A Czech archaeological team led by Miroslav Verner carried out the first intensive investigation of the ruin from 2001 to 2004, during which the unusual character of a “double pyramid” was discovered. Both parts of the structure have slightly rectangular base areas, which are oriented in a north-south direction, and an extremely steep side slope, which excludes a real pyramid shape. A relatively large number of construction workers' inscriptions and markings were found in the masonry. Among other things, the name of the building was discovered, which can be translated as "The two (pyramids) are watchful" .
Dušan Magdolen questions the classification of the building as a double pyramid and points out the typological proximity of the remains to a mastaba.
Eastern grave (Lepsius XXV / 1)
construction
The larger of the two graves had the basic dimensions 27.70 mx 21.53 m and consisted of large blocks of white limestone. The only roughly machined outer surfaces had a slope of 78 °, which suggests that the structure looked more like a mastaba or a truncated pyramid than a real pyramid. The height can no longer be determined.
Substructure
The burial chamber was accessed through a descending passage from the middle of the north side. The chamber itself has the dimensions 4.50 m × 2.70 m and is oriented in a north-south direction. The sarcophagus was in a niche on the western side of the chamber. Although the chamber itself was heavily devastated by grave robbers, remains of a burial have been found. Parts of a female corpse as well as fragments of the associated canopic jars made of limestone and grave goods were found in the rubble of the chamber.
Western grave (Lepsius XXV / 2)
construction
The smaller, western grave had the basic dimensions 21.70 m × 15.70 m and also an incline of 78 °. This part probably also had a mastaba or truncated pyramid-like appearance. In contrast to the eastern grave, it consisted of roughly hewn gray limestone, which, however, has now disappeared due to stone robbery except for a few locations. Apparently this grave was never clad in fine white limestone. The layering of the remains of the remaining masonry shows that the western grave was built as a subsequent construction after the eastern one.
Substructure
The substructure of the western grave has been largely destroyed. Only the upper part of the descending corridor, which also leads down from the middle of the north side, and the foundation of the burial chamber are still preserved. This arrangement is typical of pyramids from this era. In the ruins of the burial chamber, tiny remains of a woman's burial and some objects of burial accessories were found.
Grave complex
The excavations showed that there was no mortuary temple in the complex. The area previously mistaken for one turned out to be the remains of the western grave. However, there was a sacrificial chapel on the eastern side of the eastern tomb. This chapel had an entrance on the southeast corner and led to the only room via a vestibule . Part of the ceiling of the vestibule was preserved, so that the height of the chapel is known to be around 5 m. The chapel was originally clad with fine, white limestone, which was probably undecorated. Almost all of this material fell victim to stone robbers, but the imprints in the ground have been preserved, allowing the structure of the chapel to be reconstructed. In the chapel ruins, fragments of papyrus from a list of offerings and fragments of a woman's statue made of alabaster were found.
Assignment
Since no inscriptions have been found that hand down the names of the owners of the pyramids, the peculiar structure cannot yet be precisely classified despite the intensive research. The assumption that they were built during the reign of Niuserre is reasonable due to the context of the find, especially since Abusir was abandoned as a royal necropolis after Niuserre's death. Possibly the buried are family members of the pharaoh. The adjoining construction of the graves indicates a special proximity of the buried people to one another.
literature
- Jaromír Krejčí: The »twin pyramid« L 25 in Abusir. In: Sokar. No. 8, 2004, pp. 20-22.
- Dušan Magdolen: Lepsius No. XXV: a problem of typology. In: Asian and African Studies. 2008, Vol. 17, No. 2, pp. 205-223. ( Abstract ).
- Miroslav Verner, Jaromír Krejčí: Twin Pyramid Complex "Lepsius no. XXV" in Abusir. In: The World of Ancient Egypt. Essays in honor of Ahmed Abd el-Qader el-sawi. 2006, Supplément aux Annales du Service des Antiquités de l´Egypte 35. Supreme Council of Antiquities, Cairo, ISBN 977-437-015-5 , pp. 159–165.
Web links
- New Archaeological Discoveries in the Abusir Pyramid Field - by Miroslav Verner, Praga ( Memento from January 30, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
- Photo of the Lepsius XXV pyramid
Individual evidence
- ↑ Miroslav Verner: The pyramids. P. 355 ff .: The pyramid "Lepsius No. XXIV".
- ↑ a b c d e f g Miroslav Verner: New Archaeological Discoveries in the Abusir Pyramid Field. ( Memento from January 30, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Dušan Magdolen: Lepsius No. XXV: a problem of typology. In: Asian and African Studies. 2008, Vol. 17, No. 2, pp. 205-223.
Coordinates: 29 ° 53 ′ 35 ″ N , 31 ° 12 ′ 11 ″ E