Edfu-South Pyramid

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Edfu-South Pyramid
Data
place Edfu
builder Huni  ?
construction time 3rd dynasty  ?
Type Step pyramid
Building material Sandstone
Base dimension 18.30 m - 18.80 m
Height (originally) 10.46 m - 12.55 m
Height (today) 4.90 m
stages 3
Cult pyramid No

The pyramid of Edfu-Süd belongs together with the pyramids in Elephantine , El-Kula , Ombos , Saujet el-Meitin , Seila and Sinki to a group of a total of seven very similar small step pyramids , all of which were erected far away from the great centers of Egypt and beyond which is very little known. It is located about five kilometers south of Edfu near the village of Naga el-Ghoneimeya. It was only identified as a pyramid in 1979, when the German archaeologists Günter Dreyer and Werner Kaiser carried out a survey following a tip from the inspector of Edfu . Further examinations and extensive surveys have been carried out by the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago since 2010 .

Data

According to Dreyer and Kaiser, the pyramid has a side length of 35 to 36 cubits , which corresponds to about 18.30 to 18.80 meters. Its height is still 4.90 meters today. It consists of a core structure about 8.30 meters on a side, around which two shells, each four cubits thick, are arranged. Dreyer and Kaiser assume that the pyramid once had three steps. The angle of repose could not be determined exactly, it should be between 10 ° and 14 °. The pyramid is oriented approximately to the north, but, like the other pyramids mentioned above, should primarily be oriented towards the course of the Nile . The building material used was gray-blue-reddish sandstone of local origin. The individual blocks are roughly hewn and have an average thickness of 30 cm, the largest specimens measure 60 by 80 cm. A mixture of clay and sand was used as the mortar .

Construction and function

The builder and function of the pyramid are unknown. Dreyer and Kaiser consider them, as well as the other pyramids mentioned above, to be a coherent building project by Pharaoh Huni , the last ruler of the 3rd dynasty. Andrzej Ćwiek sees this in a similar way, but suspects Huni's successor Sneferu (around 2670–2620 BC), the founder of the 4th dynasty , as the builder . Speculations about the function of the pyramids range from a representation of the king to a representation of the original hill or a symbol of the political and religious unity of the country to cenotaphs of the royal wives.

literature

  • Jan Bock: The small step pyramids of the early Old Kingdom. In: Sokar. No. 12 (1/2006), pp. 20-29.
  • Andrzej Ćwiek: Date and Function of the so-called Minor Step Pyramids . In: Göttinger Miszellen Vol. 162, Göttingen 1998, pp. 39-52 ( online ).
  • Günter Dreyer and Werner Kaiser: To the small step pyramids of Upper and Central Egypt. In: Communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department. Volume 36, 1980, p. 45.
  • Mark Lehner : The Secret of the Pyramids in Egypt. Orbis, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-572-01039-X , p. 96.
  • Gregory Marouard, Hratch Papazian: The Edfu Pyramid Project. Recent Investigation at the Last Provincial Step Pyramid. In: The Oriental Institute News & Notes. No. 213, 2012, pp. 3–9 ( PDF; 2.3 MB ).
  • Ali Radwan: The step pyramids . In: Zahi Hawass (ed.): The treasures of the pyramids. Weltbild, Augsburg 2004, ISBN 3-8289-0809-8 , p. 111.
  • Miroslav Verner : The pyramids (= rororo non-fiction book. Volume 60890). Rowohlt, Reinbek bei Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-499-60890-1 , p. 199.

Coordinates: 24 ° 56 ′ 37 ″  N , 32 ° 50 ′ 31 ″  E