Pyramid of Elephantine

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Pyramid of Elephantine
Data
place Elephantine
builder Huni  ?
construction time 3rd dynasty  ?
Type Step pyramid
Building material Rose granite
Base dimension 18.46 m
Height (originally) 10.46 m - 12.55 m
Height (today) 5.10 m
Cult pyramid No

The pyramid of Elephantine belongs together with the pyramids in Edfu-Süd , 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 built far away from the great centers of Egypt and above which is very little known. It is located in the north-west part of the Old Kingdom town in the south of the Nile island Elephantine . The building was discovered as early as 1907, but it was only possible to identify it as a pyramid after further excavations by the German Archaeological Institute in 1978/79.

Data

The pyramid originally had three steps and today still reaches a height of 5.10 meters; the original height was either 20 or 24 cubits (between 10.46 and 12.55 meters). To compensate for the irregular ground, it was erected on a platform with a side length of 23.70 meters. The side length of the actual pyramid is 18.46 meters. The orientation of the structure to the north deviates by about 17 ° to the northwest. This deviation coincides with the course of the island's western bank of the Nile. The pyramid consists of a core structure, which is surrounded by two shells, each four cubits thick. Rose granite of local origin was used as building material. The substructure consists of roughly hewn blocks that are grouted with a mixture of Nile mud and sand. Uncut granite blanks were used for the actual pyramid. A particularly hard clay mortar served as a binding agent. There is no chamber system. On the north side of the building there is a cut that reaches almost to the middle, which was created in 1909 by French excavators under the direction of Henri Gauthier .

Previous misinterpretations

When it was discovered in 1907, the remains of the pyramid were initially mistaken for part of the city wall. This interpretation was apparently confirmed by the discovery of a granite cone near the pyramid, which bears an inscription by Pharaoh Huni and describes him as the founder of a fortress (according to recent reading, the founder of a palace). Another interpretation considered the building to be the remains of a supposed YHWH temple. Herbert Ricke saw it as the substructure for a royal residential pavilion. It was not until Günter Dreyer's excavations in 1978/79 that it was possible to clearly show that it was a pyramid.

Edification and function

The builder and function of the pyramid are unknown. Günter Dreyer and Werner Kaiser consider them, as well as the other pyramids mentioned above, to be a coherent building project by Huni, the last ruler of the 3rd dynasty. However, this assumption is based only on the assumption that the granite cone mentioned above is directly related to the pyramid of Elephantine. The Polish Egyptologist Andrzej Ćwiek has expressed doubts about this, as the text on the cone refers to a palace and not a pyramid. If the cone was ever part of the pyramid, then in his opinion it would only have been reused as a building material. Discoveries led from Seila Ćwiek, Hunis successor Sneferu (around 2670 to 2620 v. Chr.), The founder of the 4th Dynasty , regarded as the builder of all pyramids above seven. Speculations about the function of these buildings range from a representative site 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: City and Temple of Elephantine. Eighth excavation report. In: Communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department. No. 36, von Zabern, Mainz 1980, pp. 276-280.
  • Günter Dreyer, Werner Kaiser: To the small step pyramids of Upper and Middle Egypt. In: Communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department. No. 36, von Zabern, Mainz 1980, p. 43f.
  • Mark Lehner : The Secret of the Pyramids in Egypt. Orbis, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-572-01039-X , p. 96.
  • Ali Radwan: The step pyramids. In: Zahi Hawass (ed.): The treasures of the pyramids. Weltbild, Augsburg 2004, ISBN 3-8289-0809-8 , p. 111.
  • Stephan Johannes Seidlmayer: The state system of the 3rd dynasty in the northwest town of Elephantine. Archaeological and historical problems. In: Manfred Bietak (Ed.): House and Palace in Ancient Egypt. Publishing house of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 1996, ISBN 3-7001-2209-8 , pp. 195-214.
  • Miroslav Verner : The pyramids (= rororo non-fiction book. Volume 60890). Rowohlt, Reinbek bei Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-499-60890-1 , pp. 199f.

Coordinates: 24 ° 5 ′ 8 ″  N , 32 ° 53 ′ 7 ″  E