Note edit
- (Grey is cited, Purple are direct quotes, Orange needs citations, Green are my comments)
Rediscovery? / Location and excavation? / Investigation? edit
Initial attempts by Europeans to enter Djoser's pyramid were made in the Seventeenth century, but it remained uninvestigated until Napoleon's Egyptian campaign at the start of the Nineteenth century.[1] In 1821, Johann Heinrich Freiherr von Minutoli, a general in the Prussian army, uncovered an access tunnel leading under the pyramid from the north. Later, in 1837, John Shae Perring discovered underground galleries beneath the pyramid and around 30 mummies from a later period – perhaps the Late Period of Egypt was meant? –. Soon after, Karl Richard Lepsius's Prussian expedition also visited. Beginning in the 1920s, the most significant archaeological efforts were undertaken at the complex, initially by Cecil Mallaby Firth, but soon joined by Jean-Philippe Lauer, to whom this mission became a lifelong work. It is to Lauer, says Miroslav Verner, that Egpytology "owes primarily ... its current knowledge".[2]
Antecedents edit
According to the archaeologist Mark Lehner, several aspects of Djoser's pyramid complex can be hypothetically traced to a variety of preceding mastaba constructions. North of mastaba 3357, presumed to belong to Hor-Aha, are a set of model buildings and two terraces extending up to walls lining a boat pit, which appears to simulate a docking station for the transfer of storage goods. These present a possible precursor to the mortuary temple, like the one found on the north side of Djoser's step pyramid. Mastaba 3505, probably belong to Merka or less-likely Qa'a, has a north chapel that is similar to the one in Djoser's complex. Mastaba 2185 contains the earliest known instance of gabled stone beams over the burial chamber, a feature which appears regularly in pyramid complexes. Mastabas 3036 and 3035, belong to officials Ankhka and Hemaka, have a stepped entrance corridor, containing the first instance of a portcullis, running east to the burial chamber. The portcullis became a standard security feature – for combating stone thieves –
in Old Kingdom substructures. Something or other about a vaulted tumulus in mastaba 3507, the Hierakonpolis temple and Djoser's step pyramid. Honestly I don't know what this is about, yet. The closest antecedent to the Djoser's Step Pyramid complex; however, is mastaba 3038 dating to the reign of Adjib. It had a substructure laid in a 4 m (13 ft; 7.6 cu) pit with mudbrick walls rising 6 m (20 ft; 11 cu) high. Three of its sides were built out into eight steps angled at 49°, which would have made for a oblong step pyramid had not the fourth wall been left uncovered. Finally, a niched enclosure wall was built around the stepped mastaba and filled with sand, burying it.[3]
Mortuary complex edit
Layout edit
Djoser's mortuary complex encompasses the step pyramid, a colonnaded entrance court, south tomb, south court, "T" temple, Sed festival complex, south and north pavilions, mortuary temple, and west mounds.[4] – there's also the enclosure wall and great trench to consider, at least.
Djoser's complex represents an evolution in monumental architecture. It was the advent of the pyramidal form of the royal tomb, and of the mass use of limestone in construction,[1] replacing mudbrick, which was the staple building material prior.[5] The shift to limestone required builders to develop new work methods, but the motifs incorporated into earlier architecture, which was made of lighter materials, retained a strong influence, and were instead bludgeoned to conform.[2] The limestone walls of the enclosure, for example, were adorned with hand-carved niches – 1,680 of them, each 9 m (30 ft; 17 cu) tall – a monumental ask.[5] This element was made from wooden planks, and mats hung by ropes and poles in earlier constructions.[2] Lehner and Verner consider that this reflects a new mentality Egypt, one characterised by the newfound political stability in the unification of the crowns and establishment of the Old Kingdom of Egypt.[2][5]
Later visitors of the Nineteenth Dynasty referred to Djoser as "the opener of stone", which Miroslav Verner indicates may be interpreted to mean "inventor of stone architecture".[2]
Great trench edit
Beyond the enclosure wall, a north-south oriented, rectangular trench surrounds the entire complex. At 750 m (2,460 ft; 1,430 cu) long and 40 m (130 ft; 76 cu) wide the trench is the largest structure of its kind in the Memphis necropolis. In a fashion, it resembles the hieroglyph h which represents the "ground plan for a house". Its walls were decorated with niches, which Nabil Swelim proposed held the spirits of members of the king's court, there to serve the king in his afterlife. This suggestion stems from the apparent practice of ritual sacrifice and burial of servants in subsidiary tombs near the royal tombs at Abydos, but evidence supporting such a practice at Djoser's complex is lacking. Instead, the trench appears to have functioned as a safeguard, its multiple passages making access to the enclosure wall more difficult, though it probably had a single entrance built near its south-east corner. Verner also takes into consideration the mass of stone that must have been excavated from the trench, which has not been found nearby, positing that the stone may have been used in the construction of the pyramid complex. Thus relegating any protective or religious purpose it had to a secondary function. The Fifth Dynasty king Userkaf, built his pyramid complex near the north-east corner of the trench.[6]
Enclosure wall edit
The pyramid complex is enclosed by a 1,645 m (5,397 ft; 3,139 cu) long, 10.5 m (34 ft; 20.0 cu) high limestone perimeter/enclosure wall, containing 15 ha (37 acres) of land.[5] Its outer wall is decorated with the 1,680 hand-carved niches, alongside fifteen recessed doorways distributed along its length – fourteen are false doors; one, found in the east façade, is the true entrance.[7]
This design has been interpreted by Egyptologists in a variety of plausible ways. It may be an imitation of a wood-panelled structure covered by mats, or be a borrowed motif from Mesopotamia. Niches are a traditional space to place offerings to the deceased, indicating another potential function. Lauer considered the wall to be a model of Inbu-Hedj, the royal residence, though this doesn't fit with the multiplicity of entrances, which Hermann Kees instead associates with the conducting of the Sed festival. However interpreted, the motif was retained by Egyptians and reused in later monuments such as Senusret III's monument at Dahshur where it appears in the perimeter wall and on his sarcophagus..[7]
Entrance colonnade edit
Refer to Verner, 2001d, pp=112–114
Step Pyramid edit
The [crowning/dominating] [feature/achievement] of Djoser's complex is the Step Pyramid, its six steps rising above the plateau to a height of 62.5 m (205 ft; 119.3 cu).[8] This element of the monument [underwent/went through] a series developmental stages culminating [in its pyramid form/in its final form].[9] These stages have been traditionally labelled: M1, M2, M3, P1, P1', and P2.[5]
At the onset, in its earliest stages (M1 to M3), the structure adopted the form of a mastaba.[9] It was first built with a base length of 63 m (207 ft; 120 cu) square (M1) and a height of 8.4 m (28 ft; 16.0 cu), gradually expanded on all sides to 71.5 m (235 ft; 136.5 cu) (M2),[8] and then further extended on its east side[9] to a length of 79.5 m (261 ft; 151.7 cu). By stage M3, the mastaba had already adopted a stepped form, which was further expanded upon to create the step pyramid.[9] In the first phase (P1), the mastaba was built into a four-stepped pyramid,[9] with a base length of and a height of?, and then further developed into a six stepped pyramid (P2),[9] with a final base length of 121 m (397 ft; 231 cu) by 109 m (358 ft; 208 cu) and a height of 62.5 m (205 ft; 119.3 cu)[10] oriented on the east-west axis.[9]
refer to Verner, 2001d, pp=114–122 I would like to get all the dimensions for each of the individual phases, though this may mean having to get a hold of Lauer's work (in French), which may be no easy feat. I also need something about the P1' phase, else it's just an empty mention.
| Mastaba M1 | Mastaba M2 | Mastaba M3 | Pyramid P1 | Pyramid P1' | Pyramid P2 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| Base dimensions | 63 m (207 ft; 120 cu) | 71.5 m (235 ft; 136 cu) | 71.5 m (235 ft; 136 cu) 79.6 m (261 ft; 152 cu) |
77 m (253 ft; 147 cu) 85.3 m (280 ft; 163 cu) |
109 m (358 ft; 208 cu) 121 m (397 ft; 231 cu) | |
| Height | 8 m (26 ft; 15 cu) | 8 m (26 ft; 15 cu) | 42 m (138 ft; 80 cu) | 62.5 m (205 ft; 119 cu) | ||
| Masonry blocks | 0.3 m (0.98 ft) | 0.3 m (0.98 ft) | 0.3 m (0.98 ft) | 0.38 m (1.2 ft) | 0.5 m (1.6 ft) | 0.52 m (1.7 ft) |
| Volume | 330,400 m3 (432,100 cu yd) | |||||
| Method of construction | Horizontal beds | Horizontal beds | Horizontal beds | Inclined layers | Inclined layers | Inclined layers |
| Number of steps | – | – | – | 4 | 6 | 6 |
- Lauer (1962) for most data. His conversions are inexact. E.g. he writes 120 coudées or 63 metres. Well, it's 62.82m, but close enough.
- Method of construction and P2 volume taken from Lehner, 2008, p. 84
- Base dimensions of M2 (Verner labels this M1, will need to check if that's an error) and P2 taken from Verner, 2001d, p. 461
- ^ a b Verner 2001d, pp. 108–109.
- ^ a b c d e Verner 2001d, p. 109.
- ^ Lehner 2008, p. 80.
- ^ Verner 2001d, p. 108.
- ^ a b c d e Lehner 2008, p. 84.
- ^ Verner 2001d, pp. 110–111.
- ^ a b Verner 2001d, p. 112.
- ^ a b Verner 2001d, p. 114 & 461. Cite error: The named reference "FOOTNOTEVerner2001d114 & 461" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b c d e f g Verner 2001d, p. 114.
- ^ Verner 2001d, p. 461.
- ^ Lauer 1962, pp. 69–74.