A Day of Firsts

Last Friday 1st of November was our first excursion out of Cairo, our first camel ride (and donkey ride for Tony) and our first entry into the depths of the pyramids. Memo picked us up at 8.15am and after collecting a hungover friend we headed south to Sakkara & Dahshur. The Ring Road was pretty clear of traffic so it didn't take long to clear the city. Sakkara is known for its few million date palms and vast farmlands. It has a canal tributary from the Nile running through the middle and the irrigation systems are probably the same as they've used for the past few thousand years, except for the odd diesel pump. It's distinct greenness was a stiff contrast to the desert right at its border.
First stop was Zoser's funerary complex built about 5000 years ago. Except for the Step Pyramid the rest of the complex was only exposed in 1924 and they have been restoring it ever since. The colonnaded corridor is the entrance to the complex and has been partially restored. The wall which surrounded the complex was originally 1645m long. Once through the corridor we entered a huge courtyard. On the opposite side of the courtyard from the pyramid are two deep wells. One was where the workers were entombed and the other was for the pharaoh's canopic jars. There was also a temple on the site and other smaller pyramids that looked like piles of rubble. Inside one of them, the pyramid of Unas, are the oldest known hieroglyphs.
The camels and donkeys were a real highlight of the trip. 10LE each was really cheap for such an experience! Tony looked even more like a local once they plonked the headgear on him :-) Whoever it was that described camels as ships of the desert was dead right - the smooth rocking motion made for a comfortable ride unlike the donkey's bouncing trot. I wish I'd videoed Tony on the donkey.

Entering the colonnaded corridor

The South Courtyard and Step Pyramid

Camel for the sheik.

Rather camels than horses

Tony sits better on a donkey than me

The well which contained the canopic jars



The step pyramid and temple



From Zoser's Funerary Complex we headed down the road to Teti's pyramid and the mastaba (tomb) of his chief justice Kagemni, built around 2300 BC. The pyramid was literally a pile of rubble but once we had clambered down into it, this was our first entry into a pyramid, it was like going back in time. The stone walls were made of grey granite and the two chambers within were covered in hieroglyphic spells. Unfortunately cameras were off limits for both the pyramid and the mastaba which housed beautiful bas reliefs of life in Egypt. There was even colour on the figures and animals in the reliefs which made them even more special.

Teti's pyramid

Next stop before leaving Sakkara was a quick visit to the museum built in honour of Imhotep, the great architect of the Step Pyramid. Filled with artefacts from throughout the Sakkara area it was well worth the visit.
 

Dahshur was another 20 minutes south of Sakkara and the Red Pyramid was our biggest challenge of the whole trip. The pyramid was built by Sneferu, father of Cheops and founder of the 4th dynasty. He had built the Bent Pyramid first then followed up with the Red Pyramid once he'd figured out what went wrong with the Bent Pyramid's angles. The Bent Pyramid is off limits so we got as close as we could for photo opportunities.

The Red Pyramid was a different story. The 125 steps up to the entrance didn't look too bad until we had to actually climb them. The guide who sat at the entrance let us rest for a few minutes before we started the climb down the 63 metre tunnel into the pyramid. No one told me there would be mice so when one came charging past me I couldn't help but squeal, to the delight of everyone else. After a few breathers we finally got to the bottom of the tunnel and entered one of the 3 chambers. The ceilings must have been 3 storeys high and the size of the stonework was incredible. The only complaint was the disgusting smell of ammonia which is apparently caused by bats according to the guide. Tony was delegated to climb the wooden stairs into the actual chamber where the sarcophagus would have been. The smell was even worse up there! After Tony made his way back to us we decided we'd had enough of the smell (and lack of oxygen) and headed back to the tunnel. 63 metres back up to the opening was hard slog so we were pleased to get out into the open air again. It always amazes me how the workers 5000 years ago were able to build the pyramids and work in such confined spaces.

   

The Bent Pyramid



Memo pointing out the entrance to the Red Pyramid

Top of the tunnel

Maybe halfway down



The red Pyramid, the first true pyramid. Photo taken from the Bent Pyramid



Stopped by the canal to pick up some fruit on the way home and look what we saw

Both Tony and I agree that seeing the pyramids at Giza before this excursion was the best way to understand the development of these wonders. The sphinx and the 3 pyramids were built well after those at Sakkara and Dahshur and yet they used the same design as the Red Pyramid to build them. Incredible!