Pyramid of Seila In Fayoum, Egypt | King Sneferu Pyramid – Fourth Dynasty of Egypt. Discover the historical facts and secrets of the most important building Pyramids King Sneferu Famous The Egyptian Pharaohs kings, what is the architectural design of the pyramid, the design of the mastaba, theories of building secondary pyramids towards the primary pyramid, and more.
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Facts Pyramid of Seila
- The first pyramids were built by King Sneferu, founder of the Fourth Pharaonic Egyptian Dynasty.
- The pyramid was built of limestone and used clay and sand as a bonding material for the stones.
- The height of the pyramid is now 7 meters after the climate changes that affected it. The original height was 92 meters and it consisted of 7 terraces.
- One of the sides of the pyramid is 25 meters long, and the length of the sides of the base of the pyramid reaches 144 m.
- It does not contain the king’s burial chamber.
- No temple or funerary buildings were built next to the pyramid as in Funerary beliefs in ancient Egypt.
- A group of stone blocks from the basalt reserve near the Nile River was discovered in the nineteenth century by Dr. Ludwig Burkhart, indicating the presence of statues near the pyramid.
- Stone panels were discovered with inscriptions and texts in The ancient Egyptian Pharaonic language proving that the Pyramid of Seila was built in the era of King Sneferu and not his father, King Huni “Third Dynasty of Egypt“, as it was built to sanctify the religious beliefs of the idea of the eternal hill among the ancient Egyptians as in The legends of creation in the Pharaonic civilization.
- Pyramid of Seila was built on a hill. From a distance, the design and external shape of the pyramid appear to be a large terrace. Close to it, you find that it is a terraced pyramid on top of a small plateau or hill.
- The pyramid was subjected to many demolition and crushing operations after the death of the king to obtain the outer covering for the pyramid and a group of stones to build buildings and Mortuary Temples, which led to it being exposed to corrosion and parts of it collapsing.
- It is noteworthy that the English archaeologist, Dr. John Pring, was the first to study and analyze the construction of the Pyramid of Sela and write scientific reports and engineering drawings about it in 1837 AD.
- A group of graffiti was discovered indicating that the pyramid was built during the era of King Senefru.
- The remains of a wooden coffin were discovered in a burial well inside the Pyramid of Seila.
- Two stone slabs were discovered inside the funerary cabin.
- A coffin was discovered containing the skeleton of Queen Meresankh, wife of King Sneferu. The skeleton was in a twisted knees position with the head facing north and the face looking east toward sunrise.
- A group of pottery pieces were discovered in the southern cemetery, containing inscriptions of the kings of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt.
- Graffiti dating back to the era of The New Kingdom of Egypt was discovered, bearing inscriptions and texts in the ancient Egyptian language of religious texts and the prayers of Queen Mersi Ankh.
Architectural design of the Pyramid of Seila:
The entrance to the pyramid rises 30 meters from the surface of the earth and is located in the northern direction, then a lower corridor 58 meters long, then a horizontal corridor 8 meters long, then an upward corridor that reaches the burial chamber of King Senefru Walt, located in the middle and heart of the Pyramid of Seila.
The ceiling of the royal burial chamber was built vaulted.
King Senefru was interested in building a ritual funerary group around the pyramid. He built a funerary temple close to the port in the valley, but it was completely demolished and no trace remained of it as a result of erosion and climate factors throughout history.
A funerary chamber was built on the eastern side of the pyramid, then a large wall was built of mud brick.
King Sneferu built a small pyramid and a royal tomb in the form of the architectural design of the mastaba.
To the northeast there is a stone terrace containing a coffin made of red granite. A skeleton was discovered inside it, wrapped in linen.
The owner of the tomb has not yet been determined, despite speculation that it belongs to one of the sons of King Senefru or King Huni. There are theories that indicate that it belongs to the mummy of another King Huni. Kings of the Third Pharaonic Dynasty of Egypt.
Mastaba design:
Corridors were created under the mastaba containing limestone stone blocks, and an inscription was drawn on the walls depicting the king while practicing Religious rituals in the Pharaonic, as in Festivals in Ancient Egypt “Sed Festival”.
The burial chamber was built inside the mastaba, square in shape and small in size, with a roof covered with limestone veins 4 meters long, and it contains only the royal coffin with the mummy inside it.
Theories of building secondary pyramids towards Pyramid of Seila:
- He took the idea of building a pyramid and a mastaba in the southern direction of the Pyramid of Seila from his own religious beliefs and that of King Djoser at Saqqara.
- The king’s entrails, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, and so on, were preserved inside canopic vessels and kept inside the secondary pyramid after the royal Mummification process was completed.
- It was used to bury the king’s royal belongings of the crown and royal insignia for use again after his death “Funerary Equipment“.
- There is a theory that says that it was intended for the burial of the qarin, “the person responsible for accepting the offerings presented to the king.”
- One of the theories is that it was intended for King Sneferu to change his clothes during the celebration of the Lord’s Day in front of the general public, marking the 30th year of his rule, and that he accomplished all the tasks assigned to him as king, to then become a religious symbol or god for the Egyptians. “He also had beliefs in the ancient Egyptian religion of the Pharaohs.”
