Archeologists Debate The Purpose Of 4,600-Year-Old 'Provincial' Pyramids That Predate Giza
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At a symposium held by the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities in Toronto,Ontario, on January 11th, archeologists revealed the uncovering of yet another provincial pyramid near the ancient settlement of Edfu in Southern Egypt. The 4,600-year-old structure, built decades before the Great Pyramid of Giza, is the seventh of its kind discovered scattered near major ancient settlements, throughout central and southern Egypt.
While the existence of the Edfu pyramid had been known for some time, it was not until 2010 that a team of archeologists led by Gregory Marouard, a research associate at the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute, began the excavation process. Found under a thick layer of sand, modern waste and blocks that had fallen from the pyramid itself, it measured only 16-feet tall - A far cry from the 43-feet it once proudly stood at. In fact, it looked so diminutive that most locals had believed the hump to be the tomb of an ancient sheikh.
Researchers believe the provincial pyramids were built by either Pharaoh Hui who reigned from 2635-2610 B.C. or his son and successor, Pharaoh Snefru who ruled from 2610-2590 B.C. Sometimes referred to as step pyramids because of the way they have been constructed to resemble three steps, the Edfu pyramid once measured 60 X 61 feet or almost identical to the six found prior to this. This has led researchers to conclude that all seven were built at the same time and for the same purpose. The only mystery? What was the purpose of these sandstone and clay mortar structures?
That's because unlike the other pyramids, which all lie on the West Bank of the River Nile, these do not have an internal chamber and were therefore not meant to be used as burial grounds for pharaohs. The researchers did find remains of babies and children buried at the foot of the pyramid as well as inscriptions and burial dates related to them, etched on the side walls of the pyramid However, analysis showed that those occurred long after the structures were built.
The remains of an installation where food offerings could be made has led researchers to speculate that the pyramids may have just been built as symbolic monuments to affirm the power of the pharaohs in the southern provinces.
While they may never know for sure, the one thing they can confirm, is that all the provincial pyramids were abandoned less than 50 years after they were constructed, when Khufu, the pharaoh responsible for constructing the Great Pyramid of Giza came to power in 2590. They believe that it could be because the pharaoh was secure of his hold over Southern Egypt and also because he probably needed every resource available, to build the bigger pyramids!
Resources: news.yahoo.com,digitaljournal.com,news.discovery.com
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119 Comments
- kaylin about 10 yearsIt was built decades of before the Great Pyramid of Giza. It was the 7 of this kind kind discovered scattered . My opinion on this article is that it provides a bunch of important facts about this place.
- Mikayla C. about 10 yearsA fact i learned was that researchers found remains of babies and children. I also learned that the 4,600 year old structure was built decades before Great Pyramid of Giza. Reading this makes me really enjoy reading about Egyptian things.
- Jacob F.about 10 yearsI learned that it was built then abandened less than 50 years after constucten. Two facts learned was that the it was made out of clay and sandstone, and the other thing learned was that it mesered 60x61 feet.
- Kody H.about 10 yearsI did not know that it was abandon fore fifty years.That is a long time
- Kayla Pabout 10 yearsThe 4600 year old pramid / structure was built decades before the great pyramid of Giza. My opinion was that i realy liked the article because I always loved Egyp. The researchers found remains of babies and children.
- Norma L.about 10 yearsWhat i learned from reading this article was that the pyramids were abandoned less than 50 after they were constructed.Another thing i didn't know is that the Edfu is a 4,600 year old structure.
- coltin scottabout 10 yearsin Toronto Ontario archaeologist recently discovered a new pyramid. this pyramid could possibly store the tomb of a ancient sheikh. This artical was very interesting and it makes me wonder if there is more pyramids.
- MWabout 10 yearsIn this article i learned that, "Researchers believe the provincial pyramids were built by either Pharaoh Hui who reigned from 2635-2610 B.C." Pharaoh Snefru who ruled from 2610-2590 B.C. I think that this is a very educational for students that want to learn about Egypt
- Joshua F.about 10 yearsthe edfu pyramid I think was pretty cool. It was also built before the great pyramid of Giza.
- AMabout 10 yearsin this article i learned that the pyramid only measured 16-feet tall. the pyramid was built decades before the Great Pyramid of Giza. I think that this pyramid was built with strong material.
