Pyramid of Khendjer
Encyclopedia
The Pyramid of Khendjer was built for the burial of Pharaoh
Khendjer
, who ruled Egypt
during the 13th Dynasty
.
and the pyramid of Senusret III
in South Saqqara
, it was discovered by Gustave Jequier in 1929. The pyramid currently lies in ruins, due in part to the damaging excavations done by Jequier, with its remains only rising one meter above the desert sand.
The pyramid complex was enclosed by inner and outer walls. The inner wall was made of limestone
, and was created to replace an earlier wavy wall. The outer wall was made of mudbrick
.
The mortuary temple
was located on the east side of the complex. It crosses over both the inner and outer walls. This allowed for the outer section of the temple to be placed outside the inner wall, with the inner sanctuary on the inside of the inner wall. Very little remains of the temple, except for bits of relief
s and columns. A chapel is located at the north side of the complex and was built out to the inner wall and against the face of the pyramid. The chapel was raised on a platform and could be reached by two stairways. In its north wall was a false door. The location of the door was unusual because the closest wall to the pyramid was the south wall.
The pyramid stood at about 37.35 meters in height, but now stands only one meter tall, due to the disintegration of its mudbrick core. The pyramid once was cased in limestone, but it was quarried by stone robbers, which left the core unprotected. A fragmented pyramidion
was discovered on the east side of the complex and now has been restored. On one side of the pyramidion the cartouche
of King Userkare is inscribed. This name is believed by Egyptologists
to be the throne name of Khendjer.
The Pyramid of Khendjer included a monolithic quartzite burial chamber. The weight of this chamber was estimated at 150 tons by G. Jequier. It has 2 colossal quartzite slabs covering it. This was lowered in a similar manner to the burial chamber of Amenemhet III at Hawara. There were also 2 monolithic burial chambers in a satellite building for his 2 queens. These were smaller than the kings burial chamber and they were never lowered into place and put into use. Some unexpected turn of events probably prevented their use but there is nothing to suggest that the king wasn't interred as planned.
It is believed that the pyramid originally had a different substructure plan because of evidence showing that there was an aborted stairway in the southeast corner that was later blocked. The entrance that was decided on was located towards the southern end at the base of the west face. At the north east corner of the pyramid, a satellite pyramid was found, which is thought to have been prepared for the burials of two of Khendjer's queens. Jequier also found shaft tombs nearby, which may have belonged to other family members.
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
Khendjer
Khendjer
Khendjer was an Egyptian king of the 13th Dynasty. The name Khendjer is poorly attested in Egyptian. Khendjer "has been interpreted as a foreign name hnzr and equated with the Semitic personal name hzr, [for] boar" according to the Danish Egyptologist Kim Ryholt...
, who ruled Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
during the 13th Dynasty
Thirteenth dynasty of Egypt
The thirteenth dynasty of ancient Egypt is often combined with Dynasties XI, XII and XIV under the group title Middle Kingdom. Other writers separate it from these dynasties and join it to Dynasties XIV through XVII as part of the Second Intermediate Period...
.
Location
Located between the pyramid of Pepi IIPepi II Neferkare
Pepi II was a pharaoh of the Sixth dynasty in Egypt's Old Kingdom. His throne name, Neferkare , means "Beautiful is the Ka of Re". He succeeded to the throne at age six, after the death of Merenre I, and is generally credited with having the longest reign of any monarch in history at 94 years...
and the pyramid of Senusret III
Senusret III
Khakhaure Senusret III was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC, and was the fifth monarch of the Twelfth Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. Among his achievements was the building of the Sisostris Canal...
in South Saqqara
Saqqara
Saqqara is a vast, ancient burial ground in Egypt, serving as the necropolis for the Ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis. Saqqara features numerous pyramids, including the world famous Step pyramid of Djoser, sometimes referred to as the Step Tomb due to its rectangular base, as well as a number of...
, it was discovered by Gustave Jequier in 1929. The pyramid currently lies in ruins, due in part to the damaging excavations done by Jequier, with its remains only rising one meter above the desert sand.
The pyramid complex was enclosed by inner and outer walls. The inner wall was made of limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, and was created to replace an earlier wavy wall. The outer wall was made of mudbrick
Mudbrick
A mudbrick is a firefree brick, made of a mixture of clay, mud, sand, and water mixed with a binding material such as rice husks or straw. They use a stiff mixture and let them dry in the sun for 25 days....
.
The mortuary temple
Mortuary temple
Mortuary temples were temples constructed adjacent to, or in the vicinity of, royal tombs in the Ancient Egypt. The temples were designed to commemorate the reign of the pharaoh by whom they were built, as well as for use by the pharaoh's cult after death.-History:Mortuary temples were built...
was located on the east side of the complex. It crosses over both the inner and outer walls. This allowed for the outer section of the temple to be placed outside the inner wall, with the inner sanctuary on the inside of the inner wall. Very little remains of the temple, except for bits of relief
Relief
Relief is a sculptural technique. The term relief is from the Latin verb levo, to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is thus to give the impression that the sculpted material has been raised above the background plane...
s and columns. A chapel is located at the north side of the complex and was built out to the inner wall and against the face of the pyramid. The chapel was raised on a platform and could be reached by two stairways. In its north wall was a false door. The location of the door was unusual because the closest wall to the pyramid was the south wall.
The pyramid stood at about 37.35 meters in height, but now stands only one meter tall, due to the disintegration of its mudbrick core. The pyramid once was cased in limestone, but it was quarried by stone robbers, which left the core unprotected. A fragmented pyramidion
Pyramidion
A pyramidion is the uppermost piece or capstone of an Egyptian pyramid in archaeological parlance. They were called benbenet in the Ancient Egyptian language, which associated the pyramid as a whole with the sacred benben stone...
was discovered on the east side of the complex and now has been restored. On one side of the pyramidion the cartouche
Cartouche
In Egyptian hieroglyphs, a cartouche is an ellipse with a horizontal line at one end, indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name, coming into use during the beginning of the Fourth Dynasty under Pharaoh Sneferu, replacing the earlier serekh...
of King Userkare is inscribed. This name is believed by Egyptologists
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
to be the throne name of Khendjer.
The Pyramid of Khendjer included a monolithic quartzite burial chamber. The weight of this chamber was estimated at 150 tons by G. Jequier. It has 2 colossal quartzite slabs covering it. This was lowered in a similar manner to the burial chamber of Amenemhet III at Hawara. There were also 2 monolithic burial chambers in a satellite building for his 2 queens. These were smaller than the kings burial chamber and they were never lowered into place and put into use. Some unexpected turn of events probably prevented their use but there is nothing to suggest that the king wasn't interred as planned.
It is believed that the pyramid originally had a different substructure plan because of evidence showing that there was an aborted stairway in the southeast corner that was later blocked. The entrance that was decided on was located towards the southern end at the base of the west face. At the north east corner of the pyramid, a satellite pyramid was found, which is thought to have been prepared for the burials of two of Khendjer's queens. Jequier also found shaft tombs nearby, which may have belonged to other family members.
Further reading
- Gustave JequierGustave JéquierGustave Jéquier, born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, in 1868 and died in 1946 in the same city, was an Egyptologist and one of the first archaeologists to excavate ancient Persian cities in what is now modern-day Iran...
: Deux pyramides du Moyen Empire, Cairo 1933, pp. 3-35 (the excavation report)