Let's get this out in the open now: I misspelled the name of one of the largest and oldest necropoli on my Egyptology midterm. There. From this day forward, you can "wake me up in the middle of the night," ask me to spell Saqqara, and I will respond with S-A-Q-Q-A-R-A. Thank you. We can now go fry bigger fish.
Our second day with Professor Brier and Pat started a wee bit earlier to accomodate the long drive out to Memphis, the oldest capital of Upper and Lower Egypt. Memphis is in the valley near the Saqqara and Dashur plateaus. Almost everything that remains of the city has been damaged by thousands of years of mud and water. The high water table that allowed Memphis to thrive now jeopardizes the integrity of the artifacts.
We visited the open air museum in Memphis to see the second largest sphinx and several Ramses colossi. The sun, still low on the horizon, provided excellent lighting for interesting pictures.
Ramses the Great (Ramses II) may not have built a pyramid, but he certainly erected his likeness everywhere.
This is the second largest sphinx known to Egyptologists. Extensive water damage has ruined the alabaster stone.
Here's a yummy mummy question: What is the name of this Egyptian god?
Calling all shoppers! Pat Remler, a fantastic art historian and Professor Brier's wife, guided the group to a roadside stand just outside of the museum. The Memphis-area has some of the best handicraft prices around Lower Egypt. Several people from the group, including my mother, purchased baskets.
I kept my distance from the shoppers, but there were "great deals."
Professor Brier and I were both in grief over the number of baskets that seemed to be making their way home with us. "Guys, if you keep buying stuff you're going to ruin my reputation... 'Oh, there's Professor Brier's shopping group...' "
The road between Memphis and Saqqara bisected several villages where the bus had to slow down. The villages were a nice change of pace from the chaos of Cairo and Giza. I was able to take several pictures as we drove along.
Camels, while not native to Egypt, have become ubiquitous in the Egypt iconography.
The greater Cairo area is home to more than 20 million people making it the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. It is the 2nd largest in the Islamic world, following Jakarta.
These men are all awaiting carpool vans to commute into Cairo.
I don't know what this says in Arabic, but the banner got my attention. Any translators following the blog?
The bus picked up speed as Professor Brier reminded us that we had "bigger fish to fry."
We quickly arrived at the Saqqara necropolis. While the Great Pyramids and the Giza Plateau are embedded in Egypt's iconography, the Saqqara necropolis is much larger and spans more dynasties. We picked up an inspector for a special entrance into the Tomb of Unas.
We entered the causeway up to the Unas tomb. The pharoanic tombs usually had a causeway that joined the valley temple and mortuary temple. The Unas causeway is in surprisingly good condition.
Professor Brier points out a boat ala Ben Fisher. This carving appeared on the walls lining the causeway to the Pyramid of Unas and depicts the transportation of tall columns.
These sand-filled holes are the remnants of an ancient Egyptian game that the priests used to pass the time.
Michael, a Far Horizons tour member, reads out the hieroglyphs for the group. For an emergency room physician and software developer, he really knows his Egyptology.
The Tomb of Unas is one of those places that often is overlooked by travel guides and solo tourists. It sits in the shadow of Djoser's step pyramid concealed by several mastabas. Make no mistake. This tomb is very important for the history of Egypt and the world.
The Pyramid of Unas as seen today at the Saqqara necropolis.
Inside of this crumbling tomb, Professor Brier began to explain the evolution of the funeral ceremony. In the early dynasties, priests would cast spells over the body of the deceased to ensure its passage to the next life. As time progressed, the list of spells became longer and more complex. An innovation is preserved inside of Unas's tomb: the first known example of ancient religious texts. The walls of the burial chamber are carefully inscribed with the Pyramid Texts, the priests' spells to protect and guide Unas to the afterlife.
Photography is not permitted inside of the tomb, but today was an exception. The lighting is very poor, but you can clearly see the blue paint that still remains inside of the heiroglyphs. Stop and think. These are the oldest religious writings in the world.
Professor Brier points out one of the spells used to guide Unas west to the afterlife.
The walls of the antechamber and burial room were completely covered with spells. Professor Brier believes that the pyramid was finished in a hurry because not all of the carvings have the same craftsmanship.
After hiding our cameras and exiting the tomb, we walked towards the Step Pyramid complex. Along the way we passed several Egyptian Cadillacs.
Mohammed warned, "It may be free to ride the camel, but it's going to cost you to get off."
We descended down to Djoser's Great Court. Imhotep, the Step Pyramid's architect, originally designed a mastaba for King Djoser of Dynasty 3. When the mastaba was finished, Djoser was still kicking. Imhotep decided to embellish the mastaba by adding a second level. He widened the existing mastaba and continued upwards. Again, Djoser was drinking the right Koolaid and still hadn't died. Imhotep added a third level. a fourth level. a fifth level. a sixth level. Each new level required the preceeding levels to be widened. The result is the world's first pyramid.
This is it. The pyramid evolution starts here.
Imhotep has claim to another world's first: stone construction.
Notice the size and quality of the stones in contrast to the ones from the Giza Plateau. It's no wonder that the small, uneven stones caused structural problems for Imhotep.
As a result of building the world's first (take heed, Dubai), the structure was not very sound. Cedar beams were used to keep the walls from collapsing, and Uncle Zahi is directing an extensive restoration and soil management plan in order to preserve the Step Pyramid.
Uncle Zahi's restoration scaffolding obscured much of our view of the Step Pyramid.
Hey! These guys are cheating. Shouldn't they have to restore the Step Pyramid using ancient techniques...
"We've only scratched the surface, boys and girls."
We exited the Step Pyramid complex through the priests' hidden entrance, boarded the bus, and drove towards Dashur. From the Step Pyramid to the Great Pyramid there were less than 100 years. In fact, Egypt's pyramids can be placed on a 100-year timeline. Mind you, the pyramids are an Old Kingdom thing. Egyptian civilization did not evolve to pyramids over thousands of years. The pyramids are early in Egyptian history, and they came and went like a blip on the Egyptological timeline.
"I wonder if we'll see another pyramid?"
Yes, indeed! Dashur is home to the Bent and Red Pyramids of Snefru. While Snefru's son may have built the Great Pyramid, father still wins. During Snefru's reign not one but three pyramids were constructed for the pharoah. Whoa. Three pyramids? Snefru had terrible luck with his first two pyramids. His first pyramid in Meidum crumbled horrifically, leaving a tower-like mess.
His second attempt, the Bent Pyramid, will soon be opened to the public, as a letter from Uncle Zahi in the Egyptair magazine stated. The Bent Pyramid was another failure for the Snefru construction company. Remember, these are early pyramids, and construction techniques were no where near perfect. As the pyramid rose, a corner settled and the entire structure began to implode. In order to finish it, the angle was decreased. "So, Pharoah, it's almost like we planned this neat architectural design..." The Bent Pyramid is one of Professor Brier's favorites.
The Bent Pyramd's settling corner can be seen in the lower right of the picture.
"This way, boys and girls, I have a surprise for you."
Behind the Bent Pyramid is a small, crude pyramid that doesn't seem to have a purpose. "It may have been a trial for the Great Pyramid. I've been inside of it, and it has a miniature grand gallery." Professor Brier's previous tour inside of the small unknown pyramid took place before Houdin's theory was announced, so he didn't pay attention to the details about the miniature gallery. Could it be that this often overlooked pyramid could unlock the secret of its greater cousin? The entry was locked, so we'll have to wait for another day. Besides, Professor Brier had one final pyramid treat before we returned to Zamalek.
This unknown pyramid might just be a stack of leftover stones from the Bent Pyramid, but the miniature grand gallery might be a clue.
Our final stop at Dashur was Snefru's final resting place, the successful Red Pyramid. So named because of the red hue the stone assumes under the Egyptian sun, this pyramid is one of the most difficult to enter.
With the day nearing to an end, no one turned down the opportunity to climb into another pyramid with Professor Brier.
Mother carefully climbed the uneven stone stairs up to the entrance. The rest of the Far Horizons group can be seen behind her.
Once inside, you climb down 200 feet and then back up to enter an antechamber. From the antechamber you climb up a ladder to the burial chamber. At this point, you are inundated with the strong scent of ammonia. Even after many fumigations, the smell of bat guano clings tightly to the walls. Our pyramid treasure seekers began looking for stone patterns that suggested hidden rooms. No luck in the Red Pyramid... or was there?
Tomb robbers thought that there might be something under the sarcophagus and excavated below it. This picture gives you a great idea of the crude stones used to form the foundation.
All of this talk about secret rooms and different stone patterns had the Nancy Drews looking for hidden chambers. Even if we did find a room, I wouldn't tell you...
Our time with the Briers and the Far Horizons group had come to a close. Professor Brier awarded a Yummy Mummy to one of the Far Horizons travelers on our way back to Zamalek. I really enjoyed touring with the Far Horizons group, and I hope they enjoyed the rest of their time with Professor Brier and Pat. Anyone can go to Egypt. Anyone can tour Egypt. Only the Briers can show you Egypt like you've never seen before.
Professor Brier and his wife Pat have been leading tours through Egypt for Far Horizons for 30 years. They still find new and exciting things each time they make the trip.
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