Talking Pyramids: Ancient Egyptian Pyramids

Fresh in the news this morning is the announcement that two more pyramids will be opened to the public to visit this year.

It’s not easy keeping up with what pyramids are open and which are closed. Readers of this blog know that I am continually looking for information on which pyramids are closed and which remain open and accessible to the public.

There is no official list of open pyramids and so it is very difficult for visitors to Egypt to properly plan their trips, especially if their reason for visiting Egypt is to explore the pyramids. Often the information is conflicting and you can never be sure which pyramids are actually open.

Recently I posted a list of the pyramids detailing which were open to the public and their entry prices after many discussions with recent visitors to Egypt.

Last year Dr Zahi Hawass was reported saying that he would like to see all of Egypt’s pyramids to be open to the public this year but many still remain closed.

But within the “next month or two”, according to Dr Hawass, the ancient Bent pyramid’s internal chambers will be opened for the first time to tourists. The Bent pyramid is thought to belong to the father of Khufu who built the Great Pyramid at Giza and in the announcement yesterday Hawass stated that archaeologists believe that Sneferu’s burial chamber lies undiscovered inside this pyramid.

Sneferu actually has two pyramids at Dashur. These are the so-called ‘Bent’ pyramid, named after the slope of the pyramid which starts out with sides of about 54 degrees and then changes to about 43 degrees, and the ‘Red’ pyramid, named after the colour of the limestone from which it is built. Until now visitors to Dashur have been able to enter both the Red and the Bent pyramids for free after paying 30 L.E. to enter Dashur. However, until now only the chambers of the Red have been accessible, the Bent’s chambers being closed to visitors.

There are five main pyramids at Dashur, these are as follows:

• ‘Red’ pyramid of Sneferu – Dynasty 3
• ‘Bent’ pyramid of Sneferu – Dynasty 3
• Pyramid of Amenemhet II – Dynasty 12
• ‘Black’ pyramid of Amenemhet III – Dynasty 12
• Pyramid of Senusret III – Dynasty 12

It was also announced in the same press release that a second pyramid at Dashur, that of Amenemhet III, otherwise known as the ‘Black’ pyramid will also be opened to the public in the next year.

The labyrinth of passages underneath this particular pyramid are so elaborate that upon first visiting the pyramids Hawass feared he would be forever lost within the network of corridors.

“Twenty-five years ago, I went to enter this pyramid, and I was afraid I would never come back, and I had to ask the workmen to tie ropes around my leg so I wouldn’t lose my way,” – Hawass.

Only 5 percent of tourists that travel to Egypt visit Dashur. Hawass wants to change this by bringing more visitors to Dashur. He stated that a joint effort between the United Nations and several Egyptian Government agencies aims to give villagers near Dashur more economic opportunities to increase local development.

In the words of Zahi Hawass:

“This is going to be an adventure!”

Sources:
Zahi Hawass
Huffington Post

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Tags: Amenemhet II, Amenemhet III, dahshur, prices, senusret III, sneferu