THE OLDEST PYRAMID, THE STEP PYRAMID OF DJOSER - SAQQARA, EGYPT
hello everyone in the previous episode we explore the first geometrically true planet as always you can find the link below this time i'm going to show you the first pyramid ever built it's the step pyramid of jose [Music] today sakara is a small village located some 30 kilometers south of modern day cairo it's known for its necropolis covering a mammoth area of around seven by 1.5 kilometers containing tombs from almost every period of egyptian history it's been a significant historical site for almost 5 000 years the earliest burial structures such as mud brick tunes or mustavas date back to circa 2925 [Music] bc the funerary complex of jose was probably built around the beginning of the third dynasty circa 2650 bc all structures in this enclosed compound are made of stone rather than magbreak which was used by joseph's predecessors however the stones in comparison with the pyramids in giza or shore are much smaller in size upon arrival we are welcomed by anubis himself [Music] the funerary complex of jose is surrounded by a wall of light to a limestone with a characteristic for the first dynasty palace facade motif imitating bound bundles of reeds the enclosure wall is 10.5 meters high and interrupted by 14 doors but only one situated to the east south corner serves as the entrance whereas others are false some say that dummy doors served as a portal for king's car others that the wall was an imitation of an already existing one probably the white wall of memphis there's also a theory saying that the doors had a protective function in order to visit temples and tombs one would have needed to ask how to enter the entrance leads through a narrow 5 meters long passage the underside of the stone ceiling beams had been rounded to imitate palm logs interestingly the entrance never had doors which means that it must have been under constant guard [Music] we are now in the colonnade hall it comprises 20 pairs of unique 6.6 meters high limestone tapered columns they are composed of drum shaped segments built to look like bundles of plant stems the columns still burn traces of red paint centuries ago they must have looked like petrified wood columns initially the corridor was to be opened to the sky with five meters high columns when it was later removed columns had to be increased to allow the gallery to be illuminated by claristory windows each column is joined to the side wall by means of a small connecting wall it was clearly the result of a doubt about the strength of the free standing column rather than artistic innovation as the full potential of stone was probably not yet known [Music] we're now in the transverse hypo style room the roof of which was supported by eight shorter fluted columns connected in purse by blocks of limestone centuries ago they were brown as there are still traces of paint however they were discovered in a poor condition and must have been completely reconstructed to give you an idea of the size of the task of restoration these columns at the time of their discovery stood no more than one meters high and their fragments were scattered all over the area [Music] this large space in front of us is called the south court [Music] in the center of the eastern side of the courtyard are remains of the royal pavilion also known as temple tea or hep set temple it was probably a place for the cast statue of jose which enabled him to celebrate the hebset eternally hepset was a festival in which the king validated his right to rule it took its name from an egyptian wolf god the god of power and war said the festival was held in the 30th year of the king's shrine and then every three years afterwards to revitalize his rule by reenacting his coronation hebzet festival is mostly known for the culmination point when the king ran a circuit between two groups of small d-shaped structures called ritual boundary markers as quickly as possible while wearing a kilt with a bull's tail attached to it and holding the insignia of his power there are different theories explaining the purpose of this specific ritual some claimed that it was purely ceremonial and represented the feral outrunning old age others claim that it symbolized the pharaoh reaching out to all parts of their kingdom still others have suggested that if the pharaoh wasn't able to complete that task then he was no longer fit to rule and would be promptly sacrificed to make way for the younger fitter successor [Music] the step perimeter reopened in march 2020 for visitors after a 14-year restoration over centuries its condition deteriorated because of fierce winds effects of time and the 1992 earthquake we enter the pyramid through the southern entrance constructed during the 26th dynasty over 2 000 years after the steppe pyramid was originally completed the hallway leads to the platform in the great central shaft from which we can admire a quite unparalleled view of jazza's sarcophagus we've seen a quite good deal of sarcophagi so far but this one is completely different it's made of 32 as1 granite blacks it's just humongous the mummy of jose has never been found but in 1934 a mummified left food was found in the burial chamber but we don't know to whom it belongs the shaft is 28 meters deep from here a labyrinth of rooms corridors chambers and passageways protecting the eternal rest of the king spreads outwards over an area of more than five kilometers [Music] it's worth mentioning that the internal structures of the step pyramid are like no other in egypt it's like a palace underground with tunneled chambers and galleries the shorts of about 40 000 alabaster pods plates balls and vases were found here apart from the granite burial vault there are blue tile chambers and the king's apartment it's the only pyramid in the old kingdom inside of which eleven of the king's daughters were buried inside [Music] the first pyramid in the world was constructed circa 2670 to 2650 bc when completed the step pyramid was 62 meters high with a base of 109 meters by 121 meters and was cleared in polished white limestone it was the tallest structure of its time there were at least five different phases in the construction of the pyramid as might be expected with an experimental structure first a square stone mustaber-like structure was built it was about eight meters high with a 62 meter square base it's believed that this stepped structure was planned from the beginning as there were only rectangular mustavas at the time later the monument was gradually extended first evenly on all four sides and later just on the east side the pyramid was enlarged in two stages first to form a four stepped monument and then to form a six-step structure which in result had a rectangular base on an east-west axis and this is the main northern entrance unfortunately we couldn't get inside i think it's high time to get to know more about jose also known as najericad tosurtas he founded the third dynasty of egypt and ruled for over 20 years very little is known of joseph's youth or family life his name najeriket means divine of body and jose is derived from the jed symbol of stability we're about to see jose in his third up it's a small and close chamber with a pair of round observation halls the cast statue of jose can gaze out on the forecourt of the whole tomb complex on the performed rituals and on the stars [Music] this is the house of the south a shrine which probably held the statues of the king we can find here probably the oldest gravity made by treasury scribe hat nakhta in the year 1232 bc during the rhine of ramses ii a new dynasty meant a new beginning for the country which was at peace but still far from united in order to ensure stability jose needed to focus attention onto the divine kingship as a symbol of centralized authority and the best way to do that was through the construction of a monumental tone it would be made out of stone even including the elements normally made out of wood such as doors and window frames as jose aimed for something firm and permanent unlike mad brick tombs of his predecessors [Music] to build all these wonderful monuments jose needed an architect who could translate architecture employing mudbrick panels into stone joseph vizier imhotep performed this task brilliantly actually we don't know a lot about imhotep whose name means he comes in peace his tomb hasn't been found yet during his lifetime he was known as a physician and author of wisdom texts and a high priest of the sun god ra yet in the centuries after he lived imhotta became known as an architect engineer poet doctor and even a magician [Music] we are heading now to the tomb of king unas he was the last king of the fifth dynasty his pyramid is located on the opposite side of the jose pyramid the pyramid is famous primarily for the pyramid texts the oldest written text of egyptian religious literature one of the first literary works in human history the pyramid texts include spells and utterances enabling the deceased pharaoh to enter the world of gods and transform into divine being the particular places in the tomb corresponded to specific regions of the realm of the dead the pyramid texts cover almost all available wall space in the burial chamber and its adjacent rooms they are carved in fine detail into stone and are filled with blue pigment [Music] oh unas you have not gone dead you have gone alive to sit on the throne of osiris your scepter is in your hand that you may give orders to the living the handle of your lotus-shaped scepter in your hand give orders to those of the mysterious sides [Music] osiris and isis hurry announce to the gods of the north and their spirits he comes indeed this unas an imperishable spirit like the honoured star over the nile so that the spirits in the waters honor him whom he wills that he live he lives whom he will that he die he dies [Music] [Music] [Music] unas comes to you this unas is a wild bowl of the grassland the bull with a large head which comes from heliopolis unas comes to you the wild bull of the grassland it is unas who gives birth to you who continually gives birth to you [Music] it's the smallest pyramid built in the old kingdom originally it was six steps high pyramid encased with white fine limestone blocks but due to constructional issues and use of poor quality materials the pyramid is in a poor state of preservation [Music] una's causeway has been preserved to this day linking the pyramid to the valley temple to which barges would arrive via a kennel leading from the ninth river [Music] that's all for now thank you for watching i hope you enjoyed today's journey if so please subscribe to my channel like and leave the comment below [Music] and see you on another ancient side so so [Music] you
2021-06-21 03:21
