Through the Eras

Architecture and DesignBent Pyramid at Dahshur. YANN ARTHUS-BERTAND/CORBIS.feet) high. It is thus substantially larger than Djoser’sStep Pyramid or the Meidum Pyramid. The interior ofthe Bent Pyramid is unique because it has two passageways:one beginning on the north side and one beginningon the west side. The northern entrance, like thenorthern entrance at Meidum, slopes downward. Itcontinues for 74 meters (242.7 feet) until it reaches thecenter of the pyramid. A vertical shaft then leads to aburial chamber that measures 6.3 by 4.96 meters (20.6by 16.2 feet). The corbelled ceiling is seventeen meters(55.7 feet) above the floor of the chamber. The second,western entrance slopes downward for 65 meters (213.2feet). It leads to a second corbelled chamber 7.97 by 5.26meters (26.1 by 17.2 feet) with a ceiling height of 16.5meters (54.1 feet). This chamber is in reality directlyabove the chamber reached from the northern entrance.Some time later, workers created a rough tunnel throughthe masonry to connect the two chambers. No clear explanationexists to explain the presence of two entrances.Speculation, though, has focused on the western entranceas a reflection of a second burial known from earliesttimes at Abydos. The western orientation of thesecond passage could also somehow connect with thecult of Osiris, king of the dead, with whom the king’sessence traditionally unites at death. Thus in this view,the Bent Pyramid’s internal plan could refer symbolicallyboth to the idea of the king uniting with the circumpolarstars and to the idea that the king unites with Osirisin death. The small chapel on the eastern side of thepyramid would be a link to the king’s role as Son of Re,the sun god. The chapel at the Bent Pyramid parallelsthe chapel at the Meidum Pyramid by its position onthe east side. These two chapels are also similar becausethey consist of only an altar and two steles. Later in theFourth Dynasty, a much more elaborate pyramid templewould be included on the east side of the pyramid.Rainer Stadelmann, however, disputed a real connectionbetween the purpose of these chapels and the later temples.He posited the theory that the construction of thesechapels occurred when it became clear that Sneferuwould not be buried either at Meidum nor at the BentPyramid. The subsidiary pyramid located south of theBent Pyramid demonstrates that the builders had learnedfrom their experience with the Bent Pyramid. The angleof slope resembles the 53 degree angle at Khufu’sGreat Pyramid at Giza. The construction method alsoavoided some of the errors associated with the BentPyramid. Horizontal layers of masonry now replaced theinward-sloping blocks that made the Bent Pyramid sounstable. It paralleled the subsidiary pyramid at Meidumand perhaps somehow reflected the same purpose as theSouth Tomb at Djoser’s complex in Saqqara. Thus itcould have been used to bury a statue or somehow referto the second tombs for each king known from the FirstDynasty at Abydos.THE PYRAMID COMPLEX AT THE BENT PYRAMID.The pyramid complex at the Bent Pyramid includes achapel on the east side and a covered limestone causewaythat leads to a second small temple to the east.These features parallel some of the previous constructionat Meidum and also suggest parallels with later constructionat Giza. The chapel at the Bent Pyramid isquite similar to the chapel at the Meidum Pyramid.They both consist of ten-meter (32.8-foot) tall stelesand an offering table. At the Bent Pyramid, the stelesare decorated with images of King Sneferu seated abovethe palace façade motif. The pyramid complex is linkedto the eastern temple by a 210-meter (688.9-foot)limestone-covered causeway. Though the eastern templeis not actually located in the valley, it seems also tobe a precursor to the eastern valley temples built laterin the Fourth Dynasty. The temple was a stone building,27 by 48 meters (88.5 by 157.4 feet). It had anopen court with a pillared portico and six statue shrinesat the rear. For this reason the German archaeologistDieter Arnold called it a “statue temple” of the king.18 Arts and Humanities Through the Eras: Ancient Egypt (2675 B.C.E.–332 B.C.E.)