Dahshur
|
|
Dahshur (Arabic دهشور Dahšūr [often incorrectly rendered in English as Dashur]), located in a patch of desert on the west bank of the Nile approximately 40 kilometres south of Cairo, is a royal necropolis, known chiefly for three pyramids, two of which are amongst the oldest, largest and best preserved in Egypt.
The Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid were constructed during the reign of Pharaoh Sneferu of the Old Kingdom, father of Khufu, while the mostly ruined Black Pyramid dates from the much later reign of Amenemhat III. The polished granite pyramidion or capstone of the Black Byramid is on display in the main hall of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
The unusual shape of the Bent Pyramid is unique, and represents a transitional pyramid form believed to have been necessitated by an engineering crisis encountered during its construction, while the Red Pyramid is the world's first "true", or smooth-sided pyramid.