Pyramid of Userkaf

The pyramid complex of Userkaf was built c. 2490 BC for the king Userkaf, founder of the 5th Dynasty of Egypt. It is located in the pyramid field at Saqqara, on the north-east of the step pyramid of Djoser. Constructed in dressed stone with a core of rubble, the pyramid is now ruined and resembles a conical hill in the sands of Saqqara. For this reason, it is known locally as El-Haram el-Maharbish, the "Heap of Stone", and was recognized as a royal pyramid by western archaeologists in the 19th century.
Userkaf's pyramid is part of a larger mortuary complex comprising a mortuary temple, an offering chapel and a cult pyramid as well as separate pyramid and mortuary temple for Userkaf's wife, queen Neferhetepes. Userkaf's mortuary temple and cult pyramid are today completely ruined and difficult to recognize. The pyramid of the queen is no more than a mound of rubble, with its funerary chamber exposed by stone robbers.
The complex is markedly different from those built during the 4th Dynasty in its size, architecture and location, being at Saqqara rather than the Giza Plateau. As such, Userkaf's pyramid complex could be a manifestation of the profound changes in the ideology of kingship that took place between the 4th and 5th dynasties, changes that may have started during the reign of Userkaf's likely immediate predecessor, Shepseskaf. More than 1,200 years after its construction, the pyramid complex was restored under Ramesses II. During the much later Saite period, it was used as a cemetery.

Discovery and excavations

The entrance of the pyramid was discovered in 1831 by the Italian Egyptologist Orazio Marucchi but was not entered until 8 years later in 1839 by John Shae Perring, who took advantage of an existing tunnel dug into the pyramid by tomb robbers. Perring did not know for sure who the owner of the pyramid was and attributed it to Djedkare Isesi, a late 5th dynasty king.
After his investigations, Perring buried the robbers tunnel which remains inaccessible to this day. The pyramid of Userkaf entered the official records a few years later in 1842 when Karl Richard Lepsius catalogued it in his list of pyramids under number XXXI. Since Perring had already buried the robbers tunnel by that time, K. R. Lepsius did not investigate the pyramid any further.
The pyramid was then neglected until October 1927, when Cecil Mallaby Firth and the architect Jean-Philippe Lauer started excavating there. During the first season of excavation, Firth and Lauer cleared the south side of the pyramid area, discovering Userkaf's mortuary temple and tombs of the much later Saite period. The following year, Firth and Lauer uncovered a limestone relief slab and a colossal red granite head of Userkaf, thus determining that he was the pyramid owner. After Firth's death in 1931 no excavations took place on site until they were resumed by Lauer in 1948. Lauer worked there until 1955, re-clearing and re-planning the mortuary temple and investigating the eastern side of the pyramid. Research on the north and west sides of the mortuary complex was conducted starting in 1976 by Ahmed el-Khouli who excavated and restored the pyramid entrance. The entrance was, however, buried under rubble in an earthquake in 1991. More recent work on the pyramid was undertaken by Audran Labrousse in 2000.

Morturary complex

Layout

The mortuary complex of Userkaf comprises the same structures as those of Userkaf's 4th dynasty predecessors: a high wall surrounded the complex with its pyramid and high temple and there was certainly a valley temple located closer to the Nile, yet to be uncovered. The valley temple was connected to the pyramid by a causeway whose exact trajectory is unknown, even though its first few meters are still visible today.
The layout of the complex, however, differs significantly from that of earlier complexes. Indeed, it is organized on a north–south axis rather than an east–west one: the high temple is located south of the main pyramid and its structures are turned away from it. Furthermore, a small offering chapel is adjoining the eastern base of the pyramid, a configuration otherwise unattested since offering chapels usually occupy the inner sanctum of the mortuary temple. Finally, immediately to the south of Userkaf's funerary enclosure is a second smaller pyramid complex attributed to his wife, queen Neferhetepes.
The reason for these changes is unclear, and several hypotheses have been proposed to explain them:

The first hypothesis is that this is due to a change of ideology. The advent of the 5th dynasty marks the growing importance of the cult of the sun as hinted by the Westcar Papyrus. This is also directly evidenced by the large sun temples built at Abusir throughout the dynasty, a tradition initiated by Userkaf. Finally, the Abusir Papyri demonstrate the strong connection between the cult of the sun and the mortuary cult of the pharaohs of this dynasty: offerings for a deceased ruler were first consecrated in a sun temple before being dispatched to his mortuary temple. Thus, Userkaf located his mortuary temple to the south of the main pyramid so that the sun would shine directly into it all year round.
The second hypothesis holds that Userkaf chose to return to 3rd Dynasty traditions: not only did he choose to construct his mortuary complex on the north-east corner of Djoser's complex but its layout is similar to that of Djoser. Indeed, both are organized on a north–south axis and both have their entrances located at the south-end of the eastern side.
The third hypothesis proposes that Userkaf's choice is due to practical considerations. Nabil Swelim discovered a large moat completely surrounding Djoser's enclosure, some places as deep as. This moat might be a stone quarry for material used during the construction of Djoser's step pyramid. If for some reason it was important for Userkaf to locate his mortuary complex on the north-east corner of Djoser's, i.e. between the enclosure and the moat, then there was not enough space available for the mortuary temple to be located on the east side. Thus the local topography would explain the peculiar layout of Userkaf's complex.
Mortuary temple

Userkaf's mortuary temple layout and architecture is difficult to establish with certainty. Not only was it extensively quarried for stone throughout the millennia, but a large Saite period shaft tomb was also dug in its midst, damaging it.
Modern reconstructions of the temple nonetheless show that it shared the same elements as all mortuary temples since the time of Khafre. However, just as with the complex, the layout of the temple seem to differ significantly from those of Userkaf's predecessors. The causeway entered the pyramid enclosure at the southern end of the east wall. There the entrance corridor branched south to five magazine rooms as well as a stairway to a roof terrace. To the north a doorway led to a vestibule and then to an entrance hall. That in turn led to an open black-basalt floored courtyard bordered on all sides but the south one by monolithic red granite pillars bearing the titles of the king. A colossal head of Userkaf was found there, the second oldest monumental statue of an Egyptian ruler after the Great Sphinx, now in the Egyptian Museum. The head, which must have belonged to a statue, represents Userkaf wearing the Nemes and Uraeus. The walls of the courtyard were adorned with fine reliefs of high workmanship depicting scenes of life in a papyrus thicket, a boat with its crew and names of Upper and Lower Egyptian estates connected to the cult of the king.
Two doors at the south-east and south-west corners of the courtyard led to a small hypostyle hall with four pairs of red granite pillars. Beyond were storage chambers and the inner sanctum with three or five statue niches where statues of the king would have been placed, facing the pyramid to the north. Contrary to other mortuary temples, the inner sanctum was thus separated from the pyramid by the courtyard. The only remains of the mortuary temple that are visible today are its basalt paving and the large granite blocks framing the outer door.

Offering chapel

A small offering chapel is adjoining the eastern side of the main pyramid and is barely visible today. It consisted of a central two pillared room with a large quartzite false door and two narrow chambers on the sides. Like the mortuary temple, the chapel was floored with black basalt. Its walls however were made of Tura limestone and granite and were adorned with fine reliefs of offering scenes.

Cult pyramid

In the south-west corner of Userkaf's mortuary complex is a small cult pyramid. This pyramid was destined to receive the Ka of the deceased pharaoh and thus might have housed a statue of Userkaf's Ka. It stood high with a base long and its slope is identical to that of the main pyramid at 53°. The position of the cult pyramid within the complex is unusual, the cult pyramid being normally located in the south-eastern corner. This difference is certainly linked with the peculiar overall north–south layout of Userkaf's complex with the south-eastern corner hosting the entrance to the mortuary temple.
The core of the pyramid is made of roughly hewn limestone blocks similar to those of the main pyramid. These were disposed in two layers and finally clad with fine Tura limestone which fell victim to stone robbers. Consequently, the poor quality pyramid core was exposed and degradated rapidly with only the two lowest layers of the pyramid still visible today.
The pyramid has a T-shaped substructure with a descending corridor leading to a chamber with a gabled roof. Similarly to the main pyramid, the substructure was constructed in a shallow open pit dug into the ground before the pyramid construction started and is therefore located just below ground-level.