tour 3 of 14
Egypt in the Old Kingdom
Limestone block from the pyramid of Khufu
The Step Pyramid of Djoser was followed by the
famous pyramids at Giza built as tombs for kings Khufu (Greek:
Kheops or Cheops), Khafre (Khephren) and Menkaure (Mycerinus) in
the Fourth Dynasty (about 2613-2494
BC).
The pyramids were
built mainly of limestone quarried on the Giza plateau itself. The
pyramids of Khufu and Khafre were also given a final casing of fine
limestone cut to the shape of the blocks, in order that the pyramid
would appear smooth-sided rather than
stepped.
Only a few large
casing blocks survive around the base of the Great Pyramid of
Khufu, although there is a considerable area surviving near the
apex of the pyramid of Khafre. Menkaure intended to case his
pyramid in granite from Aswan, although it is unlikely that it was
ever finished.
It was not
until the Fifth Dynasty (abot 2494-2345 BC) that the pyramid
chambers, previously undecorated, were carved with elaborate
Pyramid Texts, religious
and magical utterances that were intended to facilitate the
king's journey to the Afterlife and the journey of the sun
through the sky.