Meidum Pyramid
The pyramid at Meidum is believed to be Egypt's second oldest (after the step-pyramid of Djoser, whose design Meidum followed to some degree) but is also the earliest attempt at a true pyramid with four smooth side elevations.
Its original builder is usually considered to be Huni, last pharaoh of the 3rd Dynasty, but most likely the larger part was constructed under the reign of his successor Sneferu (who also built two major pyramids at Dashur much further north).
The building we see today looks as much like a massive tower as a pyramid; which is due to the ancient collapse of much of the outer structure after the design was modified from a step-pyramid form (like its predecessor at Saqqara) to a smooth-sided one. The extra weight of the additional outer casing was too much and the pyramid was reduced to the present tower of masonry rising from a mass of debris.
There are several internal passages on different levels that lead to the relatively small burial chamber, beginning with a steep descent from the northern face. The ceiling of the chamber is remarkable for its tapering form, corbelled inwards as it rises in the manner of the better known but later grand gallery of the great pyramid of Khufu.
Near the pyramid are several large mudbrick mastaba tombs of a similar age, one of which is accessible by a series of narrow tunnels and passages that only the more intrepid traveller should attempt.
For more on this remarkable site see below:-
Meidum Pyramid
The pyramid at Meidum is believed to be Egypt's second oldest (after the step-pyramid of Djoser, whose design Meidum followed to some degree) but is also the earliest attempt at a true pyramid with four smooth side elevations.
Its original builder is usually considered to be Huni, last pharaoh of the 3rd Dynasty, but most likely the larger part was constructed under the reign of his successor Sneferu (who also built two major pyramids at Dashur much further north).
The building we see today looks as much like a massive tower as a pyramid; which is due to the ancient collapse of much of the outer structure after the design was modified from a step-pyramid form (like its predecessor at Saqqara) to a smooth-sided one. The extra weight of the additional outer casing was too much and the pyramid was reduced to the present tower of masonry rising from a mass of debris.
There are several internal passages on different levels that lead to the relatively small burial chamber, beginning with a steep descent from the northern face. The ceiling of the chamber is remarkable for its tapering form, corbelled inwards as it rises in the manner of the better known but later grand gallery of the great pyramid of Khufu.
Near the pyramid are several large mudbrick mastaba tombs of a similar age, one of which is accessible by a series of narrow tunnels and passages that only the more intrepid traveller should attempt.
For more on this remarkable site see below:-