Bent Pyramid at Dahshur

The Bent Pyramid is an ancient Egyptian Pyramid and is around 40 kilometres from Cairo and located at the Royal Necropolis of Dahshur and built under the Old Kingdom of Pharaoh Sneferu around 2600 BC. It is a classic example of early Pyramid development in Egypt of a more basic design and was the second Pyramid built by Sneferu.

Location:

Travelling about 50 minutes from Downtown Cairo and 45 minutes from the 3 Pyramids, at Giza you will reach Dahshur and the Bent Pyramid. The journey is a pleasant ride through local farming communities and small villages.

History:

The Bent Pyramid is located at Dahshur Necropolis and was built under the Old Kingdom Pharaoh Snofru. What makes Snofru’s final resting place different from all other Pyramids is its change of angle towards the top: it rises more steeply (54.3-degrees) than the Red Pyramid or Giza Pyramids for three-quarters of its height, before abruptly tapering at a gentler slope-hence its name. The explanation for its shape, and why Snofru should have built two Pyramids only a kilometer apart, is a longstanding conundrum of Egyptology.

Mindful of the truism that a Pharaoh required but one sanctuary for his Ka, many reasoned that the Bent Pyramid resulted from a change of plan prompted by fears for its stability, and when these persisted, a second safer Pyramid was built to guarantee Snofru’s afterlife.

The Bent Pyramid is unusual in one final respect: it has two entrances, one on its west side as well as the more conventional one on its north face. To its south is a subsidiary Queen’s Pyramid, possibly belonging to Snofru’s wife Hetepheres. If it did, she did not stay there too long: after robbers had entered both Snofru’s Pyramids at Dahshur. Her sarcophagus was moved to Giza for safekeeping, and hidden down a shaft beside the Great Pyramid of her son Cheops. The interior of the Bent Pyramid is unlikely to be open to the public in the near future

Mindful of the truism that a pharaoh required but one sanctuary for his Ka, many reasoned that the Bent Pyramid resulted from a change of plan prompted by fears for its stability, and when these persisted, a second safer pyramid was built to guarantee Snofru’s afterlife.

The Bent Pyramid is unusual in one final respect: it has two entrances, one on its west side as well as the more conventional one on its north face. To its south is a subsidiary queen’s pyramid, possibly belonging to Snofru’s wife Hetepheres. If it did, she didn’t stay there too long: after robbers had entered both Snofru’s Pyramid at Dahshur, her sarcophagus was moved to Giza for safekeeping, and hidden down a shaft beside the Great Pyramid of her son Cheops. The interior of the Bent Pyramid is unlikely to be open to the public in the near future.

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