Pyramid of Sahure

Cairo Outskirts & the Nile Delta


Sahure (2487–2475 BC) was the first of the 5th-dynasty pharaohs to be buried at Abu Sir. His pyramid, originally 50m high, is now badly damaged. From the entrance you can walk through a 75m-long corridor before crawling 2m on your stomach through Pharaonic dust and spiderwebs to reach the burial chamber. Sahure’s funerary temple must have been an impressive temple, with black-basalt-paved floors, red-granite date-palm columns and walls decorated with 10,000 sq m of superbly detailed reliefs.

It was connected by a 235m-long causeway to the valley temple, which was built at the edge of the cultivation and bordered by water. From the pyramid, on a clear day you can see some 10 other pyramids stretching out to the horizon.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Cairo Outskirts & the Nile Delta attractions

1. Royal Sun Temples of Abu Ghorab

0.1 MILES

Just northwest of the Abu Sir pyramids lies the site of Abu Ghorab, which is home to two temples dedicated to the worship of Ra, the sun god of Heliopolis…

2. Pyramid of Nyuserra

0.14 MILES

The most dilapidated of the finished pyramids at Abu Sir belonged to Nyuserra (2445–2421 BC). Originally some 50m high, this pyramid has been heavily…

3. Abu Sir

0.17 MILES

Surrounded by sand dunes, the pyramids of Abu Sir form the necropolis of the 5th dynasty (2494–2345 BC). Most of the remains are less impressive than…

4. Pyramid of Neferirkare

0.19 MILES

Neferirkare (2475–2455 BC) was the third pharaoh of the 5th dynasty and Sahure’s father. His burial place originally resembled the Step Pyramid at Saqqara…

5. Pyramid of Queen Khentkawes II

0.24 MILES

South of Neferirkare’s pyramid lies the badly ruined Pyramid of Queen Khentkawes II, wife of Neferirkare and mother of both Raneferef and Nyuserra. In her…

6. Pyramid of Raneferef

0.29 MILES

The Pyramid of Raneferef (2448–2445 BC), who is believed to have reigned for four years before Nyuserra, is unfinished, and was only completed as a…

7. Mastaba of Ti

1.46 MILES

The Mastaba of Ti was discovered by Auguste Mariette in 1865. This grand and detailed private tomb is not only Old Kingdom art at its best but also one of…

8. Serapeum

1.55 MILES

The Serapeum, dedicated to the sacred Apis bull, is one of the highlights of visiting Saqqara. The first Apis burial took place in the reign of Amenhotep…

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