The second king of the third dynasty was known as Djoser (also pronounced Zoser) and he is best known due to the brilliance of his architect, Imhotep who was eventually deified (Thompson 1997). Unlike his predecessors Djoser did not want a simple mudbrick mastaba (Arabic for 'bench') tomb and so Imhotep designed a magnificent granite mastaba that was to be coated with limestone. Construction began on this incredible structure but apparently during construction Djoser changed his mind on several occasions. The original mastaba was to be square in shape, about 62 metres in length and positioned approximately in line with the cardinal compass points. After completion of the mastaba an extra 4.2 metres was added on all four sides and a new limestone facing was added. The new additions however were 0.6 metre shorter than the original tomb, thus a simple step mastaba was formed. Following this another 8.4 metres was added on the east side only. The next improvement to be made was to extend all sides by another 2.8 metres and to make the mastaba the first of four levels in what was to be known as Djoser's 'Step Pyramid'. Despite all these improvements to his tomb, Djoser was not yet satisfied, after abandoning the construction of a mortuary temple, the north and west sides were lengthened and the height was increased to six massive steps. (Edwards 1982, p55-57). The pyramid was now complete but there was much more to Djoser's tomb than dimensions and steps. Unlike later pyramid complexes, Djoser's pyramid was to hold not only his body but the entire royal family. The pyramid therefore has the most elaborate interior tunnel system of all the Egyptian pyramids. (Edwards 1982, p57-60).

The next major advancement in the construction of pyramids was the transition from step pyramid to true pyramid. This transition was not without failure, as several pyramids lie between the step pyramid of Djoser and the first true pyramid. Huni was the last ruler of the third dynasty, (this is speculative as some egyptologists believe that his reign marked the beginning of the fourth dynasty) and his ideas were instrumental to the future of pyramids. Huni, much like Djoser was indecisive about his tomb's design. At first he constructed either a small step pyramid or a simple stone mastaba, (pyramidologists are unsure of the original structure) however several further layers were added until it became a seven-stepped pyramid and eventually a true pyramid with limestone casing. Unfortunately the additions were not competently integrated into to the original structure of Huni's tomb and therefore have fallen away leaving a single-stepped tower. (Edwards 1982, p90-92). The tomb of Huni eventually became a true pyramid but it did not last long as graverobbers and the harsh weather of the desert acted as catalysts in its decay. The first complete true pyramid had to wait for the accession of Sneferu (Koutsoukis 1994, p105).

Construction on Sneferu's pyramid began in approximately 2620 BC (Koutsoukis 1994, p105). Although originally it was intended to have an inclination angle of 54 degrees and the base of it was constructed with these specifications, the top of the pyramid has an inclination angle of 43 degrees (Some pyramidologists claim that the second angle is forty-two degrees rather than forty-three). This abrupt change in angle obviously gives the pyramid a rather curious appearance and is therefore known as the 'Bent Pyramid'. The reason for this change is not exactly clear, Kurt Mendelssohn believes that poor workmanship and design faults endangered the pyramid of collapsing in on itself and therefore the angle was reduced in order to prevent the disaster. Another theory suggests that they were simply in a hurry to finish it and therefore reduced the angle to save time, however this is unlikely as Sneferu remained alive long enough to build a second pyramid (Koutsoukis 1994, p105).

Sneferu built a second pyramid in the vicinity of his 'Bent Pyramid' at Dahshur. Learning from his earlier mistake, he built this pyramid with a low inclination level of 43 degrees. It appears that Sneferu knew exactly what he wanted as this second pyramid was not altered at all during construction. Sneferu became the first Egyptian king to build a complete true pyramid. Although an incredible achievement, the pyramid was very ordinary. The interior consisted of a single corridor leading down to three chambers just above ground level. Despite this lack of creativity, the pyramid opened the way for centuries of construction of true pyramids, including the three at Giza.

The three pyramids at Giza are quite possibly the most incredible construction achievement in the ancient world. Khufu, (also known by his Greek title, Cheops) Sneferu's successor built the Great Pyramid at the imposing site of Giza, on the western banks of the Nile (Putnam 1990, p21). This was followed by the equally forboding pyramid of Khafre and also the smaller pyramid of Menkaure. All three of the pyramids are positioned in line with the cardinal compass points and are perfect true pyramids like Sneferu's second pyramid. The entire pyramid complex at Giza is enormous and was constructed over the reigns of the three different kings. The construction of the complex would have been the focus of the majority of the Egyptian population for over a century. Similar to Djoser and Huni, Khufu was indecisive as to the position of his burial chamber within the pyramid. At first it was to be deep underground but it was changed to a position just above ground level. However Khufu again changed the plans before the chamber was completed, this chamber became known as the 'Queen's Chamber' although Khufu's queen was never actually buried there (Edwards 1982, p122-123). The eventual positioning of the King's Chamber was high above the ground, deep within the actual pyramid, Khufu was the first king to be buried so high in a pyramid. (Koutsoukis 1994, p107).

The construction of the pyramids is quite mysterious and few answers have been found to reasons why they were built and what method was used to build them. Although it seems that Djoser's pyramid became stepped in an attempt to make it more impressive, I.E.S Edwards suggests that the design may have been adopted to give the dead king a stairway to the stars (Koutsoukis 1994, p105). The transition pyramids were obviously built with religious or spiritual significance but their positions were not significant in comparison with the three pyramids at Giza. After years of bewilderment as to the reason why the Giza pyramids were aligned as they were, a theory was put forward linking their construction with the stars. This theory became known as the 'Orion Mystery'. The two larger pyramids are perfectly aligned whereas the smaller of the three, Menkaure's pyramid is slightly offset to the left. This pattern is identical to the belt of Orion, where the star on the right is slightly smaller and offset to the left. To support the theory, it was also discovered that the two southward shafts originating from the King's Chamber and the Queen's Chamber of Khufu's pyramid aligned perfectly with the the belt of Orion and the star, Sirius. The constellation Orion was considered a representation of the god Osiris and Sirius was his partner, Isis. Therefore the shafts were pathways to the heavens and in particular, to Osiris and Isis. (Bauval, Gilbert 1994). The actual construction of the pyramids would have been a difficult and extremely labourous exercise. Many theories have been suggested as to how it was carried out but only few are likely to be accurate. The most likely theory is also the one supported by the most evidence. It suggests that ramps were used to lift the stones into place. Djoser's successor, Sekhemkhet attempted to build a step pyramid but died in the sixth year of his reign. His unfinished pyramid was excavated in 1951, when archaeologists were delighted to find ramps of packed earth rising up to the pyramid. The only other question is how the massive blocks of stone were moved into place. The answer is simply the power of animals and the precision of men. Several pictures have been found on blocks of pyramids and inside tombs of oxen pulling blocks up ramps, but animals were not smart enough to put the blocks into the exact place. Therefore once the blocks reached the top of the ramp, the oxen would be relieved and several workers would precisely postition the block into its place. (Thompson 1997). It is therefore clear that the methods of construction used by the ancient Egyptians was most likely the easiest and most obvious option.

From simple mudbrick mastabas to step pyramids to enormous true pyramids, the Egyptians were obviously very skilled mathematicians. However in all their calculations they never failed to lose sight of the reason for building the pyramids. The tomb of the king was not a place to be dull and lifeless, and far from unelaborate. On the contrary they were magnificent constructions inside and out, with the finest materials used in almost all cases. The change in design from step pyramids to true pyramids was certainly not quick and simple, but the attempts, failures and successes make the transition more interesting and help archaeologists to uncover details of Egyptian construction and religion.

References

Bauval, Robert; Gilbert, Adrian. 1994. The Orion Mystery. BCA, London.

David, Rosalie. 1993. Discovering Ancient Egypt. O'Mara, London.

Edwards, I.E.S. 1982. The Pyramids of Egypt. Penguin, England.

Koutsoukis, A.J. 1994. Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and Persia. Longman Cheshire, Melbourne.

Putnam, James. 1990. Egyptology: An Introduction to the History, Culture and Art of Ancient Egypt. New Burlington, London.

Thompson, Paul B. Date unknown. Secrets of the Pyramids [Online]. Available: http://www.parascope.com/en/pyramids.htm (Accessed 15th July, 1997).