04b: Buried Pyramids

Ambitious failures. Following the reign of Netjerykhet Djoser, the next generation would attempt to surpass his monuments. King Sekhem-khet tried, but failed, to achieve this. In this episode, we fill a lesser-known gap in the history of ancient Egypt's pyramids. At the same time, we tell the tale of a renowned archaeologist, Mohamed Zakariah Goneim, whose work and influence deserve greater recognition...

Episode details:

Episode written 2019/2020. Released to Patreon subscribers 2021. Released to public 2022.

Date: c. 2670 — 2630 BCE

Kings: Netjerykhet (Djoser); Sekhem-khet; Kha-ba.

Logo: The entrance to Sekhemkhet's pyramid at Saqqara. See more at wikimedia.

Music: Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.net.

Support the show at www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast.

References and images at www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com.

Video: See modern stoneworkers reproducing ancient vessels, at Scientists Against Myths https://youtu.be/dC3Z_DBnCp8

Select references:

Andrzej Ćwiek, “Date and Function of the So-Called Minor Step Pyramids,” Göttingen Miszellen 162 (1998): 39–52.

Raphael Giveon, "A Second Relief of Sekhemkhet in Sinai," Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 216 (1974): 17-20.

M. Zakaria Goneim, The Buried Pyramid, 1956.

M. Zakaria Goneim, Horus Sekhem-khet: The Unfinished Step Pyramid at Saqqara, 1957.

Jean-Philippe Lauer, "Le Complexe Funéraire De L'horus Sekhem-Khet Et La Seconde Pyramide A Degrés De Saqqarah," Revue Archéologique 2 (1959): 89-95.

Ronald J. Leprohon, The Great Name: Ancient Egyptian Royal Titulary, 2013.

Stephan J. Seidlmayer, "The Relative Chronology of Dynasty 3," in E. Hornung, R. Krauss, and D. Warburton (eds), Ancient Egyptian Chronology, 2006: 116-23. 

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