The Black Pyramid and the tragedy of deep oblivion: A thousand years later, still no escape from the tragedy of tomb raiding
Long forgotten and abandoned, the Black Pyramid of Amenemhat III was once built and became a testament to the greatness of the Pharaoh. Unfortunately, the pyramid, originally named by Amenemhet, was looted and lost all its treasures.
The Black Pyramid was so named because of its dark, decaying appearance, which resembled a ruin. When archaeologists began excavating, the site was in ruins.
Today, few people know of its existence. Although the Black Pyramid is not as famous as the Pyramids of Giza, it is a valuable ancient structure that provides some valuable historical information about ancient Egypt.
The original Black Pyramid was about 75 meters high with a base of 105 meters. In front of the entrance was a huge "false door" made of red granite, 3.86 meters high, engraved with Amenemhat's name and titles. This was probably the offering Amenemhat intended to place in his tomb.
Ancient Secrets of the Black Pyramid of Amenemhat III
Amenemhat III , Pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt, planned to be buried with his queen inside the Black Pyramid. However, due to some errors, he canceled this construction project.
Instead, he built a new pyramid at Hawara, near Faiyum, Egypt. The Black Pyramid at Dahshur became the final resting place of several royal women. To this day, it is unknown who was buried inside this 'shabby' tomb.
When the excavations of the Dashur Pyramid began in 1892, archaeologists made many interesting discoveries. Many of the pyramid's stones had been stolen and used to build houses in the village and surrounding areas.
Some of the stones "are engraved with boats. The style of painting shows that they originally belonged to the Kingdom of Mastabas ".
The Black Pyramid remains as a pile of ruins. (Photo: Travel2egypt).
The door opens to the other world
False doors were quite common in ancient Egypt. According to ancient beliefs, these mysterious doors led to the afterlife.
In ancient Egypt, "false doors" also known as "Ka doors" allowed the Ka (part of the 'soul') to pass through them and these carvings were common in ancient Egyptian temples and tombs.
In Egyptian belief, the soul has three parts: Ka, Ba, and Akh . The three spiritual elements reside together in the body. Ka survives the death of the body and can reside in an image or statue of a person. It is associated with the body and represents the survival of the super-powerful physical force so it is eternal.
As archaeologists entered the causeway leading to the chambers, they discovered "several deep tomb shafts had been opened, one of which contained a head statue of a twelfth dynasty king, probably Amenemhat III, and a stele dedicated to a prince named Hapu and another elaborate block relief, representing a vulture and hawk with outstretched wings".
The secret room is deep in mystery
The most exciting discovery was made in the lower part of the Black Pyramid, where scientists found a vast network of underground passages. In these underground chambers, they found coffins and lidded jars.
The ancient Egyptians believed that death was simply a transition to another reality, and the heart was always kept inside the mummy for use in the afterlife. Canopic jars were ritual vessels that contained the internal organs removed from the body of the deceased during the mummification process.
Inside the well-preserved main chamber of the king, archaeologists found a sarcophagus, but it did not contain the Pharaoh's mummy. The mummy was not intact and had been looted.
In addition to this, archaeologists also found four other burial chambers in the underground part of the Black Pyramid. Two of the burials are believed to be those of King Amenemhet IV and Queen Sobekneferu. The other two remain unidentified.
The Black Pyramid has countless underground corridors and chambers. What ancient treasures were once hidden inside it will forever remain a mystery as the site was looted and is unlikely to be recovered .
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