The third dynasty ushered in a period of high culture that was to last for five centuries. This period is now called the Old Kingdom. One of the most arresting characteristics of this period was the change in how royal tombs were built. Mud bricks were abandoned for stone blocks, and it was during this period that the great pyramids were built.
The king who initiated this change was Djoser, the second king of the third dynasty, who reigned from around 2630 to 2611 BCE. He appointed an architect, Imhotep, to build him a tomb that would be a copy of his palace, but much larger. The result was a massive stone pyramid at the center of a complex of buildings surrounded by a wall. This was the Step Pyramid (see box, page 11), which set the style for future royal tombs.
The building of the Step Pyramid and later pyramids was the spur that galvanized advancements in engineering and other skills necessary for the projects to succeed. An enormous program began to train builders and engineers, while the techniques for quarrying large blocks of stone and transporting them to the site had to be perfected. On top of this, a vast labor force was required; it is estimated that out of a population of some 1.5 million people, perhaps 70,000 workers were employed at any one time on building the pyramids. These workers
Made between around 2040 and 1750 BCE, this model of a farmer plowing a field with oxen was originally placed in a tomb to ensure that its owner would have food for eternity.
Had to be supervised, fed, and sheltered during the process. Most ordinary Egyptian citizens were required to work on the pyramids, but some people were exempted. Individuals in charge of sacrificial ceremonies at temples and graves, for example, were protected under royal decree.
During the fourth dynasty, pyramid construction reached its peak. The first king of this dynasty, Snefru (ruled c. 2575—2551 BCE), built the first true pyramid at Dahshur. His son Cheops (or Khufu), who reigned fTom around 2551 to 2528 BCE, built the Great Pyramid of Giza, which was considered one of the great wonders of the ancient world.
Cheops’s son Redjedef, who was pharaoh from around 2528 to 2520 BCE, was important in that he started to identify himself as the Son of Re (the sun god). By the beginning of the fifth dynasty, the worship of the sun god was well established.
The fifth dynasty saw the cult of the sun god grow, and several temples were built in his honor. It was also during this dynasty that the so-called Pyramid Texts first appeared. The texts were inscribed on the walls of the pyramid built for the last king of the dynasty, Unas, who reigned from around 2356 to 2325 BCE. The inscriptions were prayers and magic spells that were intended to help the dead king in the afterlife.
World History
