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Saqqara is an archaeologist ’s dream , being home to a vast bit of ancient Egypt ’s mummies , tombs and around a dozen pyramid . Every year , researchers unearth new discoveries at the site , includingmummy masks , Book of the all in scrollsand evenmummification workshop .
But why did so manyancient Egyptianswant to be buried there ?
The Step Pyramid of Djoser is built at Saqqara.
Saqqara has been used for thousands of years and " the reasons for being bury at the situation differ through time,“Nico Staring , an Egyptologist and research worker at the University of Liège in Belgium , tell Live Science in an electronic mail .
One of import reason is its proximity to the city of Memphis . " Saqqara was the chief burying ground associated with the capital city of Memphis , which remained , to a large extent , an administrative center throughout Egypt ’s story as well as being a major spiritual centre lionize the cults of a motley of deities"Salima Ikram , a professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo , assure Live Science in an e-mail .
It ’s hard to amplify the grandness of Memphis to Saqqara , Staring order .
The Step Pyramid of Djoser is built at Saqqara.
" Saqqara should be viewed as a portion of the wider , live urban environment " he said . " The dwell inhabitants of Memphis shaped and reshaped the burial site over many generations , and so the life chronicle of both the metropolis and its burying ground were closely entwine . "
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Saqqara was also revered because some early Egyptian pharaohs ramp up their tomb there . During the second dynasty ( circa roughly 2800 to 2650 B.C. ) the pharaohs Hotepsekhemwy , Reneb and Ninetjer all constructed tombs at the site , Lara Weiss , CEO of the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum in Germany , tell Live Science in an electronic mail . The third dynasty pharaoh Djoser famously constructed astep pyramidat Saqqara , and several other pharaohs , such as the 5th dynasty Pharaoh Userkaf , Unas and Djedkare Isesi , also build Great Pyramid at the site .
An Old Kingdom tomb at Saqqara, which was used as a burial place by the ancient Egyptians for thousands of years.
As the Pharaoh of Egypt were sink , " large figure of their court officials constructed their so - called mastaba tombs in their vicinity , " Staring sum , explaining that the grounds were n’t just for royalty .
Even in the New Kingdom ( circa 1550 to 1070 B.C. ) , a time when Pharaoh were buried in the Valley of the Kings about 300 international mile ( 483 kilometers ) off , many functionary still want to be bury at Saqqara . This happened because of the site ’s history and tie-up with Egyptian deities , asterisk said . While " the kings were buried in the Valley of the king in Thebes , the realm ’s most crucial executive built their temple - shaped grave at Saqqara , at a internet site that was imbued with story and a site that was believe to be the abode of various prominent god such as Sokar , a graven image of death , " Staring pronounce .
The Step Pyramid of Djoser was particularly well regarded long after it was built . " Interestingly , quondam monument from the past continue to exert influence on later generations , " Staring said . Even when it was 1,000 geezerhood one-time , the Step Pyramid composite " received literate visitor that perpetuated their esteem for the memorial in graffiti pen on the paries of the building complex . " Staring order .
Living legacy
Although it is an ancient place , Saqqara is still an active burial situation today . " Saqqara continues to be used as a burial ground , albeit to a much less extent , into the present , " Ikram said .
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The importance of Saqqara " diminished dramatically " as Christianity became the main organized religion in Egypt during the fourth and fifth centuries , Ikram noted . But even with the declivity of Egypt ’s polytheistic religion , Saqqara still consider some use of goods and services — for instance , the Coptic Monastery of Jeremiah was built at the internet site in the fifth 100 , Weiss take down .
Today , the situation is buzzing with archaeologists and tourists . " As a place of the living rather than the dead , the site is today more animated than ever , " star say .
