The Necropolis of Dahshur Twelfth Excavation Report of the work in spring 2015 German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Nicole Alexanian, Tomasz Herbich, Sandra Müller Contents Abstract Introduction Magnetic survey Excavations in the area to the east of the enclosure wall of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid Examination of the New Kingdom limestone transport way Drill sondages in the harbour basin in the wadi of the Bent Pyramid Work in the Middle Kingdom Cemetery west of the pyramid of Amenemhat II Consolidation and Conservation Abstract In spring 2015 German Archaeological Institute undertook magnetic surveys in the area of the workmen´s barracks in the vicinity of the Red Pyramid and the area of the so‐called “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid. Drill sondages in the valley to the east of the Bent Pyramid confirmed the existence of an eastern harbour wall. The sondages showed furthermore that a transport way of limestone blocks which was used in the New Kingdom when the “valley temple” was dismantled continues down the whole wadi. Like in the years before several new relief fragments from the “valley temple” were discovered within this limestone way. The excavation of a miniature mastaba and shaft to the north‐west of the pyramid of Amenemhat II revealed a burial with a broad collar from faience beads. The tomb dates to the late Old Kingdom or First Intermediate Period. Introduction In spring 2015 the team of the German Archaeological Institute (Cairo)1 continued its work at Dahshur from 1
For earlier reports see N. Alexanian, S.J. Seidlmayer, „Die Residenznekropole von Dahschur, Erster Grabungsbericht“, MDAIK 58 (2002) 1–28; N. Alexanian, S.J. Seidlmayer, „Survey and Excavations at Dahshur“, Egyptian Archaeology 20 (2002) 3–4; N. Alexanian, S. J. Seidlmayer, „Die Nekropole von Dahschur. Forschungsgeschichte und Perspektiven“, in: M. Bartá, J. Krejčí (eds.), Abusir and Saqqarah in the Year 2000, Archiv Orientalni Supplement IX (Prague, 2000) 283–
304; N. Alexanian, H. Becker, M. Müller, S.J. Seidlmayer,„Die Residenznekropole von Dahschur. Zweiter Grabungsbericht“, MDAIK 62 (2006) 7–41; N. Alexanian, R. Schiestl, S.J. Seidlmayer, “The Necropolis of Dahshur. Excavation Report Spring 2006”, ASAE 83 (2009) 25–41; W. Bebermeier, N. Alexanian, D. Blaschta, A. Ramisch, B. 1
February, 7th until April, 27th 20152. We worked at four different sites: ‐
We cleared an area to the east of the enclosure wall of the so‐called “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid. ‐
We did several investigations at the New‐Kingdom transport way in the wadi of the Bent Pyramid. ‐
We undertook a series of drill sondages in the harbour basin situated in the wadi of the Bent Pyramid. ‐
We worked in the Middle Kingdom necropolis west of the pyramid of Amenemhet II. ‐
Additionally we undertook a magnetic survey. ‐
We worked on the documentation of finds, pottery and human bones in the central magazine and did consolidation work on the relief fragments and limestone blocks from the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid. Magnetic survey A magnetic survey was carried out by D. Święch under the direction of T. Herbich of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology, Polish Academy of Sciences, from February, 14th until February, 26th 2015. Four different areas were surveyed: Schütt, S. Seidlmayer, “Analysis of Past and Present Landscapes Surrounding the Necropolis of Dahshur”, Die Erde 142, 3 (2011) 325‐352; A. Ramisch, W. Bebermeier, K. Hartmann, B. Schütt, N. Alexanian, “Fractals in topography: Application to geoarchaeological studies in the surroundings of the necropolis of Dahshur, Egypt”, in: Quaternary International (2012) 34–46; N. Alexanian, W. Bebermeier, D. Blaschta, “Untersuchungen am unteren Aufweg der Knickpyramide in Dahschur”, MDAIK 68 (2012) 1–30; F. Arnold, “Ein Garten bei den Pyramiden”, Antike Welt, Heft 3 (2015) 46–54. 2
We thank the Ministry of Antiquities for its support. The Ministry was represented by Inspector Mahmoud Soliman Aly, Adel Ragab Ali and Ramadan Said Ibrahim Mohamed, the directors of Dahshur Nasr Ramadan and Mohammed Youssef and the Minister of Antiquities Mamdouh el‐Damaty. Members in the field mission in spring 2015 were Nicole Alexanian, Audrey Eller, Dirk Blaschta, Kyra Gospodar, Asmaa Ibrahim Ahmed, Gehad Mohamed Ghanem, Sandra Müller, Andreas Nerlich, Erico Peintner, Josuah Pinke, Pascale Roecker, Lea Roefer, Ashraf el‐Sennoussi, David Swiech, Peter Windszus. We are grateful to all of them. 2
Fig. 1: Magnetic map from the surveys in 2013, 2014 and 2015 of the area south and north of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid and of the harbour walls east of the “valley temple”. (© GAICairo, T. Herbich superimposed on a Google Earth satellite picture 2013) 1. The magnetic survey was continued in the area to the south of the so‐called “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid, already investigated in 2013 and 2014 (Fig. 1). Further anomalies corresponding to mudbrick buildings were registered. The function of the buildings is not yet clear but the magnetic map provides the basic information for planning a future excavation. 2. In the wadi to the east of the ”valley temple” a magnetic survey was continued within the harbour area. Until now the location of the enclosing mudbrick wall could only be proved on the southern, western and northern sides. Depending on the area, the walls were registered by a magnetic survey (by caesium3 and fluxgate magnetometry4), by coring and/or by excavation. In spring 2015 the magnetic survey made it probable that at least a part of the harbour area was closed by a wall on its eastern side as well. The magnetic map shows a very weak, north south oriented, linear anomaly in the north eastern corner of the harbour area (Fig. 1). The anomaly could be interpreted as remains of the harbour wall less well preserved than the southern and northern walls and therefore less clear in the magnetic picture This hypothesis was confirmed by several drill sondages (Fig. 9): the corings B113 and B134 showed, for example, accumulations of mud and mudbricks that probably can be interpreted as a mudbrick wall standing at a height of 0.5̵–2.5 m in a depth of about 4m (see below in this paper). There is no trace of such a wall visible on the magnetic map in the south eastern corner of the area. Moreover, the anomaly that reflects the southern wall continues a little bit further to the east than the anomaly corresponding to the northern wall. Such an 3
The caesium magnetometer survey executed by H. Becker, compare: N. Alexanian, W. Bebermeier, D. Blaschta, Untersuchungen am unteren Aufweg der Knickpyramide in Dahschur, MDAIK 68 (2012) 4, Abb. 2. 4 T. Herbich, “How deep can we see? Practical observations on the vertical range of fluxgate gradiometers when surveying brick structures in the Nile Valley”, M. Jucha, J. Dębowska‐Ludwin, P. Kołodziejczyk (eds.), “Aegyptus est imago caeli, Studies presented to Krzysztof M. Ciałowicz on his 60th Birthday” (Kraków, 2014) 312–313. 3
arrangement might suggest that the entrance to the harbour was near the southern wall. 3. The survey in the area to the south of the Red Pyramid was continued and completed. The goal of the survey was to make a detailed plan of two rectangular structures that were indicated by G. Erbkam and R. Lepsius on the map from 1883 (Fig. 2)5. The 2013 magnetic survey of the section to the east of the modern asphalt road already revealed clear evidence of remains of structures that, based on their shape, could be interpreted as workmen´s barracks (Fig. 3)6. Fig. 2: The original drawing of the map of G. Erbkam and R. Lepsius from 1843 shows workmen´s barracks south of the Red Pyramid and a similar structure east of the Red Pyramid. (©Berlin Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, scan generously provided by M. Bárta) 5
C.R. Lepsius, Denkmaeler aus Aegypten und Aethiopien I (Leipzig, 1897) Blatt 35; M. Bárta, V. Bruna, Satellite Atlas of the Pyramids (Prague, 2006) 17 and map outside (original map by G. Erbkam). 6
N. Alexanian, T. Herbich, “The workmen´s barracks south of the Red Pyramid at Dahshur”, MDAIK in press; T. Herbich, “Geophysical Surveys”, in: N. Alexanian, F. Arnold, T. Herbich, “The Necropolis of Dahshur. Tenth Excavation Report of the Work in Spring 2013. German Archaeological Institute”, in press for ASAE. 4
Fig. 3: The magnetic map from the surveys in 2013 and 2015 of the area south of the Red Pyramid shows workmen´s barracks from the time of the construction of the Red Pyramid. (© GAICairo, T. Herbich) Fig. 4: Hypothetical plan of the barracks superimposed on the magnetic map. In yellow: plan based on 2013 survey results; in blue: plan based on 2015 survey results. In red: fireplaces and kilns; in white: structures excavated by German Archaeological Institute in 1992. (© GAICairo, T. Herbich) The complete magnetic map of the section (corresponding to the eastern structure on Erbkam´s map) shows the remains of a barrack with 20 rectangular cells measuring about 27 x 7 m each (Fig. 4). The cells are encompassed by an enclosure wall, measuring about 130 x 56 m. The walls are built of local stone blocks and mud. Numerous fire places registered by the magnetic survey, animal bones and a great amount 5
of pottery on the surface point to a use of the structure as an area for food consumption for the workmen. Investigations of comparable barracks at Heit el‐Ghurab at Giza7 and at Wadi el‐Jarf, Red Sea8 which date to the first half of the 4th Dynasty, show that the same cell‐like structure was used for various functions, e.g. dormitories, dwelling places, magazines or areas for food consumption and food production during expeditions or building projects. The survey also revealed the presence of remains of a similar but much smaller structure on the western side of the road (corresponding to the western structure marked by Erbkam) (Figs. 2, 3, 4). Anomalies which correspond to the remains of cells and an enclosure wall could be traced. 4. On the map of G. Erbkam, R. Lepsius from 1843 (Fig. 2) and on aerial and satellite pictures an elongated rectangular structure with at least four square compartments is clearly visible to the east of the Red Pyramid9. The plan of the structure (as it was drawn by Erbkam) resembles the plan of workmen´s barracks situated to the south of the Red Pyramid. The magnetic survey was carried out over the western part of the structure. An area 100 x 80 m was investigated. The magnetic map does not show any anomalies that can be interpreted as image of architectural remains. Furthermore, no archaeological material, as for example, pottery sherds, bones, flint, is visible on the surface. Therefore, the nature of the site is still unclear. Only a test excavation can solve the problem. Excavations in the area east of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid The eastern side of the so‐called “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid opens towards a wadi that leads down to the cultivated area. In this wadi the harbour and lower causeway of the Bent Pyramid are situated. Lower causeway and harbour were discovered by the German Archaeological Institute in 2009 and are investigated since then10. The lower causeway is built from mudbrick and is leading from the harbour to the “valley temple”. In the time of Snefru the causeway was open but in the 6th Dynasty it was closed by a mudbrick vault, presumably as protection against the accumulating sand. The lower causeway ends and gives access to the temple in the middle of the eastern side of the temple enclosure wall11. 7
See for example M. Lehner, “The Pyramid Age Settlement of the Southern Mount at Giza”, JARCE 39 (2002) 27–74; A. Tavares, “Village, town and barracks: a fourth dynasty settlement at Heit el‐Ghurab, Giza”, in: N. Strudwick, H. Strudwick (eds.), “Old Kingdom, New Perspectives. Egyptian Art and Archaeology 2750 – 2150 BC” (Oxford, 2011) 270–
277. 8
P. Tallet, G. Marouard, D. Laisney, “Un port de la IVe dynastie au Ouadi al‐Jarf (mer Rouge)”, BIFAO 112 (2012) 399–
446. 9 C.R. Lepsius, Denkmaeler aus Aegypten und Aethiopien I (Leipzig, 1897) Blatt 35; M. Bárta, V. Bruna, Satellite Atlas of the Pyramids (Prague, 2006) 17 and map outside (original map by G. Erbkam). 10
Alexanian, Bebermeier, Blaschta, MDAIK 68 (2012) 1–30. 11
Ahmed Fakhry, The Monuments of Sneferu at Dahshur I. The Bent Pyramid (Cairo, 1959) 105–117, Fig. 4; N. Alexanian et al., MDAIK 68 (2012) 27–28. 6
A second approach from mudbrick is situated south of the lower causeway. It was built later than the original Old Kingdom causeway in a time when the latter was already completely covered by sand and was no longer in use. The structure was already discovered by Ahmed Fakhry but was only schematically documented. The precise dating of this structure is not clear. We re‐cleaned the area in 2012 and in 2015 in order to complete the documentation of the architecture and to find indications for its dating. Unfortunately it became evident that the mudbrick walls were in a much better condition in the time of Ahmed Fakhry than they are today. Today only the western part is preserved, the eastern part is almost completely deteriorated. The approach is defined by two mudbrick walls, each wall measuring only up to 65 cm in thickness (length of two mudbricks). It became clear during the work in spring 2015, however, that the mudbrick approach itself was built on top of an older structure. We unearthed a huge mudbrick building, measuring 7.8 x 6.3 + x m (Fig. 5). The building has several building phases. Most probably we excavated the foundation of an Old Kingdom house which was used as administrative building or for the accommodation of priests who worked in the temple. We will certainly get a better idea of the dating and function of the building when we continue our studies in the vicinity of the temple in the future. Fig. 5: Mudbrick building to the east of the so‐called “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid. Photo from the east. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐SM‐00074, photo S. Müller) 7
Examination of the New Kingdom limestone transport way The uncovering of the New Kingdom limestone transport way which was already excavated in autumn 2009, spring 2010 and spring 2012 was continued12. This way was built in the early Ramesside Period when the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid was dismantled. The road was used to transport dismantled heavy limestone blocks from the temple building to the floodplain. For the construction of the transport way the stone robbers used the waste products of their stone smashing in the temple: corner pieces and small limestone fragments –some of them even with relief decoration– which could not be used elsewhere as construction material for buildings. From 2009–2012 we already excavated 93 m of the road. In spring 2015 additional 40 m were uncovered towards the east (Fig. 6). This year 26 additional decorated relief fragments were discovered in the transport way, leading to a total of 140 relief fragments excavated so far. The relief fragments originally belonged to the decoration of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid and were reused in the way when the temple was dismantled. The additional fragments will certainly help to make a new attempt to reconstruct the original relief program of the oldest decorated pyramid temple of Egypt. One of the most interesting fragments discovered in 2015 shows the king on the right (his body is painted with red colour) being embraced by a female goddess represented on the left (her body is painted with yellow colour) (Fig. 7). The scene can be compared with the fragments discovered by Ahmed Fakhry showing the goddess Seshat embracing the king13. 12
N. Alexanian et al., MDAIK 68 (2012) 5–10. 13
Ahmed Fakhry, The Monuments of Sneferu at Dahshur. The Valley Temple. The Temple Reliefs II.1 (Cairo, 1961) Fig. 81. Fakhry reconstructs the scene on a pillar. 8
Fig: 6: Transport way of re‐used limestone blocks. It was built in the new Kingdom when the “valley temple” was dismantled. The photo shows the part excavated in 2015. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐SM‐00024, photo S. Müller) Fig. 7: Relief fragment from the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid showing the legs of the king (right) who is most probably embraced by a female goddess (left). (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐JP‐00101‐R‐15‐101, photo J. Pinke) It is evident that the transport way continues towards the floodplain of the river Nile. In order to get a more precise idea about the total length of the way we executed about 215 drill sondages in the wadi to the east of the Bent Pyramid. We could prove that the road continues the way down to the cultivated area. The total length of the transport way is at least 774 m (Fig. 8). The ramp lies 1–3 meters under the present surface. It is covered by aeolian sand which came into the wadi from the Old Kingdom onwards. It could be proved that it continues under the modern cemetery (which was illegally enlarged in January 2013) in the wadi entrance. In March 2013 electric resistivity measurements showed that most probably a canal is situated under the modern cemetery14. Now, further evidence for archaeological remains under he modern cemetery is ascertained by these sondages. 14
N. Alexanian, F. Arnold, T. Herbich, „The Necropolis of Dahshur. Tenth Excavation Report of the work in Spring 2013. German Archaeological Institute”, in press for ASAE. 9
Fig. 8: Location of the New Kingdom limestone transport way (blue line) in the wadi of the Bent Pyramid. To the west 133 m were excavated. The continuation of the transport way to the east is proved by drill sondages executed in spring 2015. The road continues under the modern cemetery. Its total length is at least 774 m. (©Google Earth 7/12/2013, illustration D. Blaschta) Drill sondages in the harbour basin in the wadi of the Bent Pyramid In the area of the harbour basin to the east of the Bent Pyramid altogether 45 drill sondages were executed from March, 9th until April, 8th 2015. The harbour basin is situated in the wadi to the east of the Bent Pyramid and east of the lower causeway of the Bent Pyramid15. It encompasses an area of 145 x 95 m. The existence of harbour walls from mudbrick could be proved in the west, south and north by magnetic surveys, drill sondages and excavations executed from 2009–12 (Fig. 9). It was not clear until now, however, whether a wall exists that closes the harbour basin to the east. Therefore the main aim of the auger sondages undertaken in 2015 was to prove or disapprove the existence of an eastern harbour wall. The northern part of the eastern harbour wall was visible in the magnetogram as a light shadow (see before, Fig. 1). Several drill sondages (for example B113 and B134) showed that a mudbrick wall indeed existed in the north‐eastern part of the harbour basin. To the north the wall stands to a maximum height of 2.5 m. Its crown lies about 4 m under the present surface. In the south‐eastern corner of the harbour a broad structure, maybe a platform from mudbrick, but no wall could 15
Alexanian et al., MDAIK 68 (2012) 3–5. 10
be determined by our drill sondages yet. Fig. 9: Plan of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid, the lower causeway and the harbour basin. (©GAICairo, AEGARON; plan T. Gutmann et.al.) Additionally, two drill holes (B133, B137) were executed in the middle of the harbour basin. Here, a canal which fed the harbour with water is expected. Bore hole B 133 reached the level of 13.18 m asl, which is 12 m under the present walking horizon, but still the natural ground of the basin was not reached. Interestingly, nevertheless, the absolute depth of 13.18 m asl in the middle of the basin is much deeper than the level of the wadi ground at the northern (18 m asl) and southern (18.50 m asl) limits of the basin. This shows that the wadi ground declines towards its central part. That a canal exists in the middle of the harbour could not be proved. Electric resistivity measurements executed in 2013 about 300 m to the east of the basin showed anomalies in a depth of 6‐8 m which might be interpreted as an Old Kingdom canal16. Work in the Middle Kingdom Cemetery west of the pyramid of Amenemhat II Due to security reasons the work in the Middle Kingdom necropolis to the west of the pyramid of 16
T. Herbich, in: Alexanian, Arnold, Herbich, “The Necropolis of Dahshur. Tenth excavation report Spring 2013”, ASAE, in print. 11
Amenemhat II could not be continued from 2011–2014. We only documented shafts which were excavated by tomb robbers in these years. In this spring an attempt to continue the excavation of shafts was undertaken. An area situated in the corner between the two rows of Middle Kingdom shafts17 was chosen. Here several remains of small superstructures were uncovered in 200918. Since the nature and dating of these superstructures were not completely understood in 2009, we re‐cleaned a part of the area in April 2015. We re‐excavated a miniature mudbrick mastaba (7M8), measuring 184 x 97 cm which is preserved to a height of 30 cm (Fig. 10). Fig. 10: Miniature mastaba (7M8) from mudbrick with shaft (7M8‐1) on its eastern side. The Red Pyramid can be seen in the background. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐JP‐00132, photo J. Pinke) The miniature mastaba is white plastered and has a simple central niche. Miniature mastabas with central niches can be found from the late Old Kingdom onwards and become regular in the First Intermediate Period and in the Middle Kingdom19. As we can tell so far, the pottery on the surface dates to the very late 17
For a plan of the Middle Kingdom cemetery compare N. Alexanian, D. Blaschta, W. Bebermeier, A. Ramisch, B. Schütt, S.J. Seidlmayer, “The Necropolis of Dahshur. Sixth Excavation report Spring 2009”, Fig. 1 in print for ASAE. 18
N. Alexanian, D. Blaschta, W. Bebermeier, A. Ramisch, B. Schütt, S.J. Seidlmayer, “The Necropolis of Dahshur‐ Sixth Excavation Report Spring 2009. German Archaeological Institute and Free University of Berlin”, ASAE in print. 19
Miniature mastabas with central compound niches can be found in Dendereh dating from the 8th to the 11th Dynasty (R.A. Slater, The Archaeology of Dendereh in the First Intermediate Period, Dissertation Philadelphia 1974, 12
Old Kingdom or to the First Intermediate Period. A rectangular shaft (7M8‐1) is situated directly in front of the eastern side of the mastaba. Rectangular shafts become common in the later Old Kingdom. We excavated this shaft. It measures 3.1 x 1.5 m and has a depth of 6.1 m. The burial chamber is situated to the south‐west of the shaft and is orientated north‐south. Due to security reasons the burial chamber had to be documented within one day. In the burial chamber (2.8 x 1.2 m) a well preserved burial and the remains of a wooden coffin were discovered (Fig. 11). The coffin (1.82 x 0.56 x 0.45 + x m) still had remains of stucco and yellow paint on its inner side but was in a bad state of preservation. The skeleton was partly wrapped in linen bandages, the head still had residues of a painted mummy mask/cartonage on its face with two horizontal blue strips on the forehead and black colour on the back of the head. A broad funerary collar (wesekh) of green and blue alternating glazed faience beads and pendants of stylised beetles still lay on the chest of the burial. The broad collar consists of five rows of vertically positioned long cylinder beads separated by rows of ring beads. At the bottom the collar is boarded by a strand of stylized beetles as pendants, at the top it was most probably bordered by a strand of cylinder and maybe barrel beads strung horizontally. The collar terminals were not found. A very similar broad collar was found in the shaft of Impy at Giza, dating to the late 6th Dynasty20. Stylized beetles were used as pendants in the jewellery of the Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period21. A mirror from copper was discovered to the northeast and partly under the head of the burial. As we can tell so far the burial and the miniature mastaba date to the late Old Kingdom or First Intermediate Period. This means that the tomb does not belong to the Middle Kingdom cemetery but is part of the Old Kingdom cemetery DAM 8 which is situated in the valley to the east of the Red Pyramid22. The Middle Kingdom necropolis partly intersects with the western end of the Old Kingdom cemetery. University Microfilms, Ann Arbor (Michigan, 1986) 161‐164, type OP1‐1.; id., The Museum Journal 8, no. 4 (1917) Fig. 95. The small mastabas with a core from mudbrick and a casing with limestone slabs north of the pyramid complex of Senowsret III at Dahshur also have a central niches (J. de Morgan, Fouilles à Dahchour, Mars‐Juin 1894 (Vienne, 1895) mastabas n° 10 and 11, 26–27, fig. 18, pls. VI–XI). 20
Boston MFA 13.3086, Giza, Western Cemetery pit G 2381 A; see G.A. Reisner, “A Family of Builders of the Sixth Dynasty, about 2600 B.C.”, Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 11, No. 66 (November 1913) 59–61. 21 P. Rigault, in: Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids, Exhibition, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 1999) 424. 22
N. Alexanian, H. Becker, M. Müller, S.J. Seidlmayer, „Die Residenznekropole von Dahschur. Zweiter Grabungsbericht“, MDAIK 62 (2006) 7–41. 13
Fig. 11: Burial 7M8‐1 of the miniature mastaba. A broad collar from green and blue glazed faience beads was still lying on the chest of the burial. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐JP‐00226‐7M8‐1_Bestattung, photo J. Pinke) Consolidation and Conservation The consolidation and restoration work was continued by E. Peintner in the magazine of Dahshur as well as in the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid. The focus lay on the consolidation and cleaning of the relief fragments from the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid stored in the central magazine of Dahshur. The salt deposits on the surface of several limestone fragments and Middle Kingdom libation basins were removed with a diamond grinding device. In the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid of Snefru five limestone fragments were reattached to the blocks of the temple walls in their original positions. The pieces had chipped off presumably due to salt deposits inside the limestone blocks. The larger stone fragments were reinforced with stainless steel anchors and glued with a two‐component stone adhesive (Figs. 12, 13). The smaller ones were only glued. 14
Figs. 12, 13: Limestone block in the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid before and after consolidation. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015_F_EP_002 and 005, photo E. Peintner) 15
Captions: Fig. 1: Magnetic map from the surveys in 2013, 2014 and 2015 of the area south and north of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid and of the harbour walls east of the “valley temple”. (© GAICairo, T. Herbich superimposed on a Google Earth satellite picture 2013) Fig. 2: The original drawing of the map of G. Erbkam and R. Lepsius from 1843 shows workmen´s barracks south of the Red Pyramid and a similar structure east of the Red Pyramid. (© Berlin Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, scan generously provided by M. Bárta) Fig. 3: The magnetic map from the surveys in 2013 and 2015 of the area south of the Red Pyramid shows workmen´s barracks from the time of the construction of the Red Pyramid. (© GAICairo, T. Herbich) Fig. 4: Hypothetical plan of the barracks superimposed on the magnetic map. In yellow: plan based on 2013 survey results; in blue: plan based on 2015 survey results. In red: fireplaces and kilns; in white: structures excavated by German Archaeological Institute in 1992. (© GAICairo, T. Herbich) Fig. 5: Mudbrick building to the east of the so‐called “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid. Photo from the est. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐SM‐00074, photo S. Müller) Fig: 6: Transport way of re‐used limestone blocks. It was built in the new Kingdom when the “valley temple” was dismantled. The photo shows the part excavated in 2015. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐SM‐00024, photo S. Müller) Fig. 7: Relief fragment from the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid showing the legs of the king (right) who is most probably embraced by a female goddess (left). (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐JP‐00101‐R‐15‐101, photo J. Pinke) Fig. 8: Location of the New Kingdom limestone transport way (blue line) in the wadi of the Bent Pyramid. To the west 133 m were excavated. The continuation of the transport way to the east is proved by drill sondages executed in spring 2015. The road continues under the modern cemetery. Its total length is at least 774 m. (©Google Earth 7/12/2013, illustration D. Blaschta) Fig. 9: Plan of the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid, the lower causeway and the harbour basin. (©GAICairo, AEGARON; plan T. Gutmann et.al.) 16
Fig. 10: Miniature mastaba (7M8) from mudbrick with shaft (7M8‐1) on its eastern side. The Red Pyramid can be seen in the background. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐JP‐00132, photo J. Pinke) Fig. 11: Burial 7M8‐1 of the miniature mastaba. A broad collar from green and blue glazed faience beads was still lying on the chest of the burial. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015‐F‐JP‐00226‐7M8‐1_Bestattung, photo J. Pinke) Figs. 12, 13: Limestone block in the “valley temple” of the Bent Pyramid before and after consolidation. (©GAICairo, DAH‐2015_F_EP_002 and 005, photo E. Peintner) 17