page_title: Pyramid of Userkaf
section_title: Discovery
hierarchical_section_title: Pyramid of Userkaf / Pyramid complex of Queen Neferhetepes / Discovery
caption_attribution_description: Chambre funéraire de la pyramide de reine d'Ouserkaf - Saqqarah - Ve dynastie égyptienne
context_page_description: The pyramid complex of Userkaf was built c. 2490 BC for the pharaoh Userkaf, founder of the 5th Dynasty of Egypt. It is located in the pyramid field at Saqqara, on the north-east of the step pyramid of Djoser. Constructed in dressed stone with a core of rubble, the pyramid is now ruined and resembles a conical hill in the sands of Saqqara. For this reason, it is known locally as El-Haram el-Maharbish, the "Heap of Stone" and was recognized as a royal pyramid by western archaeologists in the 19th century.
  Userkaf's pyramid is part of a larger mortuary complex comprising a mortuary temple, an offering chapel and a cult pyramid as well as separate pyramid and mortuary temple for Userkaf's wife, queen Neferhetepes. Userkaf's mortuary temple and cult pyramid are today completely ruined and difficult to recognize. The pyramid of the queen is no more than a mound of rubble, with its funerary chamber exposed by stone robbers.
  The complex is markedly different from those built during the 4th Dynasty in its size, architecture and location, being at Saqqara rather than Gizah.
context_section_description: The pyramid of the queen was first recognized in 1928 by C. M. Firth following his first excavations to the south of Userkaf's main pyramid. One year later in 1929, he proposed that the pyramid be assigned to Queen Neferhetepes, Userkaf's wife and the mother of Sahure. It was not before 1943 that Bernard Grdseloff discovered the tomb of Persen, a priest at the court of Userkaf and Neferhetepes. His tomb is located in the immediate vicinity of Userkaf's complex and yielded an inscribed stone giving the name and rank of the queen. This stone is now on display at the Egyptian Museum of Berlin. Further evidence confirming the assignment of the pyramid to Neferhetepes was discovered by Audran Labrousse in 1979 when he excavated the ruins of the temple. Consequently, the small pyramid complex has been attributed to her.
caption: The funerary chamber of the queen's pyramid exposed by stone robbers.
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