1.7 Read the text and answer the questions: Kings of the Dead

Ancient Egyptians believed that when the pharaoh died, he became Osiris, king of the dead. The new pharaoh became Horus, god of the heavens and protector of the sun god. This cycle was symbolized by the rising and setting of the sun.

Some part of a dead pharaoh's spirit, called his ka, was believed to remain with his body. And it was thought that if the corpse did not have proper care, the former pharaoh would not be able to carry out his new duties as king of the dead. If this happened, the cycle would be broken and disaster would befall Egypt.

To prevent such a catastrophe, each dead pharaoh was mummified, which preserved his body. Everything the king would need in his afterlife was provided in his grave – vessels made of clay, stone, and gold, furniture, food, even doll-like representations of servants, known as ushabti. His body would continue to receive food offerings long after his death.

Questions:

1. What did Ancient Egyptians believe in when the pharaoh died?

2. What did the cycle mean? How could it be broken?

3. What were they doing to prevent such a catastrophe?

1.8 Read and retell the text using the vocabulary notes: Egyptian pyramids

Vocabulary notes:

current archaeological consensus – современная точка зрения в археологии

quarrying – добыча

to superimpose upon – накладывать на

the natural hillock – естественный холм

satellite pyramid – спутниковая пирамида

a better state of preservation – лучшая степень сохранности

satellite edifices – спутниковое сооружение

polished limestone – полированный известняк

elevated location – надземное расположение

steeper angle of inclination – более крутой угол отклонения

to be attributed to – быть отнесенным к чему-либо

four-year tenure – четырехлетнее пребывание

premature – преждевременный

truncation – округление

vibrant economy – оживленная экономика

predecessor – предшественник

loose masonry – свободная каменная кладка

substantial monumental structure – надежное монументальное сооружение

inaccessible – недоступный

to create a pyramid with smooth sides – создавать пирамиду со сглаженными сторонами

a significant proportion – значительные пропорции

luminous appearance – святящаяся внешность, вид

relative obscurity – относительная неясность

to construct the pyramids out of mudbrick – строить пирамиду из глиняных блоков

obscure structures – затемненные структуры

subsidiary pyramids – вспомогательные пирамиды

in the vicinity – в окрестностях

a mountain of rubble from the collapsed outer casing – гора развалин из разрушившегося корпуса

pharaoh's predecessor – предшественник фараона

to suffer a catastrophic collapse – переживать катастрофический крах

the small mountain of debris – маленькая гора обломков

to reduce the amount – понижать количество

Abu Rawash

Abu Rawash is the site of Egypt's most northerly pyramid – the mostly ruined Pyramid of Djedefre, son and successor of Khufu. Originally it was thought that this pyramid had never been completed, but the current archaeological consensus is that not only was it completed, but that it was originally about the same size as the Pyramid ofMenkaure, which would have made it among the half-dozen or so largest pyramids in Egypt.

Its location adjacent to a major crossroad made it an easy source of stone. Quarrying – which began in Roman times – has left little apart from a few courses of stone superimposed upon the natural hillock that formed part of the pyramid's core. A small adjacent satellite pyramid is in a better state of preservation.

Giza

Giza is the location of the Pyramid of Khufu (also known as the "Great Pyramid"); the somewhat smaller Pyramid of Khafre(or Kephren); the relatively modest-sizedPyramid of Menkaure(or Mykerinus), along with a number of smaller satellite edifices known as "Queen's pyramids"; and theGreat Sphinx.

Of the three, only Khafre's pyramid retains part of its original polished limestone casing, near its apex. This pyramid appears larger than the adjacent Khufu pyramid by virtue of its more elevated location, and the steeper angle of inclination of its construction – it is, in fact, smaller in both height and volume.

The Giza Necropolishas been a popular tourist destination since antiquity, and was popularized in Hellenistic times when the Great Pyramid was listed byAntipater of Sidon as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Today it is the only one of those wonders still in existence.

Zawyet el-Aryan

This site, halfway between Giza and Abu Sir, is the location for two unfinished Old Kingdom pyramids. The northern structure's owner is believed to be the Pharaoh Nebka, whilst the southern structure is attributed to the Third Dynasty PharaohKhaba, also known as Hudjefa, successor to Sekhemkhet.

Khaba's four-year tenure as pharaoh more than likely explains the similar premature truncation of his step pyramid. Today it is approximately twenty meters in height.

Abu Sir

There are a total of seven pyramids at this site, which served as the main royal necropolis during the Fifth Dynasty. The quality of construction of the Abu Sir pyramids is inferior to those of the Fourth Dynasty – perhaps signaling a decrease in royal power or a less vibrant economy. They are smaller than their predecessors, and are built of low-quality local limestone.

The three major pyramids are those of Niuserre(which is also the most intact),Neferirkare Kakai and Sahure. The site is also home to the incomplete Pyramid of Neferefre. All of the major pyramids at Abu Sir were built as step pyramids, although the largest of them– the Pyramid of Neferirkare Kakai – is believed to have originally been built as a step pyramid some 70 metres in height and then later transformed into a "true" pyramid by having its steps filled in with loose masonry.

Saqqara

Major pyramids located here include the Step Pyramid of Djozer– generally identified as the world's oldest substantial monumental structure to be built of finished stone– the Pyramid of Merykare, the Pyramid of Userkaf and the Pyramid of Teti. Also at Saqqara there is the Pyramid of Unas, which retains a pyramid causeway that is one of the best-preserved in Egypt. This pyramid was also the subject of one of the earliest known restoration attempts, conducted by a son of Ramesses II. Saqqara is also the location of the incomplete step pyramid of Djozer's successor Sekhemkhet, known as the Buried Pyramid. Archaeologists believe that if this pyramid had been completed it would have been larger than Djozer's.

Dahshur

Red Pyramid

This area is arguably the most important pyramid field in Egypt outside Giza and Saqqara, although until 1996 the site was inaccessible due to its location within a military base, and hence was virtually unknown outside archaeological circles.

The southern Pyramid of Sneferu, commonly known as the Bent Pyramid is believed to be the first (or by some accounts, second) attempt at creating a pyramid with smooth sides. In this it was only a partial – but nonetheless visually arresting – success; it remains the only Egyptian pyramid to retain a significant proportion of its original limestone casing, and serves as the best example of the luminous appearance common to all pyramids in their original state. The northern, or Red Pyramid built at the same location by Sneferu was later successfully completed as the world's first true smooth-sided pyramid. Despite its relative obscurity, the Red Pyramid is actually the third largest pyramid in Egypt – after the pyramids of Khufu and KhafreatGiza. Also at Dahshur is the pyramid known as the Black Pyramid of Amenemhet III.

Mazghuna

Located to the south of Dahshur, this area was used in the First Intermediate Periodby several kings who constructed their pyramids out ofmudbrick. Today these structures are obscure and unimpressive.

Lisht

The ruined Pyramid of Amenemhet I at Lisht

Two major pyramids are known to have been built at Lisht – those of Amenemhet I and his son, Senusret I. The latter is surrounded by the ruins of ten smaller subsidiary pyramids. One of these subsidiary pyramids is known to be that of Amenemhet's cousin, Khaba II. The site which is in the vicinity of the oasis of Faiyum, midway betweenDahshur and Meidum, and about 100 kilometres south of Cairo, is believed to be in the vicinity of the ancient city of Itjtawy (the precise location of which remains unknown), which served as the capital of Egypt during the 12th Dynasty.

Meidum

Sneferu's Pyramid at Meidum; the central core structure remains surrounded by a mountain of rubble from the collapsed outer casing.

The pyramid at Meidum is one of three constructed during the reign of Sneferu, and is believed by some to have been started by that pharaoh's father and predecessor, Huni. However, this is not very likely, as his name does not appear on the site. Some archaeologists also suggest that the Meidum pyramid may have been the first unsuccessful attempt at the construction of a "true" or smooth-sided pyramid.

The pyramid suffered a catastrophic collapse in antiquity, and today only the central parts of its stepped inner core remain standing, giving it an odd tower-like appearance that is unique among Egyptian pyramids. The hill that the pyramid sits atop is not a natural landscape feature – it is the small mountain of debris created when the lower courses and outer casing of the pyramid gave way.

Hawara

The Pyramid of Amenemhet III at Hawarra

Amenemhet IIIwas the last powerful ruler of the 12th Dynasty, and the pyramid he built at Hawarra, near Faiyum, is believed to post-date the so-called "Black Pyramid" built by the same ruler atDahshur. It is the Hawarra pyramid that is believed to have been Amenemhet's final resting place.

El-Lahun

The Pyramid of Senusret II. The pyramid's natural limestone core is clearly visible as the yellow stratum at its base.

The pyramid of Senusret II at el-Lahun is the southernmost royal-tomb pyramid structure in Egypt. Its builders reduced the amount of work necessary to construct it by ingeniously using as its foundation and core a 12-meter-high natural limestone hill.