Who was Amenemhat III?

Amenemhat III was an Egyptian pharaoh. He belonged to the 12the Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom period. As he ruled from 1818 BCE to 1770 BCE. He was an important ruler. As he regenerated the economy during his reign.

What does Black Pyramid mean?

Pharaoh Amenemhat III ordered to build the Black Pyramid. It is located in the Dashur necropolis. There were total eleven original pyramids at Dashur. Only five are remaining now. It is one of them. The present location of Dashur is at Giza Governorate of Egypt, on the west bank of the Nile approximately 25 miles south of Cairo.

Excavation of the Black pyramid

Jacques de Morgan of a French archaeological mission began the excavation in 1892. The German Archaeological Institute of Cairo completed excavation in 1983.

Why the name is ‘Black’ pyramid?

There is a reason for calling it a ‘black pyramid’. The colour of the mud-rick core of the pyramid was revealed by the missing causing blocks. Thus, people call it a black pyramid.

The structure of the pyramid

Mud brick & clay were used for the construction of the body of the pyramid. There is a substructure of the pyramid. It is basically a complex system of interconnected passageways. It was very important. Because it served as a way to make robbers fool.

There is another importance of this pyramid. This pyramid had both king’s & queens’ chambers. It was actually the first pyramid of Egypt to have both king’s & queens’ chambers. The king’s chamber was in the eastern quadrant of the pyramid. The queens’ chamber was in the southern quadrant of the pyramid. These two sections had their own entrances. But they had two interconnected corridors.

The Valley temple

There was a valley temple in the pyramid complex. It consists of two open courts. These courts were on a raised terrace one above the other. There was a pylon-like gateway which the lower court formed. This court yielded a limestone model of a thirteenth dynasty pyramid complete along with subterranean chambers. This is may have been a model of Hawara pyramid Amenemhat. But there is debate regarding this matter.

The Mortuary temple

There was a mortuary temple in the pyramid complex. A wide causeway connected the main pyramid & the mortuary temple with the valley temple. Presently, this mortuary temple is badly damaged. There was an open courtyard with eighteen granite columns in the shape of papyrus plants in the mortuary temple.

The shaft burials

There are a total of ten shaft burials in the pyramid complex. Among these ten burials, first & second from the eastern side are important. Because they belong to two royal personalities. The first one belongs to the pharaoh Hor of the 13th Dynasty of the Second Intermediate Period. The second one is of the daughter of Amenemhat, Princess Nubheteptikhered.

The poor condition of the Black Pyramid

Presently, the Black Pyramid is in poor condition. Because its foundation was constructed on the unstable ground. The system of supporting the weight of the masonry was also very poor. Apart from this, the substructure of the pyramid weakened the core pyramid. Because the substructure had a very complex & large system.