Sakkara, home of the step pyramid and claimed to be the oldest of all Egyptian pyramids, is a site of great historical importance. Spreads over 8 kilometers, the necropolis of Sakkara is the largest in all of Egypt and is divided in two sections, North Sakkara and South Sakkara.
The north section of the huge cemetery is the most interesting, dominated by the great Djosers Step pyramid.
Djoser, the second king of the third dynasty, was the first pharaoh who entrusted an architect with the building of a funeral monument. The Step Pyramid is considered the model for the Giza Pyramid. The project was the beginning of architecture and Imhotep is recognized as the first architect known to civilization.
Djoser was to be buried in the great pyramid while members of his family and his court were to rest in the smaller mastabas (smaller tombs) surrounding it. When the Step Pyramid was completed it stood 62 meters high and was covered in shiny white limestone. The burial chamber is decorated in blue tiles. A statue of Djoser standing in tomb is a replica of the original, which is found in the Cairo Museum.
Kings and nobles were buried in Sakkara during the time of the Old Kingdom, later during the New Kingdom the cemetery was used to bury mummified sacred animals and birds.
In 1851 the Serapeum, the burial place of the sacred Apis bull, was discovered.
The whole burial complex is enormous but it is close enough to Cairo that in a half a day you can see these splendid points of interest.
