File:Dahshur_-_Red_Pyramid_-_Tourist_policemen_on_camel.JPG · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Dahshur
Sign in to saveDahshur (in English often called Dashur; '''' ) is an ancient Egyptian pyramid complex and necropolis and shares the name of the nearby village of Manshiyyat Dahshur () in markaz Badrashin, Giza.
Weather now
cached 71h ago7-day forecast
via Open-Meteo
Key facts
- Ancient site.name
- Dahshur
- Ancient site.image
- Dahshur - Red Pyramid - Tourist policemen on camel.JPG
- Ancient site.caption
- Sneferu's Red Pyramid
- Ancient site.map_type
- Egypt
- Ancient site.location
- Giza Governorate, Egypt
- Ancient site.type
- Necropolis
- Ancient site.builder
- Sneferu
- Ancient site.built
- 2613–2589 BC
- Ancient site.epochs
- Old Kingdom to Middle Kingdom
- UNESCO World Heritage Site.child
- yes
- UNESCO World Heritage Site.part_of
- "Pyramid fields from Giza to Dahshur" part of Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur
- UNESCO World Heritage Site.criteria
- (i), (iii), (vi)
- UNESCO World Heritage Site.ID
- 86-002
- UNESCO World Heritage Site.year
- 1979
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Dahshur - Red Pyramid - Tourist policemen on camel.JPG
Show 2 more facts
- Commons category
- Dahshur
- inception
- 2589-00-00
Sources (3)
via Wikidata · CC0
Travel guide
Understand
300px|thumb|right|The Red Pyramid and Bent Pyramid in comparison thumb|300px|The Bent Pyramid at Dahshur Dahshur is best known as a more tranquil, if also more isolated, site in which to visit several large pyramids - at least, when compared to Giza and Saqqara. Visitor numbers are much smaller, queues are way shorter and there is far less hassle.
Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, Dahshur formed part of the extensive necropolis of ancient Memphis during the Old Kingdom - the so-called "Pyramid Age". The pharaoh Sneferu (sometimes spelt Snofru), founder of the 4th Dynasty and the father to Khufu - builder of the Great Pyramid at Giza) - managed to erect two complete pyramids at the location, in addition to completing another pyramid (for his predecessor Huni) at Meidum. In sheer volume alone, the father definitely out-did his son!
Somewhat later, Pharaohs of the Middle Kingdom's 12th Dynasty erected their own pyramids at the locality - though on a greatly reduced scale.
Dahshur is very much off the traditional tourist trail around Cairo, having been a restricted military zone until 1996. The Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities is encouraging travellers to visit Dahshur, in an attempt to relieve some of the pressure on the Giza pyramids.
Get around
The Red Pyramid is 2.5 km straight west from the ticket office along the road. The pyramid field extends over 3.5 km north to south, which can be walked or done with the vehicle you arrived with, but as 11/2024 only Red Pyramid and Bent Pyramid are reachable by tourists (there are no trail to walk, and guards prevent you even to try).
Do
Hike around the area from the Red Pyramid, to the Bent Pyramid, to the forgotten Temple, to the Black Pyramid and finally back into Dahshur village. Climb down into the Red Pyramid and Bent Pyramid.
Go next
Saqqara – An extensive number of pyramids and tombs on a plateau above the Nile Valley, just north of Dahshur. Meidum Pyramid – A forgotten step pyramid in the countryside more than 30 km northeast of Fayum. Fayum – A town neglected by most tourists but worth a visit considering the many interesting sites there. Memphis
Travel guide from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0)
~6 min read
Article
7 sectionsContents
- Pyramids
- Tombs and cemeteries
- Contemporary history
- Climate
- See also
- Notes
- External links
Dahshur (in English often called Dashur; '''' ) is an ancient Egyptian pyramid complex and necropolis and shares the name of the nearby village of Manshiyyat Dahshur () in markaz Badrashin, Giza.
Dahshur is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is located on the Western Desert plateau at the edge of the cultivated plain, and along with the pyramid complexes at Saqqara, Abusir, and Giza, to its north, forms the pyramid fields of the ancient capital city of Memphis. It is known chiefly for several pyramids, mainly Sneferu's Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid, which are among the oldest, largest and best preserved in Egypt, built from 2613 to 2589 BC.
Gallery (13)
On the map
3 mapped locations