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Pyramid of Unas
Monument at Saqqara · also called Unas pyramid, Wenis pyramid, Pyramid Texts of Unas, Pyramid of Wenis
The Pyramid of Unas holds the oldest Pyramid Texts, carved around 2350 BC: columns of hieroglyphs filled with blue paint that cover the king's burial rooms from floor to ceiling.
Unas was the last king of the Fifth Dynasty. Outside, his pyramid is a heap of rubble. Inside, the antechamber and burial chamber carry spells to help the dead king rise to the sky, join the sun god and live among the stars. Scholars count over two hundred of them, among them the "Cannibal Hymn", in which the king feeds on the power of the gods.
Kings after him carved the same kind of texts, and versions of the spells lived on in later coffins and books of the dead. On the outer south face, a son of Ramesses II, Khaemwaset, left an inscription recording that he restored the name of Unas.
What to see and read
Burial chamber
A starry gabled ceiling and the king's dark stone sarcophagus at the west end. The walls around the sarcophagus are carved as a palace front instead of text.
Antechamber
More columns of spells on every wall, with the king's cartouche repeated in each.
Khaemwaset's restoration text
Carved on the south face, an early case of a prince caring for an old monument.
Names you can find here
Signs to look for
- Cartouche V10 The name Unas sits in a cartouche in spell after spell.
- Hare E34wn The hare writes wen, the first sound of Unas (Wenis), in each cartouche.
- Folded cloth S29s The folded cloth gives the final s of Wenis.
- Star N14sbꜣ Stars cover the ceilings and appear in spells about the king becoming a star.
- Sun N5rꜥ The sun disc of Ra marks spells where the king joins the sun god.
Reading the hieroglyphs here
- The passage is low; use a wrist strap.
- The blue signs suit the live camera; trace those that have lost their paint.
Point your camera at a wall Hiero Lens boxes the signs and names them, on your phone; nothing is uploaded. On worn stone, trace a sign over the photo.
Questions
Why are the Pyramid Texts of Unas important?
They are the oldest large body of religious writing known from Egypt. Unas was the first king to have them carved, around 2350 BC.
Can you go inside the Pyramid of Unas?
It opens at times and closes at others for conservation, and may need a separate ticket. Ask at Saqqara if it is open when you visit.
Also at Saqqara
Step Pyramid of Djoser
The writing at the Step Pyramid is sparse but early. Here the king's own name, the Horus Netjerikhet, is carved inside a serekh on reliefs of his jubilee race, around 2650 BC; the name Djoser comes from much later visitors.
MonumentSerapeum of Saqqara
In the Serapeum the writing to find is on a few of its giant stone sarcophagi: columns of hieroglyphs and royal cartouches, among them the name of Amasis of the 26th Dynasty. The galleries were the burial place of the Apis bulls, living images of Ptah of Memphis.
MonumentPyramid of Teti
Inside the Pyramid of Teti, first king of the Sixth Dynasty (c. 2345 BC), the walls carry Pyramid Texts in columns of hieroglyphs under a gabled ceiling of stars. It is the second royal set of these spells, after Unas.
MonumentMastaba of Ti
In the Mastaba of Ti every scene has its hieroglyph captions: you can read what the farmers, boat builders and herdsmen are doing, and sometimes what they say. The reliefs, from around 2400 BC, are some of the finest of the Old Kingdom.
MonumentMastaba of Mereruka
The Mastaba of Mereruka is packed with captioned scenes and long titles carved in hieroglyphs, in more than thirty rooms. Mereruka was vizier of King Teti around 2340 BC, and this is the largest tomb of any Old Kingdom official at Saqqara.
MonumentMastaba of Ptahhotep and Akhethotep
Ptahhotep's chapel keeps some of the best-preserved colour of any Old Kingdom relief, with crisp painted hieroglyphs and a long offering list you can read item by item. The tomb dates to the late Fifth Dynasty, around 2400 BC.
MonumentTomb of Horemheb at Saqqara
The reliefs in Horemheb's Saqqara tomb show him as army commander under Tutankhamun, around 1320 BC, with captions spelling out his military titles. On some figures a royal cobra was added to his brow after he became king.
MuseumImhotep Museum
The Imhotep Museum, at the entrance to Saqqara, is named after the man whose name is carved on a statue base of King Djoser, the one inscription from his lifetime known to name him. Its well-lit cases hold inscribed finds from the site, a good place to learn the signs before the worn tomb walls.
Where it is
Open in OpenStreetMap · Written from published sources and not yet checked on site by our team: displays and open tombs change.