Pyramid of Teti at Saqqara
The leader of the Sixth Dynasty
A smooth-sided pyramid, Teti is located in Saqqara, near Cairo, Egypt. Dating from what was known as the 6th Dynasty, it was one of the first original pyramids built.Located in a green belt area known as Saqqara and about 50 minutes from the centre of Cairo, it also offers stunning views across the desert plain towards the 3 Pyramids of Giza with the Red Pyramid in sight between them.
Teti is historically the second known Pyramid to contain Pyramid texts. Excavations have revealed a satellite pyramid, two queen pyramids accompanied by cult structures and a funerary temple. Gaston Maspero opened the Pyramid in 1882, and between 1907 and 1965, the structure was the subject of many exploration missions. At first, it was known as Teti's Places Are Enduring. The area above ground has virtually little conservation and now resembles a little hill. The underground passageways and rooms are in excellent condition.
Located in Saqqara and excavated by Meriette in the 1850s, it has since been engulfed by sand and may be closed; in one of the burial chambers (accessible via a sloping shaft and a low passage), the star-shaped blocks of its vaulted roof have slid inwards. Although most of the 6th Dynasty kings who followed Teti chose to be buried at Saqqara South, several of their courtiers were buried in a ‘street of tombs’ next to his pyramid, which was linked to the Serapeum by an Avenue of the Sphinxes (now sanded).
His pyramid was built in Saqqara, where he was buried and inscribed with the ‘Pyramid Texts’, and about his personal life, King Teti married four women, the most famous of them: ‘Iput’, “Khuit”, and “Khentkaus IV”.
Tete had more than 10 sons and daughters, the most famous of whom are: ‘Pepe I, Prince Teti Ankh Kem, and Princess Seshet. His military activity may have extended to Nubia, where he sent war campaigns to subdue the rebellious Bedouins.
And one of the most important archaeological discoveries in Saqqara. In addition to the pyramid of the first king of the Sixth Dynasty, King Teti (2325-2295 BC), a new pyramid was found there, whose construction, according to scholars, dates back to 4300. This burial complex belonged to Shachti, the mother of Pharaoh Teti.
