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ANCIENT EGYPT CIVILIZATION BIBLIOGRAPHY DJOSER (PHAROAH)

Djoser, also spelled Zoser, was the second king of the 3rd dynasty (c. 2650c. 2575 BCE) of ancient Egypt. He undertook the construction of the earliest important stone building in Egypt. His reign, which probably lasted 19 years, was marked by great technological innovation in the use of stone architecture. His minister, Imhotep, a talented architect and physician, was himself deified and regarded as the Son of Ptah and the Lord of all Builders in later periods. Djoser succeeded his brother King Sanakhte, the first king of the third Dynasty who ruled for about 18 years, although not much is known about him or his reign. Through his mother, he was related to the last ruler of the 2nd dynasty (c. 2775c. 2650). With the help of Imhotep, the king erected a funerary complex at Saqqrah, outside the royal capital, Memphis (southwest of modern Cairo). The innovative structure which was completely built by stone was a departure from the traditional use of mud bricks along with stone(2). The greatest advance, however, was a complete alteration of the shape of the monument from a flat-topped rectangular structure to a six-stepped pyramid. Surrounding the Step Pyramid were a large number of limestone buildings intended to represent shrines used for royal rituals. The style of architecture of these buildings reproduced in minute detail of wood, reed, and brick forms employed in utilitarian construction in Egypt. The pyramid complex was enclosed by a wall with a single entrance at the southeast corner of the precinct. The step pyramid is made of lime stone. Its massive and contains only one tight corridor leading to the close midst of the monument, ending in a rough chamber where the entrance to the tomb shaft was hidden. This inner construction was later filled with rubble, for it was of no use anymore. The pyramid was once 62 metres high and had a base measurement of 121 X 109 metres. It was tightly covered in finely polished, white limestone (1).

During the 2nd dynasty, Djoser was the first king to reside exclusively at Memphis, thereby helping to make it the political and cultural centre of Old King dom(c. 2575 c. 2130 BCE) Egypt. Djoser was buried in his famous step pyramid at Saqqara. This pyramid was originally built as a nearly quadratic mastaba, but then five further mastabas were literally piled upon the first, each new mastaba smaller than the predecessing ones, until the monument became Egypts first step pyramid. Supervisor of the building constructions was the high lector priest Imhotep(2). King Djoser was a true Pharaoh in every sense of the word and was the most strongest king in the third dynasty in ancient Egypt. In fact, he was a king of many "firsts". First of all, not only was he the first Egyptian to order the construction of a pyramid, he actually pulled it off. The Step Pyramid was completed in time for his death, only after 19 years of ruling the country. Building such a structure in a relatively short period of time attests to the power and authority of the Pharaoh. Apart from that, Djoser was a great military commander and a warrior king who waged successful wars against the inhabitants of the Sinai Peninsula(3). Besides, he discovered a lot of copper and turquoise in Sinai. That mining helped him to create a huge contribution particularly the Saqqara pyramid which is the first in ancient Egyptian history. Since then, he increased the wealth of Egypt by the mining of turquoise and other precious stones and metals. Also, Djoser extended his rule down as far as the 1st Cataract of the Nile near Aswan (later this would be the official southern border of Egypt). The entire Djoser complex was a monumental achievement in Egyptian history that proved to be a test of the architectural limits of their time. The Djoser pyramid has survived the test of time and remains one of todays most popular tourist attractions. The first of its kind, the Great Step Pyramid remains one of the greatest accomplishments of human history. Lastly, King Djoser was the most outstanding pharaoh in the Old Kingdom and perhaps in the entire Egyptian history

Citation 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Djoser 2. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/166971/Djoser 3. http://www.ancient-egypt.org/index.html