Oldest Pyramid In Ancient Egypt, The Step Pyramid Of Djoser, Saqqara Egypt. 14 Years Of Renovations.

#StepPyramid #PyramidOfDjoser #OldestPyramid

00:00 Opening monologue
00:56 Pre-dynastic Egypt
02:56 First Dynasties
04:48 Third Dynasty, Old Kingdom
06:00 Step Pyramid of Djoser
08:55 Wall
09:21 Entrance
10:26 South Court & South Tomb
11:29 T Tomb & Heb-Sed Court
13:12 Mortuary Temple
13:41 Serdab with the sealed statue of Djoser
14:29 How was the Pyramid of Djoser constructed?
16:37 Earthquake 1992 & Renovation of the damaged Pyramid
18:39 Reopening Step Pyramid of Djoser

Egypt has one of the longest histories of any country and alongside Mesopotamia was a part of the Fertile Crescent which is considered to be one of the cradles of civilization.
The most famous monuments in Egypt are the pyramids, these ancient structures still fascinate people in this day and age.
The Step Pyramid of King Djoser at Saqqara is the oldest large-scale monumental stone structure in not only Egypt, but the entire world.

Around 6.000 BCE ancient Egypt was divided into 2 regions, Upper Egypt in the south and Lower Egypt to the North, where the Nile forms its several branches to form the Nile Delta.
The names Upper and Lower come from the flow of the Nile from the Highlands of East Africa towards the Mediterranean Sea.
The upper and lower communities co-existed for more than 2000 years, their cultures remained distinct even though they maintained frequent contact through trade.

The unification of the realm is credited to Narmer, on the Narmer palette the King is depicted on one side wearing the Red Crown and on the other side he wears the White crown, therefore showing his rule over both lands.

The earliest known evidence of Hieroglyphs appears to date from the pre-dynastic period of Naqada 3 pottery vessels from 3200 BCE.

These structures were built mostly of wood and mud bricks, with some small use of stone for walls and floors and they are known as mastaba's.
Mastaba means House of eternity and it was an ancient Egyptian structure in the form of a flat roofed rectangular structure with inward facing sloping sides which were constructed out of mud bricks.
These structures marked the burial sites of pharaoh’s and many highly revered Egyptians in the early dynastic period and in the Old Kingdom.

The first Pharaoh of the Old Kingdom is Djoser, who at the time was only known by his Horus name Netjerikhet, which means Divine of Body.
Djoser was the son of Khasekhemwy and his wife Nimaethap.
And he is widely believed to be the founder of the Third dynasty.
One of the most famous contemporaries of King Djoser was his chief official, otherwise known as Vizier, Imhotep.
Who was the head of the royal shipyard and overseer of all stone works, a high priest to the Sun God Ra, a physician and talented architect and was later deified.

Construction on the step pyramid of Djoser began in 2670 BCE, construction was supervised by Imhotep, the pyramid was made from limestone and it’s near the centre of a funerary complex.
The funerary complex is oriented in a North-South direction, and it’s in total 15 hectares.
It used to be surrounded by an enclosing wall, in the known form of a palace facade, that included 15 doors of which 14 were symbolic and one was the true entrance.

The Step pyramid is located in a seismically active area and it gets affected by the frequent earthquakes.
The pyramid of Djoser stood strong for Millennia, until an earthquake of 5.8 on the Richter scale hit the area in 1992.
The elaborate interior of the pyramid significantly threatened the structural integrity because the foundation was nearly decimated by the earthquake.
So in the past 14 years the Pyramid of Djoser underwent a massive renovation which cost the Egyptian government 6.6 million US dollars.

Music: Adrian Von Ziegler – Relaxing Arabic music desert magic

footage:
Sources:
Trace the evolution of funerary architecture from the
Predynastic pit-grave, through the development of the mastaba tomb, up to (and including) the development of Djoser's Step Pyramid. By Ernesto Graf

Please leave a comment, like & subscribe!

[cottonwoodslim]

I especially enjoyed the cinematography in the video. Almost like visiting it myself. I learned a lot.

[Terry.W]

Very informative video ...Egypt is a place I have always wanted to visit..

[sevenodonata]

Hey! - the new intro really works in place! :D

[barrywalser]

I always enjoy your programs. Wonderful information. Keep them coming!

[atheistsince]

Flawless presentation! The Ancient Egyptians are an enigma that will never be solved I love how this video emphasizes the deep and perfect burial shafts . HOW DID THEY DIG those shirts without any powertools manually seems completely impossible and impractical a bridge too far . One could life 100 lifetimes and barely scratch the surface and complexity of this mother of all civilizations !

[alexalves]

Great video. I have jus become a follower. Thank you.

[SpiderTrev]

It's always good to have cats in videos especially if it's about Egypt.

[deandeann]

This is the best video on the step pyramid I have ever seen. I was not aware that so much of the temple structures outside the pyramid had survived to the present day. This is also the first video I have seen that showed a map of the extensive underground workings below the pyramid. I believe the maps show everything there is underground - I wonder if there are any tunnels that were left out? Thanks for an excellent job.
Ancient history is my hobby, first Roman, then Greek, then the history of Egypt and the Fertile Crescent.
Kayleigh - I wonder if you can find enough information on Semiramis and her tunnel under the Euphrates to make a video? There is a fascinating history behind the legend, she ruled at the dawn of history, almost a bit before. It is almost certain she was historical.

[jean-paulaudette]

5:11 That is a beautiful map! I'd love to have it for a desktop wallpaper.

[celwell]

Another really interesting and easy to follow history video, thanks Kayleigh, always look forward to your uploads.

[christopherperry]

Another good instructional video, this time on the history of Egypt.
Most of the important parts of Egypts history in just 20 mins. Reminds me of "A brief history of time" by Seven Hawkins, everything you need to know, condenced but explained clearly.
Well Done.

[steved]

Another great video. .. I'm forwarding most on to my 9yr old niece, hopefully she will watch them ... she's becoming a little " history nerd " as you put it ! ☺ ... can't believe I've only come across your channel in the past few days ... great presentation ... history, you AND a furry little friend, awesome 😊

[Duhnuhnuh]

Wow, I would love to be able to see it! That is so cool that you can actually go inside. And how fitting that your cat made an appearance!

[maplepotato]

NEW HISTORY VIDEO! 🧡 this one is super fascinating

[tomredd]

Really enjoyed the video. it was very comprehensive in your relaxed friendly way. I have always been fascinated by the stepped pyramid since grade school when I first read about it. I had no idea it was added to much like the Meso American pyramids that were made biggest and taller over the centuries. Thanks.

[davidosborne]

Hi Kayleigh
Wonderful Egyptian history lesson, well done and thank you!! Knowing the Egyptians love to record detail of who died I was looking at your pictures and other than cobra heads and writing on artifacts I saw no recording on the walls. Did I miss something?david🇨🇦

[RuneRelic]

6:48
125x 109x 62m Saqqara pyramid.

Given the sides vs height design intent using rational proportions and a 6 level platform height of a notional 7th level apex.
240 x 21"(28 finger) cubits = 4900.352" British (4900" Eratosthenes) = 124.469m
210 x 21"(28 finger) cubits = 4287.808" British (4287.5" Eratosthenes) = 108.910m
120 x 21"(28 finger) cubits = 2450.176" British (2450" Eratosthenes) = 62.234m
140 x 21"(28 finger) cubits = 2858.539" British (2858.3" Eratosthenes) = 72.607m
That would be the shen ring inch of 100 solar days march earth diameter, at 1 passus/s, using 25/8th Pi (Romano-Egyptian).

Interestingly, when amalgamating 63/20th Pi from whence 1, 575, 000, 000" derives, 25/8th and 22/7 pi values, with their associated gradients as hemispherical squares;
You end up with a 7 level pyramid with 25/8th and 63/20th boundary at the 5/7th height.
So following weekdays and weekends, the day of the sun would be at the apex ;)
Intersting given the nature of the Ben Ben and capstone.

Also... 7:55
I never understood the difference between 'turquoise' and blue for a long time. But it does matter, a lot, in Egypt.
The optical wavelength in nm is very important at 2^25 scale.

[jean-paulaudette]

"These holes let in the smell of the offerings presented, as well.'
I infer from this, that these people equated scent with a spiritual significance, or, at least, a conduit to communicate with those deceased. That's very interesting.

[OdariArt]

What's cool is this video was made on my birthday last year. :)

[jean-paulaudette]

7:43 Good gravy, that's beautiful! Imagine the skill needed, not to design it, but to excavate! I'm afraid to ask about trial-and-error. That's a mighty fortification! Were they using wood to reinforce the tunnels?