 East side of the pyramid Sesostris ’II. | ||
| El-Lāhūn · اللاهون Ptolemais Hormou · Πτολεμαὶς Ὅρμου | ||
| Governorate | Faiyūm | |
|---|---|---|
| height | 31 m | |
no tourist info on Wikidata:  | ||
| location | ||
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El-Lahun, also Illahun, Arabic:اللاهون, al-Lāhūn, is a city and an archaeological site in the Faiyūm. It is located southeast of the egyptian city Madīnat el-Faiyūm, about 18 km from this city, east of the road from Madīnat el-Faiyūm to Beni Suef.
background
Sesostris II., 12th Dynasty (Middle Kingdom), begins cultivating the Faiyūm. So it is not surprising that he has placed his pyramid in the Faiyūm has relocated, south of the pyramid field was a large dam that served the water regulation.
The entrance to the pyramid is not on the north side, but below the mastaba 10 at the southeast corner of the pyramid. On the north side there are 8 rock mastabas and the queen pyramid. In one of the mastabas on the south side of the famous jewelery treasure of the Princess Sit-Hathor-Junet was found Egyptian Museum is on display.
1 km east of the pyramid is the Civil servants 'and workers' settlement "Kahun" (Kahun is an artificial name, there is no Egyptian settlement of this name; ancient Egyptian Hetep Senwosret (Sesostris is satisfied)). This planned city was built on an area of approx. 350 × 400 m and now represents the most important archaeological settlement of the Middle Kingdom. The city was founded in the time of Sesostris II and later housed those responsible for the cult of the dead on this pyramid Officials. Numerous finds have been made in this city, the most important of which is the temple archive of Kahun, which keeps a precise record of the administration of the temple from the time of Sesostris ’III. (Find by Petrie in 1889).
The necropolis itself has been in use from prehistoric times to Roman times. Here you can find mastaba and rock graves, especially in the west and southwest of the pyramid Sesostris ’II. And rock graves in the area between the pyramid and the city of Kahun. The most important grave was that of the pyramid builder Inepi.
getting there
You can get to this site by taxi. When visiting sites in Faiyūm, you will be accompanied by police officers.
mobility
The site can be explored on foot.
Tourist Attractions
Sesostris ’II pyramid district
- The 1 Pyramid Sesostris ’II of Lāhūn
has a base length of 107 m, the original height is estimated at 69 m, the current height is 48 m. A limestone skeleton was built on a rock core, which was filled with clay bricks. The limestone cladding is missing today. The location of the access road is unknown. Since July 1, 2019, the pyramid can also be viewed from the inside. - Kahun ancient city.
- Visit of Graves on the west side the pyramid.
Opening hours: 9 am–5pm. Admission price: LE 60, for foreign students LE 30 (as of 11/2019).
Sights in the city of el-Lāhūn
- 2 Weir of the Baibar from the time of Baibars I. (around 1223-1277). The weir is on the Nilometer Cairo Nile Island er-Rōḍa the second oldest preserved hydraulic structure from Islamic times.
- Baḥr Yūsuf, Josefskanal.
shop
kitchen
accommodation
There are hotels on the southern edge of the Qārūn Lake and in Madīnat el-Faiyūm.
trips
The pyramid field of Lāhūn can be combined with that of Hawara visit.
literature
Pyramid district of Sesostris ’I.
Baibars I dam
- : The Muslim Architecture of Egypt. Volume 2: Ayyūbids and Early Baḥrite Mamlūks; A.D. 1171-1326. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 1959, Pp. 173 f., Pl. 54. Reprinted in New York: Hacker Art Books, 1978.
