Archaeologists in Egypt have discovered a 4,600-year-old step pyramid which predates the Great Pyramid of Giza by several decades, they told a recent symposium in Toronto. The pyramid, in the ancient settlement of Edfu, was built from sandstone blocks and clay mortar and stands at 16 feet high with the original structure being closer to 40 feet high, say archaeologists. Known as a step pyramid, these structures were not used for royal burial and contain no inner chamber as the famous Giza pyramid. They are similar in design to the famous step pyramid built by Pharaoh Djoser (2670-2640 B.C.), reported the International Business Times. “The similarities from one pyramid to the other are really amazing, and there is definitely a common plan,” Gregory Marouard, a research associate at the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute who led the work at the Edfu pyramid, told LiveScience. Step pyramids are thought to have been been built by either Pharaoh Huni, who reigned from 2635-2610 BC, or Pharaoh Sneferu (2610-2590 BC), reported the International Business Times. Marouard and his team found Remains of food offerings on the east side of the pyramid site as well as hieroglyphics etched on the outer façade. Remains of buried babies and children were discovered at the foot of the structure, according to Marouard, his team believes that the remains were buried long after the pyramid was built. His team began work unearthing the structure in 2010, but only recently announced their findings at a meeting of the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities in Toronto. Nearby residents long believed that the structure was actually the tomb of a local Muslim saint, LiveScience reported. — Al Arabiya News
