MeidumMeidum is located on the west bank of the Nile in northern Egypt. Its cemetery represents the transition from the royal cemeteries of the Third Dynasty to those of the Fourth Dynasty. The cemetery has a pyramid and numerous mastabas, which are large, flat, rectangular tombs made of mud-brick or stone. The pyramid represents one stage in the transition from the step pyramid at Saqqara to the pyramids at Giza, which represent the peak of Egyptian pyramid building. It is thought that it was originally begun as a step pyramid built for Huni, the last pharaoh of the Third Dynasty. However, his son Snofru, the first pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty, completed and modified it, filling in the eight steps to create the flat surface of a true pyramid. The final structure was not sturdy and partially collapsed. The University of Pennsylvania Museum expedition to Meidum, from 1929 to 1932, focused on the pyramid and the surrounding cemetery. Objects on exhibit from the Meidum expedition are a bowl (see cat. no. 65), a headrest (see cat. no. 71a), the Broad Collar (see cat. no. 87), and the Offering Table (see cat. no. 100). |