BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

The Prince of Egypt at Saqqara

Tomb of Fifth Dynasty prince discovered

Granite offering tablet from the tomb of Userefre, a prince of Egypt. Courtesy Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Archaeologists at the site of Saqqara in northern Egypt revealed an impressive tomb belonging to Userefre, prince of Egypt and son of Pharaoh Userkaf (r. 2498–2491 BCE), founder of the Fifth Dynasty. Although the tomb’s grave goods and architectural elements make it an intriguing find, the presence of numerous royal statues from earlier and later periods makes the discovery all the more fascinating.

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Burying a Prince of Egypt

The giant false door of Userefre’s tomb. Courtesy Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Among the impressive finds from the tomb is the largest pink granite false door ever discovered. Measuring nearly 15 feet tall and 5 feet wide, the granite slab is decorated with hieroglyphic inscriptions detailing the prince of Egypt’s name and titles, which included: “Hereditary Prince, Governor of the Buto and Nekhbet Regions, Royal Scribe, Minister, Judge, and Chanting Priest.” Outside of the tomb’s true entrance—also worked in pink granite—are additional hieroglyphic carvings of the prince’s name and titles, as well as the cartouche of Pharaoh Neferirkare Kakai (r. 2477–2460 BCE), Userefre’s nephew. A red granite offering table inscribed with a list of offerings for the dead was also found, along with a group of 13 pink granite statues placed on a high-backed bench. Several of these statues, some of which were broken in antiquity, represented Userefre’s wives.

Not all of the finds in the tomb belonged to Userefre, however. Most surprising was the discovery of one of the first known statues of Pharaoh Djoser (r. 27th century BCE), owner of the Step Pyramid, the oldest pyramid in Egypt. Archaeologists also found statues of Djoser’s wife and ten daughters. According to researchers, these statues date several centuries before Userefre and were likely originally located inside the Step Pyramid. It is not certain how they ended up in Userefre’s tomb. A black granite statue from a much later period was also found in the tomb. Standing nearly 4 feet tall, the statue dates to the 26th Dynasty, which reigned almost two millennia later in the seventh and sixth centuries BCE. According to the team, the tomb was likely reused during that period.

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